Guide
King of the Court padel explained
In short
King of the Court is a social padel format played on ranked courts, with court 1 as the king’s court. After each round the winning pair on every court moves up a court and the losing pair moves down, and the two pairs arriving on a court swap partners. The aim is to finish on court 1. It needs a full four on every court, so 8, 12 or 16 players, and a session usually runs six to eight short rounds.
How King of the Court works
- Courts: number them, with court 1 as the king’s court and the highest number at the bottom.
- Players: four on every court. 8 players fill two courts, 12 fill three, 16 fill four.
- First round: draw the courts at random, or seed them by level so the strongest start near the top.
- Each round: play a short match, often to a number of points such as 16 or 24, or for a set time of 10 to 12 minutes.
- Moving: the winning pair moves up one court and the losing pair moves down one. Winners on court 1 stay on court 1; losers on the bottom court stay there.
- Partners: the two pairs arriving on a court split up, so each new pair has one player from each. You play with someone new nearly every round.
Scoring and who wins
There are two common ways to decide it, so agree one before you start. In the first, whoever is on court 1 when the last round finishes wins. In the second, every player keeps the points their side won, as in an Americano, and the highest total wins; this rewards consistency rather than one good last round. Many groups use the points total and give a prize to the last king too.
Every court needs a winner each round. If a match ends level when time runs out, play one deciding point.
King of the Court, Americano or Mexicano?
| King of the Court | Americano | Mexicano | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partners | Swap when two pairs arrive on a court | Rotate on a fixed schedule | Grouped by the leaderboard |
| Courts | Ranked: win to move up | All equal | All equal |
| Players | A multiple of four | Any number from four; extras sit out in turn | Any number from four; extras sit out in turn |
| Feel | Competitive, a race to court 1 | Mixing and meeting people | Closer games as the night goes on |
Run one tonight
The free Americano, Mexicano and King of the Court generator draws the first round, takes the scores, moves the pairs up and down the courts and keeps the leaderboard. It needs no sign up and nothing is stored.
For players who want regular matches after a social night, a social league keeps the new partner each time over a season, and divisions keep the up and down over weeks: the top of each division go up and the bottom come down.
How Padeliga does it
The Padeliga app runs leagues over a season rather than one night events, so for King of the Court on a social night use the free generator. The same up and down idea runs over weeks as divisions: players are seeded by Playtomic level or at random, the top of each division go up and the bottom come down by numbers set before the season, and the app draws the fixtures, collects confirmed scores and keeps every table.
Questions
How many players do you need for King of the Court?
Four on every court, so a multiple of four: 8 players on two courts is the smallest useful version, 12 or 16 players on three or four courts works best.
How long does a King of the Court session take?
Six to eight rounds of 10 to 12 minutes, with changeovers, takes about an hour and a half.
What happens if a King of the Court match is level?
Every court needs a winner, so play one deciding point.
Is King of the Court the same as King of the Hill?
They are names for the same idea: ranked courts with winners moving up and losers moving down. The details, such as swapping partners and how the winner is decided, vary between clubs, so agree them first.
Is there a free King of the Court app?
The Padeliga generator runs it in the browser for free: courts drawn, scores typed in and the next round worked out for you.
Run your club’s leagues in Padeliga
Members join from a code or the QR poster, agree times in the app and confirm each other’s scores, and the table updates itself. Staff see every league on one screen. Clubs get a free 90-day trial, members never pay, and leagues of 16 or fewer are free.