The format in one minute
An Americano is a social padel tournament where you change partner every round. The aim is for every player to partner every other player once and to face as many different opponents as possible. You play for yourself: the points your side wins in a game are added to your personal total.
The player with the most points after the last round wins. If two players are level, the usual tie-breaker is point difference (points won minus points lost), then number of games won.
Scoring
Instead of games and sets, each match is played to a fixed number of total points. Every rally is one point, and the match ends when the two sides' points add up to the total.
- 32 points – the club standard. About 12–15 minutes. A 20–12 result gives both winners 20 points and both losers 12.
- 24 points – about 10 minutes. Good when you have many players and few courts.
- 16 points – about 6–8 minutes. For short sessions or junior events.
With a time limit instead of a points total, you play until the whistle and write down the score as it stands. Scores then don't have to add up to a fixed number.
Serving
Each player serves four points in a row, then the serve moves to the other side. After 16 points all four players have served once; in a 32-point game everyone serves twice. Change ends every 8 points if there is sun or wind on one side.
Sit-outs
A court needs exactly four players. With 5, 6 or 7 players on one court, or 10 players on two courts, some players sit out each round. A fair schedule rotates the sit-outs so everyone plays the same number of games. Players who sit out score nothing that round, which is why the schedule must even it out over the tournament.
Mixed and Team Americano
Mixed Americano: every pair is one man and one woman. Partners still rotate, so each man plays with each woman once.
Team Americano: pairs are fixed and play a round robin against the other pairs. Points go to the team. This works well as a club league over several evenings.
How many rounds?
The table shows a balanced schedule where everyone plays the same number of games, with one court per four players and 32-point games (about 15 minutes per round including the change of courts).
| Players | Courts | Sit out | Rounds | Games each | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 h 45 min |
| 5 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 h 15 min |
| 6 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 1 h 30 min |
| 7 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 1 h 45 min |
| 8 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 1 h 45 min |
| 9 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 8 | 2 h 15 min |
| 10 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 8 | 2 h 30 min |
| 11 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 8 | 2 h 45 min |
| 12 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 2 h 45 min |
| 13 | 3 | 1 | 13 | 12 | 3 h 15 min |
| 14 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 12 | 3 h 30 min |
| 15 | 3 | 3 | 15 | 12 | 3 h 45 min |
| 16 | 4 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 3 h 45 min |
| 20 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 19 | 4 h 45 min |
Short on time? Drop to 24 points, or set a fixed number of rounds. PadelRounds still keeps the games as even as possible.
Want closer games? Try a Mexicano, where every round is drawn from the standings.
Run it on the night
- Print the plan and put it on the court door or the club wall.
- Use the round timer: a loud whistle starts the round, a horn ends it.
- Type scores on your phone as games finish; standings update live.
- Print the results for the winners' photo, and keep the stats for next time.