For an americano night or a small tournament you don’t need paid software: a free schedule generator, a printed schedule and a WhatsApp group will do. A tournament app such as Tournify fits a one-day tournament with groups and a knockout, and it’s free up to 8 teams. Slams fits events that run for weeks or a whole season, such as a league or a ladder, and clubs that want to keep a rating for every player; the free Start plan covers up to 20 teams per event and 2 events at the same time.
In short
- An americano night with friends: free. Build the schedule with the americano generator and keep score on paper. Tournify does not support americano.
- A one-day club tournament: free with the planner and a whiteboard, or in Tournify up to 8 teams; above that, Tournify (€40 per tournament) or Slams (Start, free up to 20 teams per event).
- A winter league over several weeks: one group still works with a spreadsheet. Tournify can do it, scheduled per match day; Slams if players enter their own results and the table and ratings update themselves.
- A ladder that runs all season: Slams. Tournify does not support ladders; on paper, the organiser updates the rankings every week.
- A paid open tournament with an entry fee: Tournify and Slams both handle online sign-up and payment; the difference is who pays the costs and how the money comes in.
- A corporate tournament: usually free with an americano schedule; Slams only if participants sign up themselves or the event comes back regularly.
An americano night with friends
A group of friends, a few courts, one evening. Everyone plays with a different partner each round and you count points per player.
Free: That’s all you need. The free americano generator builds a fair schedule in seconds: who plays with whom, against whom and on which court. Print it or post it in the group chat and keep score on paper. Software adds little here.
A tournament app such as Tournify: Not a fit. According to its own help centre, Tournify does not support americano or tournaments with rotating partners.
Slams: Only worth it if the night becomes a regular thing. Players then sign up through a link, enter their own scores and see the standings live on their phones. Americano and mexicano are included in the free Start plan.
A one-day club tournament
Groups and a knockout in a single day. With 16 teams on 4 courts, groups of 4 and the top 2 of each group going through to the knockout, you play 32 matches. Start at 10:00 with matches of 20 minutes and you’re done by 13:15.
Free: The free padel tournament planner works out the groups, the knockout and a schedule per court with times, ready to print. Keep the results on a whiteboard or in a spreadsheet. That works as long as one person keeps track of everything and nobody needs the standings on their phone.
A tournament app such as Tournify: This is where Tournify is strong: groups, a knockout and a consolation bracket for teams that don’t go through, with a live website and a slideshow for a big screen, also on the free plan. Amateur is free up to 8 teams, as often as you like; above that, World Class costs €40 per tournament (up to 60 teams).
Slams: Free up to 20 teams per event on the Start plan. It pays off if you want online sign-up, players entering their own results through a link per match, a TV screen with live standings, or several levels at once: an event with several divisions counts as one event on Start. Results count towards every player’s rating.
A winter league over several weeks
Teams play a match every week or two, on a fixed evening or at a time they arrange. A single group of 8 teams plays 7 rounds and 28 matches; home and away, that becomes 14 rounds and 56 matches.
Free: With one group, free tools still work. The free group schedule generator creates the fixtures, results come in over WhatsApp and the organiser keeps the table in a spreadsheet. With several groups or a waiting list, that becomes a weekly job, and a mistake in the table only shows up when a player spots it.
A tournament app such as Tournify: Tournify can run a league over several match days: one group per division, rounds scheduled per match day and optional playoffs afterwards. As long as the same teams take part throughout, the league counts as one tournament, so above 8 teams you pay €40 once (World Class, up to 60 teams). According to Tournify, continuous scheduling with an end time per court is not possible (yet).
Slams: Built for leagues that run for weeks: rounds with groups or divisions, home and away if you like, and a table that works itself out. Players enter results themselves through a link per match. If a player drops out, you bring in a substitute without changing the schedule; if a team withdraws, it finishes bottom and results against it no longer count. Results count towards the rating.
