The International Padel Federation (FIP) has published a new Code of Ethics and Disciplinary Code, approved at its 36th General Assembly at the Spanish Olympic Committee in Madrid on 12 October. The Disciplinary Code took effect the following day.
Paid partnerships
The headline change targets a practice that has drawn criticism on the professional circuit. Paying a partner to play with you in a tournament, or being paid to partner someone, is now sanctionable. FIP’s reasoning is that padel is played in pairs, so buying a place alongside a stronger player undermines the integrity of the competition and sporting ethics.
The ban sits in the Code of Ethics. FIP’s Disciplinary Code classes a breach of the Code of Ethics as a very serious offence, or as a serious one where the breach is less grave. Sanctions available against players include fines, loss of ranking points and exclusion from FIP competitions for between two months and five years. Disciplinary decisions are published on FIP’s website.
Fines and appeals
The new Disciplinary Code lists fines as a sanction without setting a maximum. PadelSpain reports that the previous ceiling was €30,000. Appeals, which PadelSpain says were previously free, now cost €250. The fee is refunded if the appeal succeeds.
Disciplinary bodies also have wider discretion. Where no specific rule applies, they can sanction conduct contrary to fair play, loyalty or integrity, grading it as very serious, serious or minor.
Medical withdrawals
When a player uses a medical certificate to justify not playing, FIP’s disciplinary bodies can now request more information or refer the certificate to an independent doctor for assessment.
Match-fixing and betting cases fall under FIP’s separate Code on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions, which the ethics code now refers to directly.
National teams
PadelSpain reports that delegates also discussed tighter limits on countries fielding players from elsewhere, citing the United Arab Emirates’ use of Spanish players, with changes expected for 2027. FIP has not published any new eligibility rules. Its current regulations already require permanent nationality, plus birth, family ties or between three and five years’ residence for naturalised players. Federations can ask FIP’s board for exceptions for up to two players per competition.
FIP also outlined the FIP World League, a competition for national teams that do not take part in the FIP World Cup, with details to follow. The assembly admitted 15 new federations, which brings FIP’s membership to 115.
What to watch
FIP’s disciplinary decisions are published, so the first paid-partnership case will show how seriously the new rule will be enforced. On national teams, the question is whether FIP rewrites its eligibility rules or tightens the board exceptions federations already use.
Sources: FIP Code of Ethics and Disciplinary Code (approved 12 October 2026); FIP eligibility regulations; FIP (13 October 2026); PadelSpain (15 October 2026)
