By Kevin Rademeyer, Sports Journalist.
Photo Credit: Premier Padel// Mariano Castro.
The clay is gone. In its place, beneath the familiar red brickwork of Roland Garros, sits a blue 20 by 10 metre court enclosed by glass. Philippe Chatrier, so closely associated with tennis, has another sport to accommodate this week.
The Alpine Paris Major Premier Padel has arrived, bringing the world’s leading pairs to the French capital and a tournament that has quickly established itself as one of the important dates on the calendar.
There is plenty at stake. More than €1 million in prize money is on offer, along with 2,000 ranking points for the champions. But the appeal of Paris is rather more tangible than that. Winning on Chatrier carries its own weight.
Since the first edition in 2022, the tournament has become a fixture at Roland Garros. This year’s event features 112 pairs, 60 in the men’s draw and 52 in the women’s, representing 16 countries. It is another indication of how quickly padel has moved beyond its traditional strongholds.
France is now a significant part of that growth. Figures from the French Tennis Federation show that by the end of 2025 the country had around 850,000 players and 4,000 courts.
At the top of the men’s draw, Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia are chasing a fourth successive Paris title. The Golden Boys arrive with something to prove after their unexpected quarter final defeat to Coki Nieto and Mike Yanguas in Madrid.
Their advantage over Ale Galán and Fede Chingotto in the FIP Race has also been trimmed to 470 points after the Spanish and Argentine pairing won the Madrid P1. Coello and Tapia have already claimed the Italy Major this season, but Paris offers them an opportunity to reassert their authority.
Chingotto and Galán, meanwhile, have momentum. They were the only team among the leading four to survive the quarter finals in Madrid and went on to take the title. Their record has become particularly striking: whenever Coello and Tapia have failed to reach a final, Chingalán have won the tournament.
Galán knows what winning in Paris feels like, having taken the inaugural title with Juan Lebrón in 2022. Chingotto has reached all four finals played at Roland Garros without lifting the trophy. For him, that history will be difficult to ignore.
The battle around the other leading places is just as significant. Franco Stupaczuk and Jon Sanz currently occupy fourth spot, having won the FIP Gold in Belgrade, while Yanguas and Nieto are looking to recover from their Madrid run. The pressure of the ranking will follow both pairs through the week.
In the women’s draw, Gemma Triay and Delfi Brea arrive as defending champions and the team to beat. Their Madrid victory was their sixth title of the season and extended an extraordinary first year together.
Since joining forces at the beginning of 2025, they have won four of the five Majors played. The only final they lost came in Mexico last November, against Claudia Fernández and Bea González.
Triay has also been rewriting her own record book. Her Madrid triumph took her level with Alejandra Salazar on 58 titles and made her the first player to reach 200 Premier Padel victories at the age of 34.
González and Paula Josemaría will provide the strongest challenge. Josemaría has already won at Roland Garros in 2023 and 2024 alongside Ari Sánchez. González, however, has yet to reach a final here.
Their Madrid final showed how fine the margins have become. González and Josemaría led before Triay and Brea recovered to win 7 6, 3 6, 3 6. Paris gives them another chance to close the gap at the top.
For the French players, though, the week is about something simpler. Making an impression at home.
Eight French players have reached the main draw. Alix Collombon, ranked 36th, is the highest placed woman and will remember her quarter final run in Paris in 2023. Léa Godallier arrives in good form after winning four CUPRA FIP Tour events during the summer.
Dylan Guichard is the leading French man at No. 85. He will play alongside Belgium’s Clement Geens, and there is evidence that he can trouble the best. In Riyadh, Guichard pushed Coello and Tapia to a deciding set.
That belief was rewarded on Philippe Chatrier when Guichard and Geens demolished Javi Ruiz and José Pineda 6 0, 6 2 in less than an hour. “It was a dream for me to reach this level on such an incredible court. I’m very proud to get the win in front of my family. I hope I made them happy,” Guichard said.
Timeo Fonteny, just 19 and a four time French junior champion, also gave the home crowd something to remember. Alongside Nacho Moragues, he beat José Luis González and Álvaro Meléndez 6 -1, 6- 4.
Then came Thomas Leygue, whose route to the main draw had already been hard earned. After eight months recovering from an Achilles tendon rupture, the Aix en Provence native returned to competition and reached the second round with Jesús Moya after a 7- 6, 6 -4 victory over Enzo Jensen and David Gala.
“The dream continues,” Leygue said.
There was more behind those words. “I want to thank everyone who supported me when I was struggling. There were moments when I got back to competition where I felt I didn’t know how to play padel. It’s amazing, this could be the best win of the year and our dream isn’t over yet.”
The reward is a meeting with Sanyo Gutiérrez and Juanlu Esbrí.
Guichard and Geens have an even bigger obstacle. Juan Lebrón and Leo Augsburger await.
For Fonteny, the next test is Alex Arroyo and José Jimenez, the 14th seeds who reached the quarter finals in Madrid.
The French contingent has already made itself heard. Now comes the harder part.
The world’s best pairs are waiting on the other side of the net. And on Chatrier, with the blue court glowing beneath the glass, there is nowhere for anyone to hide.