Argentina triumph with comeback in Buenos Aires. Spain make it four straight women’s titles

BUENOS AIRES – An unforgettable finish for Argentina. First came the fear of defeat after falling 2-1 behind in the tie, followed by the roar of the home crowd in Buenos Aires as the comeback was completed. The ‘Seleccion Albiceleste’ defeated Spain to win the FIP Senior World Cup for the second consecutive time. The decisive victory came from home heroes Miguel Lamperti-Cristian Gutierrez in the final match of the tie. Despite the defeat, ‘La Roja’ could still celebrate. In the women’s competition, Spain’s stars defeated the United States in the final to secure their fourth consecutive title in the competition. The Netherlands (women) and France (men) finished third.

 

There was great emotion and plenty of action during the medal ceremony, held in the presence of FIP President Luigi Carraro, where the champions of the event dedicated to the legends of padel were celebrated.

 

MEN’S Argentina’s 3-2 victory over Spain was particularly significant as it came in Buenos Aires, at the first edition of the FIP Senior World Cup to be held in the country. The hosts made a strong start with Gomez Silingo/Allemandi defeating Sanmarti/Company. Spain then responded, with the pairs Semprun/Menendez and Lahoz/Ochoa winning the second and third matches, against Lasaigues/Novillo and Auguste/Gattiker respectively. Argentina refused to give up and continued to fight: first, Poggi/Nanni levelled the tie with a victory over Arias/Losada, before Lamperti/Gutierrez sealed the tie and sparked the celebrations with a win over Santana/Limones. Argentina confirmed the title they won at the 2024 edition in La Nucia (the first in the country’s history in this competition).

 

In the third-place play-off, France defeated Italy 3-0, with victories for Mannarino/Sanchez, Cayla/Lagloire and Veber/Romary. There was great satisfaction for former tennis player Arnaud Clément, winner of the Davis Cup in 2001 and Australian Open finalist in the same year, who would have played the potential fifth match. ‘Les Bleus’ had also finished third at the edition four years ago. In 2024, however, they lost the final to Argentina.

 

WOMEN’S Spain claimed the world title with a 3-0 victory over the United States in the final. In the opening match of the tie, the legendary Sainz/Alonso pairing defeated the American duo of Petrauskaite/Zubori. In the second match, Spain’s Castrillo/Vaquero defeated Neugarten/Kaczmarczyk. The point that secured the title for ‘La Roja’ came from Gayoso/Wakonigg, who defeated Teer/Costabel. Spain, who entered the competition as defending champions, secured their fourth consecutive FIP Senior World Cup title: in 2018 and 2024 they triumphed at the Spanish editions, while in 2022 they won the title in Las Vegas. The Buenos Aires victory further underlines the connection between legend Lucia Sainz and her national team: at the end of August, she won the gold medal at padel’s historic first appearance at the Mediterranean Games, while in October 2025 she became FIP Euro Padel Cup champion.

 

The Netherlands completed the podium by securing third place with a 3-1 victory over Belgium. After losing the opening match, the champions raised their level, winning the next three matches with the pairs Schuur/Van Wijk, Rutten/Van Hoorn and Sterkenburg/Van Boven.