During the day organized by theSpanish Tourist Office au Paris Major 2025, we met Iñaki Etxegia Centenera, sales manager of the Juan Carlos Ferrero AcademyBetween tennis and padel, he shared with us the vision of the academy, located in Villena (province of Alicante), and its connection with the Spanish legend Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Promoting Spain as a padel destination

“Thank you to Tourspain for inviting us and organizing these meetings. The goal is to raise awareness of padel in Spain and to take advantage of an event like the Paris Major, one of the most important on the circuit. Padel is growing rapidly, and we are offering amateur players and future professionals the opportunity to come and train in Spain.”, explains Iñaki.

While tennis has historically remained at the heart of the academy, padel is taking on an increasingly important role. The goal: to welcome a diverse audience, from enthusiasts to players seeking to reach the highest level.

Alicante, an ideal setting

Situated at VillenaLocated on the border between Alicante, Valencia, Murcia and Albacete, the academy benefits from a privileged setting.
"It's a magnificent region, with its vineyards, castles, rural tourism... and of course its beaches. The advantage is that it's a little less crowded than Madrid or Barcelona, ​​while still offering an exceptional quality of life.", the sales manager points out.

Juan Carlos Ferrero and padel

While the Juan Carlos Ferrero Academy is world-renowned for tennis – particularly thanks to the success of Carlos Alcaraz, trained locally –, its founder also has a special connection with padel.
“Juan Carlos has always been competitive. After his tennis career, he played padel, even competitively, at a time when the circuit was still concentrated in Spain. He forged links with padel professionals, and that's how we launched our academy dedicated to this sport.”

Among the players who have passed through Villena, there are even Paula Josemaría, the current world number 1, came to train two years ago.

A vision focused on the future

Although Ferrero is now understandably more involved in his coaching duties with young tennis talents, he remains committed to padel and continues to promote it. "It's a sport he loves, one he has practiced with passion. Even though he has had to dedicate himself to other priorities, padel remains for him a natural extension of competition.", concludes Iñaki Etxegia.

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