The first fully indoor padel club is coming to Manchester later this year and is set to open just a 10-minute walk from Victoria Station for anyone looking to come into town for a game.
Seemingly one of the biggest crazes on the planet at the minute, while this is by no means the first padel facility to open in Greater Manchester, it is set to be the only place where you’ll be able to play the increasingly popular tennis-lite sport inside anywhere in the city centre.
With an existing site down the road in Alderely Park, Macclesfield, Pure Padel has already grown a loyal following since opening back in October 2023, but by bringing their expertise nice and central, their super accessible ‘pay to play’ approach is sure to take off even more.
You can see the renders of what the space is set to look down below:
As you can see, the state-of-the-art setup will include six indoor panoramic padel courts and a mezzanine viewing platform to watch all the action.
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But there’s much more to this place than just playing surfaces.
Set to include a pro-padel shop, a bistro-style café and bar; fully equipped changing rooms with showers, plus the comfortable seating are upstair on the mezz, there’s a bit of everything going on here.
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Further still, Pure Padel has ambitious plans to build another 30 padel clubs in the next five years, with eight currently in planning and a further 15 in the pipeline, with further expansion across their home county of Cheshire.
Plus, there’ll be free onsite parking and WiFi at available to customers at this latest location – sounds simple but it’s always a nice bonus.
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Set up by two experienced padel coaches – originally from mainland Europe where the game first took off – you can also rest easy in knowing that you’re getting the very experience of the sport you could hope for when Pure Padel lands in Manchester city centre.
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Co-founder and head of commercial operations, Sammy Arora, said: “Padel has taken the UK by storm – and the North West is slowly becoming a padel hub after leaders London and Bristol who set the scene…
“We hope bringing indoor padel to Manchester will help make it even more accessible to those living and working closeby. Currently, north Manchester residents are travelling as far as Huddersfield, so we know there’s demand for more padel courts in the city centre that are reachable by car and public transport.
“Choosing a site so close to Victoria station is a real asset – we hope it’ll help bring players into the city centre who will go on to spend on hospitality and shopping to further support the local economy.”
Sammy went on to add: “Manchester’s cold and wet climate (fair point) makes our indoor proposition even more attractive to players who are looking to keep up padel year round. Unpredictable weather can really impact the game, so a club away from the elements ensures the best playing experience.”
Having got hooked on the sport back in Milan, he added: “It’s fantastic to see such a broad mix of people picking it up, from those who no longer play fast paced racket sports like squash and tennis, or those wishing to step away from work for exercise and to socialise.”
Scheduled to open this August, you’ll be able to book courts simply through Playtomic from 7am right through to 10pm, with the easy to use app also enabling first timers or solo players to find and play with others of a similar level and matches them accordingly for a fun and fair game.
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No member fees either, just plain old fun and the ability to play as much or as little as you want without the constraints of the traditional sports club model. See you on the court some time soon!
Pep Guardiola confirms Manchester City star Rodri will be out for the season
Danny Jones
Bad news for Manchester City fans as the club has now confirmed what everyone was dreading: Rodri will be out for the rest of the season.
Things didn’t look good when the Spaniard was substituted during last week’s game against Arsenal after colliding with fellow midfielder Thomas Partey during a corner and given that he hadn’t long come back from his previous injury, supporters were already fearing the worst.
Rodri has been a linchpin in the middle of the park for Man City ever since he joined back in 2019, going on to win the hallowed Treble and four Premier League title wins in a row, not to mention Euro 2024 – safe to say that even for all their quality, the team doesn’t tick over quite the same without him.
Breaking the news during his press conference ahead of City’s trip to Newcastle this weekend, when asked about the exact nature of the previously unconfirmed injury, manager Pep Guardiola simply shook his head and said: “Next season he will be here. This season is over [for him].
Speaking on Friday, 27 September, the Catalan coach explained, “He had surgery this morning, ACL and some meniscus” but sadly there looks to be no hope of his returning for the remainder of this campaign.
Pep went on to add: “Unfortunately, he got the worst. It is what it is. We are here to support him – good recovery, step by step and move forward.
This comes after the seasoned CDM suffered a fairly serious hamstring injury during the Euros final which already saw him sidelined for the start of the 24/25 season and while City do have the likes of Gundogan and Kovacic to share those duties, it doesn’t get much worse than a cruciate ligament tear.
Guardiola did insist that they have no other player quite like Rodri in their squad, no matter how healthily stocked, and that they will simply have to try and do their best “to find a way [to replace him]” with other talents in the team.
Even prior to the severity of the ligament injury being fully revealed, his national team and former clubs such as Villareal sent messages of support, with fans, players and everyone in football alike knowing how serious an ACL injury can be, especially for someone at this particular point in his career.
As if player fitness and well-being weren’t already a pressing concern in recent times, it was only earlier this month that Rodri spoke about the ever-increasing number of games.
In short, the number 16 says “It’s too much” and whether people see it as a sport or a business, someone needs to start looking after the “main characters”.
Fair to say with the overall average number of injuries jumping up each year and with incidents like this now having put an end to his season, he might have a point…
You can watch Pep’s pre-match press conference ahead of the match against Newcastle this Saturday down below:
Ultimate Performance: the global gym group living up to their name and thriving here in Manchester
Danny Jones
Gyms are ten a penny here in Greater Manchester, but there’s something to be said for a fitness brand that can operate on a global scale whilst still delivering that smaller, more bespoke feel that you only get from personal trainer-focused facilities – say hello to Ultimate Performance.
With a total of 24 locations all over the world, the Ultimate Performance gym group is much more than just another chain; the UP approach is becoming its own fitness phenomenon, with countless high-profile clients, write-ups in health and wellness outlets and consistent results across the board.
Better still, if you’re a Manc looking to get in the best shape of your life, their Manchester location is based right in the heart of the city and of the centre’s most exciting districts, so you’re well-placed to get your transformation underway whenever you ready.
Priding themselves on not only being the “home of the world’s leading personal trainers in Manchester” but also delivering value for money by the time you’ve achieved your fitness goals. So, what exactly is it that sets them apart?
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Well, for starters, given the scope of the company and its growing reputation, Ultimate Performance locations are typically much bigger than most and their programmes are more comprehensive than most other gyms where you pay a monthly membership fee.
At the other end of the spectrum, they also promise a much more expansive offering than regular PTs and boutique gyms, both in terms of the facilities and infrastructure as well as in how their clients are looked after.
Rather than just being paired with an available instructor, time is taken to ensure you find the right match when it comes to your trainer and the workouts you take on, with clients being given proper supervision/programming that is geared towards very specific outcomes without being babied.
You only have to hear it from the numerous testimonials taken from their Manchester clients alone to understand the kind of experience you’ll receive at an Ultimate Performance gym.
They’ve had a fair share of famous faces vouch for the quality of coaching too, from the likes of Hollywood A-lister Glen Powell over in the States to Gemma Atkinson here in Manchester.
To put things into perspective when you simply Google ‘best gym Manchester‘ you’ll not only find round-up articles like ours but also several results for Ultimate Performance specifically.
If you Google “best gym Manchester” which is how we found you guys! UP make most of the other lists, if you wanna read a few to get more of a sense this might help – we didn’t pay for these they happened naturally.
From personalised UP free weights, high-end equipment and other little touches that let you know they mean business, they give you everything you need to transform your body or lay the foundations for lifelong health.
The only question left is are you ready and how seriously are you willing to take it?
Ultimate Performance is the gym in Manchester to join if you want to stick to your plan and achieve whatever goals you set yourself, from fat loss to muscle building to general health, with some of the world’s best personal trainers coaching from here.