New York Grand Master, the A1 Padel's debut in the US
It was supposed to be scheduled in August but was postponed due to organizational reasons and court installation permits, but this time it's for real. Professional Padel is set to make its debut in the States, and for the first time, an official A1 circuit Padel tournament will be held in the Big Apple.
The location needs no introduction: A1 players will compete from October 9 to 15 at Wollman Rink in Central Park a veritable landmark for the New Yorkers and will thus bring to life the A1 New York Grand Master.
At a time when his circuit was struggling to leap, A1 founder Fabrice Pastor found strong support in Ike S. Franco, CEO of Infinity Sports and partner of the New York Yankees, a city institution even before a baseball team. Thus, an excited Pastor, was able to announce the event in NYC, and at the press conference for the presentation he made no secret of his enthusiasm: "We are writing the history of sports and padel by coming to the United States with the Yankees," Pastor said. "We will be prepared for this challenge. We are very happy to bring A1 Padel to the United States, and there is no better place to start than New York. Our mission is to promote padel as a sport that exemplifies true competition and builds a strong sense of community among sports fans."
The microphones then passed to Randy Levine, president of the New York Yankees, who stressed the importance of hosting for the first time in the United States, a professional tournament of the fastest-growing sport in recent years: "We would not put our brand and name on A1 Padel if we did not believe in this project. When I first met Fabrice, I met a fantastic person, who with A1 Padel has created an organization unlike any other in the way it treats players. We see this as a huge opportunity to be involved in a sport that is growing."
We are therefore facing a truly historic moment for the world of Padel, which thanks to this event will also get a decisive boost in the U.S. Moreover, just the idea of seeing the best players in the world compete on the courts in the shadow of New York's skyscrapers, in one of the most iconic places in the world, gives us an unequivocal understanding of the direction in which Padel is going. We are sure that it will be just the first of many and that seeing Premier Padel in the Big Apple, too, will only be a matter of time.
