De Kroon and Prins retain padel title; fourth consecutive gold for Koek and Weterings

EINDHOVEN – During an atmospheric and historic final day of the EY National Padel Championships (NK Padel), Youp de Kroon and Julian Prins, along with the duo Marcella Koek and Steffie Weterings, claimed the national titles. The event at the Vibes Urban Sports & Event Center in Eindhoven was completely sold out and drew a record number of visitors.

The explosive growth of padel in the Netherlands was clearly noticeable in Eindhoven. While the stands were already well-filled last year with 4,500 spectators, the tournament attracted almost 6,000 fans this year. They were treated to absolute top-tier padel.

Fourth consecutive title for dominant Koek and Weterings

In the women's doubles, top favorites Marcella Koek and Steffie Weterings left no room for doubt about who was the strongest. With a convincing 6-2 and 6-1 victory over the duo Liza Groenveld and Maaike Betz, they secured their fourth consecutive national title.

For Marcella Koek, the victory also marked an absolute record: it was already her seventh Dutch championship. "I am so incredibly happy, I simply have no words for it," the newly crowned champion reacted emotionally. "We have worked so hard for this. A huge thanks to our team, we are definitely going to celebrate this!"

Her partner Weterings was also amazed and spoke highly of the atmosphere. "This is fantastic, Eindhoven is so lively. The people, the crowd... I have never seen the stands this full. It gives a great feeling that so many people come out for padel. You can tell by everything that the sport is really on the rise, both in the Netherlands and the rest of the world."

De Kroon and Prins remain the kings of the cage

In the men's tournament, Youp de Kroon and Julian Prins once again held the trophy in their hands. Following their surprising and spectacular breakthrough and title in 2025, the men successfully managed to retain their title this year. In the final, they faced the pair Bart van Opstal and Sten Richters, and once again De Kroon and Prins proved to be the strongest. By winning this second consecutive national title, they have definitively established themselves as the leaders of Dutch men's padel.