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How the fixture list is generated for a padel tournament

Why padel fixtures are grouped into rounds, why matches in a round start together, and where the court number comes from.

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Written by Maab Saleem

A padel fixture list is built in rounds, not in a single sequence. Matches in one round start together, on different courts.

This article's screenshots are a Swiss tournament. Americano, Mexicano and King of the Court are timed the same way. Round Robin is not - see Round Robin is timed differently below.

Where the fixtures are

  1. Open the tournament and select Schedule.

    The Schedule tab of a padel tournament, showing Round 1 to Round 4.

  2. Read the list. Each round has its own heading.

    The Group A card with four rounds, kicking off at 10:00, 10:20, 10:40 and 11:00.

  3. Read one round. Both its matches have the same kick-off time.

    Round 1 with two fixtures, both at 10:00, one on court 1 and one on court 2.

  4. Read one fixture. The third cell is the court.

    One padel fixture card with its court number outlined.

  5. Read Rules and regulations below the list. It explains how the pairs are drawn.

    The Swiss rules panel, listing seven rules about fixed teams, a set number of rounds and pairing by ranking.

How the times are worked out

This is how every padel format except Round Robin is timed.

  • Every match in a round shares one kick-off time.

  • The next round starts a match duration plus a gap between rounds later. With 10-minute matches and a 10-minute gap, the rounds are 20 minutes apart.

  • The gap is set in Format > Configuration. See "Bulk-scheduling padel rounds, courts and the gap between rounds".

How the courts are chosen

Scoryboard gives each match in a round its own court, counting up from 1. Four pairs make two matches per round, so only courts 1 and 2 are used even when the tournament has four.

The number of courts is what limits how many matches a round can hold. Set it lower and the round is split across two start times instead - Scoryboard will not put two matches on one court at once.

Round Robin is timed differently

A Round Robin padel tournament still lists its fixtures under ROUND headings. The times under those headings work another way.

  • Every match has its own kick-off time. The matches of a round do not start together.

  • The step from one match to the next is the match duration. With 10-minute matches the fixtures run ten minutes apart, all the way down the group.

  • Gap between rounds (minutes) does nothing here. The field is still on the Configuration dialog, and Round Robin ignores whatever you put in it.

  • Courts still count up from 1 and start again at 1. Two matches never share a court, because no two of them start together.

A Round Robin round is a block of matches played one after another, not a set played at once.

A round added later by the Continue banner is the exception, and it can put two matches on one court at one time. See "Why padel matches share a start time, and when that is a clash".

If it does not work

  • There are no fixtures. The format has not been saved yet. See "Choosing a format for a padel tournament".

  • Two matches share a start time. That is what a round is. It is only a problem if they also share a court - see "Why padel matches share a start time, and when that is a clash".

  • You see a flat list instead of rounds. A bulk update has turned the rounds off. Tick Same start time per round and update the group again.

  • Each match in a round has its own time. This is a Round Robin tournament - see Round Robin is timed differently.

  • You expected a pitch, not a court. Pitch is the football wording - see "How the fixture list is generated for a football tournament".

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