Proximo Padel wants to plant its flag on Goose Island, adding a third Chicago-area location as the fast-growing racket sport gains traction in a city where pickleball has already grown rapidly. The operator is also eyeing a club in suburban Northbrook, with both expected to open later this year.
Two More Clubs, One Big Catch
According to CoStar, padel is following pickleball into Chicago's real estate game. Padel, a racket sport that blends elements of tennis and squash inside an enclosed court, is starting to make its mark on the city after pickleball's rapid rise reshaped recreational real estate, the outlet reports. Proximo Padel plans to open two more clubs, with one planned for Goose Island in Chicago.
As Block Club Chicago reported in March, Proximo Padel expects to open two more locations, in Goose Island and suburban Northbrook, later this year. The company's existing Belmont Cragin facility offers year-round indoor play on four padel courts, per the same outlet's reporting. Block Club Chicago identifies Proximo's club at 3043 N. Knox Ave. in Belmont Cragin and reports it has four padel courts in a 27,000-square-foot facility.
Where Exactly Is This Club Going?
The precise footprint of the planned Goose Island club remains murky. Padelbrowser noted as of late April that no exact opening date or court count had been announced for the location.
How Many Padel Clubs Does Chicago Actually Have?
Even the basic scorecard of Chicago's padel scene depends on who's counting. Block Club Chicago described Proximo in March as one of only three padel clubs in the city. Padelbrowser's own guide, dated April 30, said Chicago had three clubs offering padel — two open to the public, one private — with two more Proximo locations on the way. Simple Padel, meanwhile, put the number at five clubs and 23 courts across the Chicago area as of the second quarter of the year. The sources don't specify whether they're using the same definition of a club or the same service area, so the real number is anyone's guess for now.
Chicago's Late Start on an Expanding Sport
Whatever the exact count, Chicago has been playing catch-up. The Chicago Sun-Times reported in January that indoor-space challenges may be one reason the city has lagged behind others in opening padel clubs. Union Padel Club, which opened on the Near West Side, needed a 30,000-square-foot facility with five courts, and its founders told the paper they required an indoor spot with high ceilings and a spacious amenity area — a search that made finding a site challenging. Cube Padel, which opened in 2025 in the New City neighborhood, is described as the first padel club in Chicago.
Nationally, the sport is still finding its footing. The Sports & Fitness Industry Association counted 1,073,000 Americans who played padel in 2025, and just over 1,000 courts were open across 31 states as of April 2026, according to Padel USA. The U.S. Padel Association projects the country could reach 10,000 courts and more than 10 million players by 2030. But a separate global report cited by the Sports Business Journal found only 250 padel clubs in the U.S. and just 330 new courts added in 2025, describing the American market as still nascent compared with the 8,000 courts and 5,000 clubs added worldwide that year. That report pointed to complex zoning and permitting processes, high commercial rents, costs tied to importing courts and other equipment, and low public awareness as obstacles slowing domestic growth.
Pickleball's Warning Signs
Padel's real estate hunt is following a trail blazed by pickleball, though that sport's own boom has started cooling. Back in 2023, the Chicago Tribune reported that developers planned between four and six new pickleball facilities across Chicagoland, including the 41,000-square-foot Pickle Haus complex planned for Algonquin and an 11-court, 27,000-square-foot Sure Shot Pickleball facility in Naperville. Pickleball participation nationally rose from nearly 20 million players in 2024 to more than 24 million in 2025, according to a report cited by Bisnow. Yet public pickleball court expansion across the 100 largest U.S. cities slowed sharply, from 14% growth in 2024 to just 4% this year, and The Picklr's franchisor filed for bankruptcy in early October, though the outlet noted many franchise locations remain open.
Bisnow also reported that a typical 10-court pickleball facility rents 20,000 to 40,000 square feet for roughly $30,000 to $50,000 a month, citing Heleus Holdings CEO West Shaw. MVP Chicago Real Estate owner Melanie Zimmerman told the outlet that a pickleball facility can bring additional foot traffic to an area — a selling point landlords are likely weighing as padel operators like Proximo start knocking on doors for their own slice of warehouse space.
