How the ACPL college padel league works
ACPL is a league, not a tournament series. Member schools play a scheduled season, qualify through Regional Championships in one of four divisions, and send four champions to the National Finals.
Is there a college padel league in the United States?
Yes —
the American Collegiate Padel League (ACPL) is the first national college padel league in the United States. Founded in 2025, it lets students compete for their universities across four regional divisions — Atlantic, Sunshine, Lone Star and Pacific — through a full season that ends in a national championship. Season 1 is underway and ends with the National Finals in March 2027.
Campus padel clubs and one-off collegiate tournaments have existed in the US for years. What did not exist was a league: a scheduled season, a qualification path, and a single national title at the end of it. That is what ACPL is.
The road to Nationals
One season, four phases, one national champion.
October
City Invitationals & Challenger Series
The season opens city by city. At each City Invitational, schools play a one-day round-robin as teams of three lines, and the winner goes through to its Regional. The Challenger Series puts two schools head to head.
Oct–Nov
Regional Championships
Two days, one champion per division. Win your region, punch your ticket to Nationals.
Dec–Feb
The Climb to March
Four division champions are locked in and the winter belongs to the rest of the league — Courtside pop-ups keep rolling, new cities and new schools, all the way to March.
March
National Finals
Four regional champions, one destination, two days of padel. Saturday's round-robin sets the field; Sunday crowns the first-ever ACPL National Champion.
Four divisions
Every school competes in its region. Win your division at the Regional Championships and you are through to the National Finals.
Atlantic
The East Coast
The densest cluster of ACPL schools — the founding cohort came out of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.
Regional · NOV 22–23
Boston · PadelHub
Sunshine
Florida
Padel's deepest US market by court count, and the fastest-growing college scene in the league.
Regional · NOV 7–8
Miami · PadelX
Lone Star
Texas
Anchored by the Dallas–Austin–Houston triangle, where new courts keep opening.
Regional · NOV 14–15
Austin · Padel Club Austin
Pacific
The West
California-led, with the Southwest folded in. The newest region and the most open field.
Regional · OCT 24–25
Los Angeles · The Padel Courts
Every Regional Championship runs over two days. The National Finals are in March 2027, in Miami. The Court Report carries every result.
The practical questions
- Who can play in ACPL?
- Any enrolled college or university student in the United States, at any skill level. No prior padel experience is required, and your school does not need courts on campus.
- What does it cost to join ACPL?
- Registering a school is free. Player membership is $25 per year.
- Does my campus need its own padel courts?
- No. Most ACPL teams play at nearby host clubs rather than on campus. Court access is one of the things the league helps you sort out.
That’s how the league works. The rest of ACPL is on the main page.
Back to ACPL home