Padel Americano & Mexicano: rules and schedule
Padel Americano and Mexicano explained: rules, scoring, rotation and how many rounds you need for 8, 12 or 16 players. Neither format is part of the official FIP rulebook — this page describes common practice.
Last verified: October 1, 2026
How an Americano works
In an Americano you sign up on your own. Every round you get a new partner and new opponents, ideally playing alongside every other participant exactly once. Each player is scored individually: whoever collects the most points over all rounds wins.
Keep in mind that Americano and Mexicano are not part of the official FIP rules. They are community formats and the details vary from club to club. The official rules for each rally (serve, walls, net) still apply — see The official rules of padel.
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Scoring: rally points to 16, 24 or 32
Instead of games and sets, every rally is worth one point, whoever serves. The match ends once an agreed total number of points has been played — 16, 21, 24 or 32 are common. Example with 24: if a match ends 14–10, both players on one side get 14 points each and the other two get 10 each.
- Serving: a common convention is that each player serves a fixed number of times in a row before it passes on. Agree on it before you start.
- Points target vs. time: a higher target means longer matches. If time is short, a lower target is the easiest fix.
- Even target = draws possible: with 24 points a match can end 12–12. That is a valid result: both teams receive their 12 points and neither gets a win. To avoid draws, pick an odd target (e.g. 21 or 25).
- Leaderboard: the usual order is total points, then wins, then point difference (points won minus points conceded).
- Timed variant: instead of a points target you play for a fixed time; the score at the final whistle counts.
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How many rounds? Schedules for 8, 12 and 16 players
You can work the number of rounds out yourself: with N players, everyone has N − 1 possible partners. Since you have exactly one partner per round, a full rotation needs at least N − 1 rounds. Each round has N ÷ 4 matches in parallel, so N × (N − 1) ÷ 4 matches in total.
| Players | Courts | Rounds (min.) | Total matches | Time at 15 min/round |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 2 | 7 | 14 | ≈ 1 h 45 min |
| 12 | 3 | 11 | 33 | ≈ 2 h 45 min |
| 16 | 4 | 15 | 60 | ≈ 3 h 45 min |
The 15 minutes per round is an example assumption — real match length depends on the points target and the level of play. With fewer than N ÷ 4 courts, each round takes proportionally longer. For general time planning see How to organize a padel tournament.
Not divisible by 4: sharing sit-outs fairly
If the number of players is not divisible by 4, N mod 4 players sit out each round (the remainder when dividing by 4). Fair means everyone sits out equally often — or, where the arithmetic does not allow that, the number of rests differs by at most one.
padelturn plans one full partner rotation: N rounds for an odd and N − 1 rounds for an even number of players. With 5, 9, 13 … (1 sit-out per round) and 7, 11, 15 … (3 per round) everyone rests exactly equally often. With 6, 10, 14 … (2 per round) the N − 1 rounds produce 2 × (N − 1) rests, which cannot be split evenly among N players: two players rest once, everyone else twice — so those two play one match more.
| Players | Sit-outs/round | Rounds | Rests per player | Matches per player |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| 6 | 2 | 5 | 1–2 | 3–4 |
| 7 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 4 |
| 9 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 8 |
| 10 | 2 | 9 | 1–2 | 7–8 |
| 11 | 3 | 11 | 3 | 8 |
| 14 | 2 | 13 | 1–2 | 11–12 |
A player who sits out scores no points that round. Many clubs balance this with compensation points based on an average — in the UK these are commonly called “M+” points. There is no federation standard; some clubs simply award 0 points for a sit-out. Agree on the rule before you start.
Sit-out compensation in padelturn
Sit-out compensation is on by default: for every round a player sits out, they are credited with their own average points per match played. These points do not count as a win and do not count towards point difference. As the organizer you can switch compensation off — then only points actually played count.
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Mexicano: pairings from the leaderboard (1 + 4 vs 2 + 3)
Mexicano uses rally points like Americano, but there is no fixed schedule. After every round the leaderboard is recalculated and the next round is built from it: each block of four consecutive places forms a match, with 1st and 4th playing against 2nd and 3rd.
| Places | Team A | Team B |
|---|---|---|
| 1–4 | 1st + 4th | 2nd + 3rd |
| 5–8 | 5th + 8th | 6th + 7th |
| 9–12 | 9th + 12th | 10th + 11th |
Why 1 + 4 against 2 + 3? The best player teams up with the lowest-ranked of the group against the two in the middle — the most common pairing, because it produces the most balanced matches. 1 + 3 against 2 + 4 is also widespread; no federation rule prescribes either variant. The result is close matches at every level, and players who do well climb the table. The first round has no leaderboard yet, so it is usually drawn by sign-up order or at random.
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How padelturn runs Americano and Mexicano
Americano in padelturn
padelturn builds the complete schedule at the start — online and in local mode (no account needed): N − 1 rounds for an even and N rounds for an odd number of players (8 → 7, 12 → 11, 16 → 15). Nobody partners the same player twice; with a player count divisible by 4 (and with 5, 9, 13 …) everyone partners everyone exactly once. Byes differ by at most one, and opponents are spread widely — with 8 players everyone faces everyone exactly twice.
Mexicano in padelturn
Round 1 follows sign-up order; every later round is drawn automatically from the live leaderboard (1 + 4 vs 2 + 3 in each group of four) as soon as all matches of the round are in. The number of rounds is fixed at the start: N − 1 when the player count is divisible by 4 (at least 3), otherwise N ÷ gcd(N, sit-outs). Those who have rested least so far sit out next — on a tie, the lowest-ranked player.
Points and standings
The points target is up to you (4 to 100); if you set one, the two scores must add up to it exactly. Draws are allowed (e.g. 12–12 at 24): both teams receive their points, neither gets a win — to avoid draws, pick an odd target such as 21. The leaderboard sorts by total points, then wins, then point difference; players still level share the place. Sit-outs are compensated with the player’s own average by default (can be switched off). Create an online tournament — free during the beta.
Popular variants
- Team Americano: fixed pairs instead of individual entries, with rotating opponents. At heart that is a round robin with rally points (see Brackets and round robin).
- Mixed Americano: every team is one woman and one man; the rotation takes that into account.
- Timed Americano: all courts start and stop on a signal — handy when court time is booked to the minute.
- Americano with a final: after the rotation the top four play a final match.
All of these variants are organizer conventions, not official rules. What matters is that every participant knows the rules before the first ball.