Compagnie des Alpes Acquires Stake in PadelCity

(eap) French tourism and leisure group Compagnie des Alpes (CdA) has acquired a 33.9 percent equity stake in German company PadelCity and has also secured options enabling it to take majority ownership from 2028 and ultimately acquire the company in full by the end of 2030. Having already acquired the French Urban Group, an operator of five-a-side football facilities, in 2024, CdA intends to use its investment in PadelCity to further pursue its expansion strategy and establish itself as the European market leader for leisure sports facilities specialising in these activities.

Founded in 2022 and based in Munich, PadelCity already had 17 centres with a total of 117 courts in its portfolio by the end of 2025. Most of its locations are situated in Germany, a rapidly growing market for the increasingly popular sport of padel. By the end of this year, the operator plans to run around 40 padel centres with a total of 350 courts, not only in its domestic market but also in Austria and Poland. Its annualised revenue run rate is expected to reach around EUR 50 million by the end of 2026.

CdA has invested EUR 20 million to acquire its approximately one-third stake in PadelCity, including EUR 12 million through a capital increase. Based on the anticipated market growth in five-a-side football and padel, the combined activities of Urban Group and PadelCity are expected to generate revenue of close to EUR 150 million by 2029. CdA already operates or is planning corresponding facilities in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Portugal, Poland and Austria.

Dominique Thillaud, CEO of Compagnie des Alpes, explained: “[...] By participating in the expansion of this market, we are further advancing our ambition to become the leading operator of five-a-side football and padel centres in Europe. This transaction also strengthens our presence in the leisure sector in Germany and Austria, two countries where we already operate leisure parks, while providing us with an entry into Poland, an extremely dynamic market that remains significantly underpenetrated. [...]”

François Fassier, Director of the Leisure Parks Division of Compagnie des Alpes, added: “Through PadelCity, we are delighted to support the development of padel in Germany, as well as in Poland and Austria, a geographic footprint that is highly complementary to that of Urban Group. [...] With Urban Group, urban and peri-urban leisure sports activities practised on a regular basis have already established a natural place within Compagnie des Alpes, and more specifically within our Leisure Parks Division. PadelCity provides us with an opportunity to accelerate this strategy.”

Originally founded in 1989 to support the development of French ski resorts, Compagnie des Alpes today operates several mountain resorts in the French Alps as well as a portfolio of leisure parks and other visitor attractions in countries such as France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Austria. In Germany, the group acquired the BELANTIS leisure park near Leipzig from Spanish operator Parques Reunidos last year. The park is now undergoing a transformation into a “German Parc Astérix” (cf. EAP news of 28 May 2026). ■