Swedish venture capital firm invest millions in padel — becomes one of the biggest actors

The Swedish venture capital company Triton makes big bets on padel. In recent months, the company has made over 30 acquisitions and has now launched the LeDap group, which will be one of the largest actors in the padel world. 

— We are convinced that padel is here to stay, says Per Agebäck, partner at Triton, in an interview with the Swedish newspaper Dagens Industri.  

One of the companies acquired by Triton is the Swedish actor We Are Padel (WAP), founded by former Formula 1 driver Marcus Ericsson, who has recently bought up many padel clubs in Sweden. WAP will now become part of the new LeDap Group, owned by the company Triton. 

Other companies that will become part of the LeDap group are Just Padel (Norway), Padel Club Finland, Padel Tampere, ProPadel (Finland), and PadelZone in Austria. By the end of 2022, the company now expects to have expanded to 200 clubs and over 1700 courts, doubling its current size. 

— We have become one of the largest and leading players. But we don't see other companies as competitors, at least not today. Anyone who is a friend of padel is a friend of LeDap. The big work is to increase interest in the sport and allow everyone to try padel. The fact that more people contribute to this is something we see as nothing but positive, Per Agebäck, partner at Triton and responsible for the company's consumer-related investments, says to Dagens Industri. 

According to the newspaper, Triton has invested around 2.5 billion Swedish crowns, about 250 million euros, to build up LeDap group. The former world star and longtime WPT worker Hernan Auguste is brought in as an advisor. 

— He will help us with our long-term vision, Per Agebäck says. 

Through all the acquisitions that Triton has made and formed LeDap, it has a presence in seven countries with a total of 90 clubs. Most are located in Sweden and other Nordic countries, but they are also present in Poland, Austria, and Estonia. 

— The idea has been with us for over a year, but since last spring, we have more actively spent time analyzing the market. Our first acquisition was completed in July, and since then, we have completed several new deals every week, Per Agebäck says.

Padel has grown rapidly in Sweden in recent years. According to the Swedish Padel Federation, by the end of 2020, there were more than 500 facilities in the country.

Pontus Gustafsson, Chairman of the Board of the Swedish company We Are Padel (WAP) and newly appointed CEO of LeDap:

"We love padel and are very excited about the partnership with Triton. We have worked side by side to create LeDap and see great opportunities to develop the sport in the future and expand and develop the cooperation with club activities so that more children and young people can have the opportunity to play padel. The sport today is characterized by a lot of passion and entrepreneurship. With LeDap, we bring a high level of ambition and a strategic approach that we are convinced will help the sport grow and professionalize globally."