Pembroke Athleta to move ahead with Padel plans despite nursery petition

Club plan to turn one of three nursery’s five-a-side pitches into padel court

Pembroke Athleta president Alex Calleja has no intention of withdrawing plans to turn one of the club’s five-a-side football pitches into a padel court, despite opposition from parents of children who form part of the club’s nursery.

Calleja told Times of Malta that he has the backing of club committee members to go ahead with the project, which he said could lead to the sports club hosting international padel tournaments for players who “reside in five-star hotels”.

The club president was responding to critics who have circulated a petition seeking to block the club project.

Pembroke Athleta already have 10 padel courts installed on their premises but the club is now planning to take one of the five-a-side pitches used to train young players and transform it into another court.

The decision has irked the club’s nursery and the children’s parents who have launched a petition to stop the project and are planning a protest activity on Sunday morning to try and change Calleja’s mind over the project.

Roughly 180 children aged between four and 16 take part in Pembroke Athleta’s nursery programme.

Petitioners say the club’s president is now out to displace the young athletes to make money by converting the pitch into a padel court to be leased out to third parties.

“It goes against the spirit of the foundation of the sports club, the same spirit the Government used as a premise to grant the land footprint to the club some 25 years ago,” petitioners argue.

“These facilities are more than just infrastructure; they are an essential part of our community, providing safe, inclusive spaces for young people to play football. It is crucial that we respect these sporting facilities’ true purpose rather than exploiting them for financial profit and personal gain.”

It is understood that the club nursery has contacted government officials, including the Ministry for Sport and Education, as well as the Youth Football Association, the Malta Football Association and Sport Malta, in a desperate bid to stop the club committee from moving ahead with their plan. 

However, their efforts have so far proved futile and club president Calleja has made it clear that he has no plans to shelve the project.

Calleja told Times of Malta that the project would help the club generate revenue it could use to maintain its premises in good shape.

“There is no reason why I should change my mind on this project as this is something that has been unanimously approved by the club committee and will be done on private property owned by the club, with all the permits needed by the authorities,” Calleja told the Times of Malta.

“The club have three five-a-side pitches and at present the nursery is only using one and a half of them for their training schedule. So, it’s logical for me to try and make good use of all the facilities of the club to try and generate revenue for them and that is why I decided to turn this pitch into a padel court.”

Calleja’s claim was immediately rebuffed by the nursery officials who said that all three five-a-side pitches were being used by four different age groups formed by more than 30 young footballers.

Calleja said the nursery “contributes nothing to the club” and was constantly battling people who rented out the club pitches.

Five-a-side pitches were no longer bringing in the money they once did, he said, blaming nursery commitments for that.

“In 2024, we spent €62,000 to upgrade our 11-a-side pitch. In the past, we used to pocket around €30,000 from renting of pitches but that sum has plummeted to just €6,000.

“The main reason for that is our nursery training schedule, as sessions continue until 9.30pm and obviously nobody wants to rent a five-a-side pitch at that time of the day” .

Calleja said the club is a sports club, not a football club, and that it was keen to invest in a new, growing sport.

“There is nothing wrong if as president of this club, I want to invest in another sporting discipline which is not football,” Calleja said.“Having another one or two [padel] courts at our club will increase the possibility of hosting international tournaments here in Malta, something which reflects the government’s vision on sports tourism.

“Padel athletes are high-value tourists who reside in five-star hotels that are close to our premises and therefore they can provide a financial boost to not only our club but also the country’s economy,” he argued.