14 April 24-April 30, 2025 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com New Times | music | cafe | Culture | Night+Day | News | Letters | coNteNts | PADEL FOR THE PEOPLE Reserve Padel’s new North Miami location is open to nonmembers. BY GENNA MARK S outh Florida is in the midst of a racquet sports renaissance, com- prising everything from padel pop-ups and high-profile clubs to the debut of the world’s first pickleball stadium in Fort Lauderdale. In March, Miami hosted the first-ever Premier Padel event in the United States. Reserve Padel, founded in Miami in 2023, has led the charge in bringing the popular Mexican sport to the U.S. and beyond. Re- serve Padel Solé Mia is now up and running in North Miami, and unlike its sister proper- ties on Watson Island and the Design District, it is open to nonmembers. Wayne Boich, the man behind the popular padel clubs, has witnessed the game’s popu- larity grow exponentially. “Miami has quickly become a hub for padel,” says the founder and CEO of Reserve. “The growth of Reserve has been a reflection of the growing demand for padel in the U.S. When we launched in Miami, we saw imme- diate interest from seasoned players and peo- ple picking up a racket for the first time.” Boich says the sport has found success here because it appeals to people of all skill levels, from first-timers to some of the GOATs to ever swing a racket. “Padel is the perfect combination of acces- sibility, competition, and social fun,” he says. “It’s easier to pick up than tennis but still dy- namic and challenging enough to keep people engaged. You can play at any skill level, and it’s a sport that naturally brings people to- gether, which is why it’s growing so fast, and you see athletes across different sports do- mains take a huge interest in it. Also, com- pared to other racket sports, it’s much more spectator-friendly.” While Reserve was ahead of the game in providing a place to learn and play the Mexi- can racket sport locally, it’s also become as much a social hub as a competitive one. “From the beginning, we knew Reserve was going to be more than just a place to play padel,” says Boich. “We wanted to create an experience that reflected a modern lifestyle, where health, wellness, and social connec- tions all come together.” Reserve has hosted fitness events with Pura Vida and collabo- rated on activations with clothing brands like Alo and AMI Paris. And as the sport has blossomed in the U.S. — seemingly overnight — so has Reserve Padel’s imprint on it. The club held its second successful Reserve Cup Tournament back in January. The event doesn’t just bring out the most prominent padel athletes to battle it out on the courts — some of the world’s top ath- letes and celebrities have also been spotted in the stands, including Derek Jeter, Dwyane Wade, Jimmy Butler, and David Beckham. Another bragging right: The club was re- cently named the training facility for Arturo Coello, the world’s top-ranked men’s padel player. But you don’t have to be the best in the game to hit the club’s courts. “One other thing we focused heavily on was being able to teach the sport to people,” says Boich. “Juan Martín Díaz, the world’s number one padel player for 14 years, is our chief padel officer. Alongside him, [former college and pro tennis player] Gabi Meana, who has been with us since the beginning, plays a crucial role in coaching and directing our club’s programming.” After its founding in Miami, Reserve has made its mark in other parts of the country. A members-only location is open in New York City’s Hudson Yards, and a second Manhat- tan club, which will welcome the public, is set to open this summer. And just like the club, the Reserve Cup is also hitting the road, with the tournament stopping in NYC and Los Angeles later this year. “Reserve Cup’s evolution into a multi-city series is just the beginning as we continue to in- troduce the sport to broader audiences,” says Boich. “Expanding to three major cities in 2025 allows us to bring that excitement to even more people while continuing to elevate the sport’s presence in the U.S. and internationally.” So what does this all mean for Reserve and the sport at large? According to Boich, it’s “only a matter of time” before we see it at the Olympics. “Padel has everything you’d want in an Olympic sport — it’s fast, it’s global, and it has a passionate following. As more coun- tries invest in the sport and more high-level tournaments are played worldwide, I think we’ll see it on the Olympic stage sooner rather than later.” Reserve Padel Solé Mia. 2251 NE 146th St., North Miami; 786-562-6189; reservepadel.com. Open daily, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. [email protected] ▼ Culture “The growth of Reserve has been a reflection of the growing demand for padel in the U.S.,” says founder and CEO Wayne Boich. Photo by Omar Vega for Reserve
