Racquet Sports App Backed by Nadal Raises €5.1 Million via Crowdfunding Platform
Madrid-based racquet sports community platform Playtomic has raised over €5.1 million via European equity crowdfunding platform Crowdcube, attracting more than 4,600 new investors. Prior to this round, Playtomic was valued at approximately €400 million. Since its first funding round in 2018, the platform has raised over €110 million in total.
In 2024, Playtomic welcomed a heavyweight shareholder and ambassador—Rafael Nadal, though the exact investment amount was not disclosed. Nadal himself revealed that he had been a paying member of the platform for a long time.
Above: Nadal (left) with Playtomic co-founder Felix Ruiz (right)
Founded in 2017, Playtomic focuses on tennis and padel, building the world's largest racquet sports experience and sharing community. The platform currently has over 4.7 million racquet sports enthusiasts and more than 6,000 partner clubs across 66 countries.
Playtomic operates on a B2B2C model via a SaaS-based marketplace platform. Its product portfolio includes Playtomic Manager, a SaaS solution for clubs, and Playtomic App, a social marketplace for players.
Above: In December 2024, Playtomic released a promotional ad starring Nadal
As of September 2025, platform transaction volume grew by €346 million (up 51% year-over-year), and net revenue increased by €29 million (up 38% year-over-year). Revenue sources include SaaS fees, commissions from B2B and B2C marketplace platforms, and global network subscription revenue.
Playtomic's three founders are Pedro Clavería González, Pablo Carro, and Felix Ruiz Hernandez.
Pedro Clavería González is a serial entrepreneur who founded online shopping discount site Global Savings Group in 2013. Earlier, he worked at German investment incubator Rocket Internet and Spanish social platform Tuenti.
Before entrepreneurship, Pablo Carro served as a senior business development consultant at healthcare solutions company Digital Care and as Global Account Manager for Telefónica at Chinese telecommunications and IT company ZTE.
Felix Ruiz Hernandez is also a serial entrepreneur, having founded Spanish social platform Tuenti in 2006, ride-hailing company Auro in 2017, and AI image and video editing software Storybeat in 2018.
Above: Pedro Clavería (left) and Pablo Carro (right)
Speaking about the entrepreneurial opportunity, Pedro Clavería said: "Our goal was clear: we wanted more people to participate in sports. Most people give up sports because they can't find a court or opponents of a similar level. So we decided to build a platform connecting clubs (with courts) and players. Before this, finding a playing partner was harder than buying a movie ticket."
According to the company, this funding round will be used to expand product lines, accelerate international expansion, and enter new racquet sports like pickleball.
Previously, Playtomic acquired several peers to support its international expansion, including:
Portuguese booking platform AirCourts, Italian sports event booking company PrenotaUnCampo, Sportclubby, health management software developer Timp, Finnish sports venue management and booking platform play.fi, German racquet sports platform GotCourts, and US sports venue CRM developer Playven.
Crowdcube is a UK-based equity crowdfunding platform founded in 2011, primarily helping startups, early-stage, and growth companies raise funds from ordinary investors (the public), who receive equity in return.
| Source: eu-startups, athletechnews, tennisworldusa, founder LinkedIn accounts
| Image credit: Playtomic official
| Editor: Esther