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Padel: SKEMA defends its title in Grasse at the French business schools championship
On 17 and 18 April, the All In Country Club will host the 2026 final of the French padel championship for business schools. Organised this year by SKEMA Business School, the defending champion, the competition will bring together the strongest student teams on the French Riviera.
Over two days, 48 players from leading French business schools will compete across 16 men’s teams and eight mixed teams. The line-up includes HEC Paris, ESSEC Business School, ESCP Business School, emlyon business school, TBS Education and Clermont School of Business.
Seven teams entered by SKEMA
SKEMA Business School alone will field seven teams from three campuses: Sophia Antipolis will enter two men’s teams and one mixed team, Lille two men’s teams and one mixed team, while Paris will present one men’s team.
In the men’s draw, the competition will begin with four groups of four teams before moving into straight knockout rounds. In the mixed event, two groups will determine the semi-finalists before the final. Two titles will be awarded over the weekend.
The school enters this edition with a distinct status. Last year, SKEMA secured a one-two finish ahead of emlyon. That result earned it the right to organise this year’s final, under the rule that assigns hosting duties to the previous winner. On home ground, the school intends to defend its standing.
A high level of competition
The sporting standard is expected to be high. Several players entered hold strong national rankings, including SKEMA’s top player, currently placed around 55th in France. With committed student athletes and experienced competitors on court, the matches are expected to be intense.
The event carries the backing of the Fédération Française du Sport Universitaire, which will provide the trophies, with support from Babolat and Permifast, partners of the competition, who will equip and reward participants.
The choice of Grasse offers a setting suited to the scale reached by this final. The All In Country Club, owned by the group founded by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, features 12 courts, including four indoor and eight outdoor, in a venue that has become a recognised reference for padel on the French Riviera.
On the organisational side, the team mobilised on the Sophia Antipolis campus brings together sports lecturers Nathalie Sanchez and Simon Cayron, alongside Ariel Meyer, graduate of the MSc Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Marine Bernard, Stanislas Morius and David Alexander Scemama.
“Hosting this final is a real source of pride for SKEMA. After last year’s victory, we wanted to deliver an edition worthy of that result, combining competition and a strong sense of shared spirit. We hope to relive great sporting moments and create a memorable occasion with all the schools involved,” the organising team says.
