The Sunbet Padel Invitational Takes Over Sun City

The Sunbet Padel Invitational is taking things up a notch for its upcoming third instalment, as it heads to Sun City on 14 and 15 November 2026, supported by Heineken® 0.0. The event gives everyday padel enthusiasts and teams the opportunity to compete alongside South African sports icons and celebrities in a spirited intermediate and advanced showdown over two days.

Sunbet Padel Invitational 2026 | What's On In Joburg

Sunbet Invitational Padel Returns

A first of its kind in South Africa, the Sunbet Invitational Padel offers an exciting blend of sport, celebrity interaction, and corporate engagement.

Founded by media personality and entrepreneur Kriya Gangiah in partnership with Sunbet, the tournament has quickly established itself as South Africa’s most exciting fusion of action-packed sport, celebrity competition, and lifestyle networking.

“We wanted the third Sunbet Padel Invitational to feel like a real step up, and taking the event to Sun City gives us exactly that,” says Kriya Gangiah, founder of The Sunbet Padel Invitational.

“The response to the first two editions showed us just how much people enjoy seeing familiar faces from sport and entertainment step onto the padel court and compete in a completely different environment. This year, we’re bringing an even bigger line-up, a new destination and plenty of competitive energy. It’s going to be a weekend of great sport, big personalities and, of course, a lot of fun.”

The Palace Sun City | What's on in Joburg

Sun City Showdown

The Sun City edition of the Sunbet Invitational Padel follows two successful editions in Pretoria and Durban, allowing everyday padel enthusiasts and teams to compete alongside South African sports icons and celebrities in a spirited intermediate and advanced showdown over two days.

Celebrities confirmed for this year’s Sunbet Padel Invitational include former Springbok players Morne Steyn, Juandré Kruger and Wynand Olivier, former Bafana Bafana stars Mark Fish, Stanton Fredericks, Shaun Bartlett, Andre Arendse, Bongani Khumalo and Gavin Lane, former Proteas cricketer Paul Adams, professional footballer Tristan Moses, and Springbok Women scrumhalf Rumandi Potgieter.

The line-up also features a strong contingent of media personalities and creators, including Stacey Holland, Jonathan Boynton-Lee, Roxy Burger, Sasha Martinengo, Worship Freemantle, Nolo Pongolo, Claudia Henkel, Tansey Coetzee, Layla Arrison, Arno Jordaan, Chad Jones, Chadwell Goodgall, Dimitri Leontakianakis, Phila Sixaba and Michael Morton.

Adding even more padel expertise to the mix are Debbie Van Aswegan and Hanns Spangenberg.

For padel enthusiasts and beginners, various packages are available for those wishing to participate in the Sunbet Padel Invitational. These include the Gold Package, which is for a team and includes two days of play, kits, high tea, a beer and cider bar, and players’ lounge access. The Platinum Package includes all the same perks as well as a padel racquet and padel shoes.