The competitiveness of the new-look Padel County Cup was clear to see in the Over 60s category, as both the Men’s and Women’s finals culminated in an exciting championship shootout.
Photo: UK PADEL
The first event under the new Padel County Cup banner concluded at Rocket Padel Bristol on Sunday, with East Scotland, Yorkshire and Surrey taking the three main Over 60 titles.
Delivered by UK PADEL in partnership with the LTA, the three-day competition brought together more than 200 players for Mixed, Women’s and Men’s county competition.
Both Sunday’s Men’s and Women’s Navarro finals required championship shootouts. Surrey defeated Gloucestershire to take the Men’s title, while Yorkshire overcame East Scotland in the Women’s competition.
East Scotland had secured the Mixed title on Saturday, coming through a championship shootout against Yorkshire in the semi-final before beating Gloucestershire 2-0 in the final.
OVER 60 PADEL COUNTY CUP – NAVARRO RESULTS
|
Competition |
Champions |
Runners-up |
|
Mixed |
East Scotland |
Gloucestershire |
|
Women’s |
Yorkshire |
East Scotland |
|
Men’s |
Surrey |
Gloucestershire |
Mark Ayers, UK PADEL Director of Events, said: “The standard is noticeably improving year on year and we saw that throughout the weekend. To have both the Men’s and Women’s finals go to championship shootouts shows how close the competition is becoming.
“Players care about representing their counties and there is genuine competition on court, but the event retains the social side and sense of community that has been there from the beginning.”
Alongside the top-tier Navarro competition, the second-tier Bela category provides a route into county competition for newer and developing teams. Named after Fernando Belasteguín, one of the most successful players in padel history, the Bela competition saw Kent win the Women’s event and Cheshire take the Men’s title.
The two-tier format is designed to allow the County Cup to grow alongside the sport, creating opportunities for developing counties while maintaining an increasingly competitive top division.
Neil Percival, COO of UK PADEL, said: “We started the County Championships because we saw an opportunity to create a team competition around county identity. It is good to see that now moving into its next stage as the Padel County Cup with the LTA.
“The Over 60 event also demonstrates padel’s strength, that people can continue to compete seriously, represent a team and enjoy the social side of sport well into later life. The quality of the padel this weekend showed that very clearly.”
LTA Head of Padel Tom Murray said: “It was great to see the new padel County Cup get underway in Bristol. The level of competition on show in both competition categories from all counties is testament to how padel is developing not just in open categories but other age groups as well. Congratulations to all those who took part.”
Partners connect with an active Over 60 audience
New event partner Lateral attended throughout the weekend, with its health insurance proposition specifically designed for active people over 60 making the County Cup audience particularly relevant.
Lauralu UK & Ireland was also on site, talking with players, clubs and operators about its work providing padel canopy and covered-court solutions. The on-site presence of both partners forms part of UK PADEL’s approach to creating activations that allow sponsors to engage directly with relevant communities around its events.
Audience grows beyond the venue
UK PADEL produced live and digital coverage throughout the competition,
generating nearly 15,000 Live YouTube views across the coverage of the event. Coverage included the closing stages, championship shootouts and interviews with the winning Surrey and Yorkshire teams.
Across the wider build-up and event campaign, UK PADEL content generated towards 200,000 social views, including match clips, player interviews and previous County Championship moments.
Attention now turns to the Open Padel County Cup from 13–15 November 2026, when the leading county teams return for the Open Mixed, Women’s and Men’s competitions.
Event partners
The Over 60 Padel County Cup was delivered by UK PADEL in partnership with the LTA, with support from Lateral, HEAD, Hexa Padel, Lauralu UK & Ireland, Bilko Print and Shandy Shack.
With thanks to UK PADEL
