Cupra FIP Finals Head to Tarragona: 32 Pairs, December 3-6

The FIP's own season finale finally has a home. On Thursday the International Padel Federation announced that the Cupra FIP Finals will be held at the Palau d'Esports Catalunya in Tarragona from December 3 to 6, 2026. That makes it a Catalan double for December: a week later, the Qatar Airways Premier Padel Finals take over the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona from December 10 to 13.

Format: 32 pairs, four days, no margin for error

The Tarragona event brings together 32 pairs, 16 in the men's draw and 16 in the women's. Entry is based on the FIP Ranking. Winners of FIP Platinum tournaments this season get priority entry, provided they sign up with the same partner they won with.

The schedule is short. The round of 16 takes up Thursday, December 3, with 16 matches over two sessions. The quarter-finals follow on Friday with eight matches, also split into two sessions. Saturday's semi-finals are played in a single session, and Sunday, December 6, closes the season with both finals back to back.

The race to Tarragona is already on

The fight for places is already shaping events this week. At the FIP Gold in Melilla, Maximiliano Arce and Juan Tello opened with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Hugo Jiménez and Leo Cano. The FIP described the Argentine pair as dreaming of the Finals. They have a strong case for priority entry, having won the FIP Platinum in Paredes in June together. Eduardo Alonso and Aimar Goñi, and Jairo Bautista and Lucas Bergamini, also got through their openers in Melilla in straight sets.

The organisers are also pushing a local angle. The FIP pointed to Pol Hernández, 37th in the FIP Race, as the leading Catalan contender in the men's draw. On the women's side, Jana Montes (32nd), Laia Rodríguez and Noa Cánovas are all chasing a spot. If any of them qualify, the Palau d'Esports would have home players to cheer.

Tarragona doubles down on padel

This is not Tarragona's first big padel event. The same arena hosted the Cupra Costa Daurada Premier Padel P1 from late July to early August 2025. That was the first regular-season Premier Padel stop in Catalonia, and local officials point to the crowds it drew as the reason padel is back.

"We are delighted that top-level padel is returning to Tarragona," said Berni Álvarez, the Catalan government's minister for sport. He added that the public response last year had been positive. Tarragona mayor Rubén Viñuales called it "great news that the world's best padel is returning to Tarragona this December." Mario Soler, the city's councillor for sport, said the city was "delighted that this major event has chosen Tarragona as its host city."

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FIP president Luigi Carraro said the event "will bring together some of the finest talents in international padel." Vale Pino, deputy for people and talent at the provincial council, said the region was "demonstrating its ability to host major international sporting events."

What comes before December

The FIP has not yet published prize money or broadcast details. Tickets are already on sale through the event's official ticketing site. Several stops remain before the line-ups are set, starting with the final weekend in Melilla, where the quarter-finals and semi-finals are scheduled for Friday and the finals for Saturday, October 24.

The top players, meanwhile, head to the Gulf. The Premier Padel Kuwait Major runs from October 26 to 31 and offers 2,000 ranking points. It is followed by the Dubai P1 and the Mexico Major before the Barcelona Finals close the season. For FIP Tour regulars, the deadline that matters most comes earlier: the cut for Tarragona on December 3.