World-first SMASH reels in content creators
It’s the fastest growing sport in the world, a favourite with influencers and increasingly in the sights of big money sponsors and techpreneurs – so it makes sense that padel now has its own full-size court dedicated to content creation and brand marketing.
SMASH by THG Studios, the world’s first content-driven and data-powered padel court, has been created in partnership with Google Cloud inside award-winning THG Studios’ creative campus in Manchester.
SMASH isn’t just a new venue, it’s a glimpse into the future of the sport, re-purposing technology used to analyse penalties in football to capture padel player and game metrics and provide a sleek, carefully curated backdrop for content creators and brands – or as SMASH describes it ‘a fully immersive padel court that provides real-time creative advertising opportunities, built-in technology to measure player performance and a visual backdrop for creators and influencers’.
Slazenger is the official kit and equipment sponsor and Game4Padel provided coaches for its launch event.
Creative story telling
Hannah Pym, Chief Brand and Marketing Officer, THG Ingenuity, said: “SMASH by THG Studios is more than just a padel court; it’s an arena for creative storytelling where sport and culture collide. Padel is the fastest-growing sport in the UK, and by launching the world’s first content-focused court, we are providing brands with a unique opportunity to tap into this phenomenon.”
The development is described as a ‘paradigm shift in brand marketing’, being used to produce anything from social media campaigns and commercials to influencer events and live-streamed padel tournaments.
It will also be home to a forthcoming padel-focused series – ‘SMASH by THG Studios’ – expected to launch on YouTube shortly.
Oliver Grundy, Group Head, Cloud Marketing, UKI, Google Cloud said: “We’re excited to collaborate with THG Studios on SMASH, an innovative project that showcases the power of data and cloud technology in enhancing sports experiences and brand storytelling. By adapting our advanced analytics to padel, we’re not only enriching player development but also opening up opportunities for brands to create engaging, data-driven content.” 🎾
