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International Champions Cup: Football, Not a Padel World Cup
International Champions Cup is a football competition name. Find the right padel event: FIP World Cup, World Cup Pairs or Premier Padel.
The International Champions Cup (ICC) is a football club competition name, not the name of padel’s FIP World Cup. FC Barcelona’s own archive describes its July 2016 ICC match against Celtic as a preseason friendly—distinct from the Champions League fixture the clubs played later that year. FC Barcelona’s match retrospective makes that distinction explicit.
For padel fixtures and results, the useful names are FIP World Cup, FIP World Cup Pairs and Premier Padel. They identify different competitions, with different kinds of entrants.
What the International Champions Cup name identifies
RELEVENT’s announcement for the 2018 ICC listed 18 football clubs and 27 scheduled matches across the United States, Europe and Singapore. Participants included Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus. Each club was scheduled to play three matches, with one overall champion determined by points. Those are details of the 2018 edition, not a current fixture list. 2018 tournament announcement
The entrants were clubs, not national teams. Nor should “Champions Cup” be treated as an alternative name for a padel world title.
Which padel competition should you look for?
| If you want to follow… | Official name to check | What the record covers |
|---|---|---|
| Countries competing for a world title | FIP World Cup | National teams. As of 19 October 2026, the event is scheduled for 2–7 November in Doha. FIP event page |
| Doubles partnerships competing for a world title | FIP World Cup Pairs | Player pairs rather than national squads. FIP’s 2025 event record lists Kuwait City, 1–9 November, and the tournament draw. FIP event record |
| Professional tour tournaments through the season | Premier Padel | Tour events, including Major, P1 and P2 tournaments and the season-ending Finals. FIP’s 2026 tour calendar |
The pairs distinction matters: the 2025 World Cup Pairs draw includes Spain’s Arturo Coello alongside Argentina’s Agustín Tapia. That entry is a doubles partnership, not a Spanish or Argentine national-team entry. Official draw
Read the entrant count before interpreting it
The host’s advertised 32 national teams at the 2026 FIP World Cup means 16 men’s entries plus 16 women’s entries. It does not establish 32 distinct countries: a country can appear in both draws. It is also not a player count or a measure of worldwide recreational participation. Host’s team breakdown
When checking a result, confirm the sport, full event name, edition and whether the entrants are clubs, national squads or pairs. For the wider question of international padel representation, see how many countries have padel national teams.