Coello and Tapia on opposite sides: the Padel World Cup that opens in Doha with Spain and Argentina chasing each other's title

Padel World Cup 2026 starts in Doha: Coello and Tapia on rival teams, ties at 12:00 and 16:00 in Spain, the format and the 32 teams, day by day.

The best pair in the world is about to be split by a flag. Coello and Tapia have just won the Kuwait Major 6-1 and 6-1, and from 2 to 7 November at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha one plays for Spain and the other for Argentina in the FIP Padel World Cup, with 32 national teams in the field. The draw is held on Sunday 1 November, at the opening ceremony. Argentina is the men's champion of 2022 and 2024. Spain is the reigning women's champion. Each is trying to take the other's title, and Spain has already lost a star on the way.

How the World Cup works

There are 16 men's and 16 women's teams, split into four groups of four in each competition. Every team plays the other three in best-of-three ties, and group matches run from 2 to 4 November. The top two in each group go through to the quarterfinals on Thursday 5 November; the rest play for places from 9th to 16th. The semifinals are on Friday 6 November. Saturday 7 November starts with the third-place matches and ends with the men's and women's finals on Doha's Central Court. The prize money is €1.2 million, split equally between both tournaments, which the FIP calls the highest amount ever awarded in an official padel competition.

When to watch

Women's ties start at 14:00 in Doha (12:00 in Spain) and men's ties at 18:00 in Doha (16:00 in Spain). The FIP has not published the order of play or the broadcasters in the sources we opened, so check its site once the draw is out.

Argentina's men: the champions with Tapia's flag

Argentina has won the last two men's titles and brings a deep group: Tapia, Chingotto, Augsburger, Stupaczuk, Di Nenno and Libaak, the 21-year-old who knocked out Lebron and Augsburger in Kuwait days ago. It is the group that still carries the world number one and the world number three. The pairings have not been announced in the sources we opened, so the first order of play will show who partners whom.

Spain's men: Coello and a rebuilt left side

Spain lost Galan to a hand injury, and Javi Leal was called up to replace him. The group now reads Coello, Lebron, Yanguas and Sanz on the right, with Navarro, Nieto, Goñi and Leal on the left. Spain is chasing a fifth world title and lost the final to Argentina in both 2022 and 2024. The pairings will also come out with the order of play.

The women's draw: The reigning champions

Spain's women are the reigning champions, and the roster is formidable: world number one Triay, Bea Gonzalez, Ari Sanchez, Josemaria, Ustero, Claudia Fernandez and Martina Calvo, all inside the top 10 of the FIP ranking. Argentina was the runner-up in 2024 and relies on Delfi Brea, Claudia Jensen and Aranzazu Osoro, plus Victoria Vilchez, born in 2010, who makes her debut.

What to watch from Sunday

Doha hosts the World Cup for the third time, after 2021 and 2024, and has also been awarded 2028. Qatar's federation says it is ready, and the tournament director, Tariq Zainal, promised “an exceptional championship in every aspect”. The first thing to read is the draw: it shows who shares a group with Spain and Argentina. After that, the story is the pairs, and above all one detail that never happens on the Premier Padel circuit: Coello and Tapia on opposite benches.