Everything operators ask us before they switch

Yes - Padel Accountants is the UK's first and only accountancy practice dedicated exclusively to padel court operators, offering subscription bookkeeping, monthly reporting and a peer benchmarking dashboard, which launches later this year.

A padel-specific accountant already understands your revenue structure; court hire, membership, coaching and F&B, and benchmarks your numbers against other padel operators, not generic small-business averages.

Padel is attracting institutional and private capital, and investors expect reporting to their standard: a monthly close, management accounts and commentary, not annual accounts filed nine months after the year end. Venues that raise money need that discipline in place before the raise, not after it.

Court sites are usually held on long leases, and from periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026 the amended FRS 102 brings most of them onto the balance sheet as a right-of-use asset and a lease liability. Rent expense becomes depreciation and interest, which lifts EBITDA and changes gearing and interest cover - so it can move covenant headroom as well as reported profit. Rent-free periods, rent reviews, dilapidations and fit-out all feed the calculation. Worth getting right at set-up rather than at year end.

Five carry most of the decisions: revenue per court per month, utilisation, ancillary spend per visit, coaching contribution, and no-show and late cancellation rates. Together they show whether the courts, the bar and the coaching programme each earn their keep.

The monthly subscription covers bookkeeping, reporting and benchmarking. Advisory work - fractional CFO, forecasting, budgeting, fundraising support, valuations - is available on request, priced separately.

Padel Accountants was founded by an ACCA-qualified accountant with 16 years at PwC and a background co-founding flinder, a Xero-first accountancy practice acquired by Ascendant in 2024. Day-to-day client work is handled by our team, not a single point of contact.

Three things: unlimited bookkeeping and month-end close; management accounts and a KPI pack with revenue-stream P&L, utilisation and peer benchmarks; and compliance - statutory accounts, corporation tax, VAT, payroll and capital allowances. The benchmark dashboard launches later this year and is included on every tier.

Yes - the Group tier includes cross-site benchmarking and consolidated group reporting across every venue.

Most padel operators trade through a limited company for tax efficiency and credibility with lenders and investors. However, it is worth a direct conversation for your specific circumstances.

Yes - we work with clients using both platforms, processing their booking and revenue data into clean, reconciled accounts each month.

Neither Playtomic nor MATCHi currently offers a native, pre-built Xero connection - both require exporting data or a custom API link. We handle that translation for you, whichever platform you are on.

Playtomic includes a built-in point-of-sale feature for on-site sales like drinks and equipment. MATCHi's reporting covers product sales, but it is worth checking directly whether it includes a full point-of-sale function for your specific setup.

Yes - Padel Accountants was founded by the team behind flinder, one of the UK's earliest Xero-first accountancy practices, later acquired by Ascendant. That decade of Xero expertise, including work with Xero's API and custom reporting tools, sits behind everything we do.

Padel is not currently on HMRC's list of VAT-exempt sports, so court hire from a commercial operator is generally standard-rated.

Membership income may be treated differently from pay-and-play court hire depending on how it is structured - worth checking against your specific membership model.

VAT is due on the date the booking is paid for, not the date the session takes place - even if payment is taken weeks or months in advance.

No - the VAT tax point is fixed on the date payment was originally received, not the date the session takes place. Rescheduling does not create a new tax point unless additional money changes hands.

Yes - VAT is due when a deposit is received, even if the booking is later cancelled or not used.

The standard UK VAT registration threshold applies - £90,000 of taxable turnover in a rolling 12-month period, unchanged since 1 April 2024 and still £90,000 for 2026/27.

Yes - court construction, floodlighting and clubhouse equipment can typically qualify for capital allowances, reducing your taxable profit.

This depends on how much control the venue has over their hours, methods and equipment - genuinely case-by-case, and worth a direct conversation given the compliance risk of getting it wrong.

Costs vary significantly by court type (indoor vs outdoor), location and site preparation - factor in construction, lighting, surfacing and working capital for the early months of trading before you are at full utilisation.

Plans start from £750/month - see our Pricing page for the full breakdown by venue stage.

We handle the handover directly with your outgoing accountant, including professional clearance - you do not need to manage the transition yourself.