Andi: People often ask me if 6 Love Sports is a league. I always tell them it's a community that happens to play padel. The tipping point really came at the end of last year when we went from operating one league to launching three separate leagues across Miami. Almost overnight, it became clear that what we had built was much bigger than league nights. Women genuinely wanted to be part of something that was welcoming, supportive and fun.

What has excited me most has been the growth of our Diamonds League. These are what I like to call the "diamonds in the rough." They're passionate, motivated, eager to improve and absolutely love the game. The atmosphere every Wednesday night is incredible. That league has doubled in size since we started it. Many of the women joined because they wanted to learn a new sport or meet new people. Now they're playing tournaments, travelling together, improving every week and forming friendships that extend well beyond the court.

The growth didn't come from advertising. It happened because women told their friends, brought them along, and shared how much they loved being part of 6 Love Sports. That's when I realized we weren't just running leagues anymore. We were building a movement. Today we have more than 320 women playing every week in Miami, but what makes me most proud is that we've managed to keep exactly the same feeling we had when there were only 140 players. The numbers have changed, but the mission hasn't. It's still about elevating, empowering and connecting women through padel.

Andi: Honestly, sometimes I ask myself the same question! The growth has been incredible. What started as one Thursday night league has grown into three leagues across three nights every week. There are schedules, rain delays, court changes, captains, sponsors and a million moving parts. It can be a lot.

But for me, this has always been completely personal. I know every single player. I know who's nervous about moving up a level, who's just started competing, who's lacking confidence and who simply needs a little encouragement. I know who joined because they wanted to improve their padel and who joined because they were looking for friendship and connection.

People often tell me I need to step back and delegate more. Maybe one day I will. But I honestly believe that personal touch is what makes 6 Love Sports different. I care about these women. I guide them. I celebrate their successes. I help them through challenges. I introduce them to other players and encourage them to take opportunities they might never have considered. At the end of the day, we're not just running leagues. We're building relationships. The padel is important, but the friendships and sense of belonging are what keep people coming back every week.

I think people feel that this isn't just a business to me. It's something I genuinely care about, and that's helped us maintain the same close-knit atmosphere even as we've grown.

Andi: One of the things that has surprised me most over the past year is the level of interest from sponsors. Miami is an incredibly competitive sports market, so brands have no shortage of opportunities.

What resonates with them is that we're not simply offering logo placement. We're offering access to a loyal, engaged and growing community.

The women in 6 Love Sports show up every week. They travel together, support one another and genuinely support the brands that support our community. That kind of authentic engagement is very difficult to create.

We're also very thoughtful about partnerships. I don't believe in giving away products simply because they're available. Every partnership has to create value for both the community and the brand. Whether it's apparel, equipment, wellness or travel, we want sponsors to become part of the experience.

Our partners aren't sitting on the sidelines. They're interacting with players, attending events, appearing in our social media, newsletters and PR. They become part of the story.

For me, that's what makes these partnerships successful. We create meaningful relationships between great brands and an incredible community of women, and I think that's why so many companies want to work with us.

Andi: I think this is one of the things that makes 6 Love Sports so different.

Every week it's not just the players who arrive. You see husbands, partners, children, parents and friends sitting courtside. They're cheering, celebrating great points and supporting everyone, not just their own team. It creates an atmosphere that feels so much bigger than league night.

I honestly believe that changes the way people compete. Of course everyone wants to win, but there's also a real sense of sportsmanship, respect and pride. People are representing their teams, but they're also representing this wonderful community we've built together. The part that excites me most, though, is seeing the next generation coming through. When we first started, there were young girls sitting on the sidelines watching their moms play every Thursday night. Afterwards they'd pick up a racket and hit a few balls while they waited. Fast forward a year or two and many of those same girls are now training seriously, competing in tournaments, winning matches and even playing in our Diamonds League alongside adults. Watching their confidence grow and seeing them fall in love with the sport has been one of the most rewarding parts of this journey.

For me, that's what building a community is all about. It's not just about today's players. It's about inspiring the next generation to believe they belong on the court too. If we can create an environment where mothers and daughters share the same passion for padel, then we've built something that goes far beyond sport.

Andi: None of this happens without our Captains. They really are the heart and soul of 6 Love Sports. People often assume I choose Captains based on who the strongest players are, but that's actually one of the last things I look at. I'm looking for leaders. Women who are positive, approachable, organized and genuinely care about the people on their team. They lead by example. They encourage others, they welcome new players, they create friendships and they help build the culture that makes our community so special. Every Captain becomes incredibly important, not only to their own team but to the wider 6 Love Sports community. They're the first person players turn to with questions. They keep everyone connected and help create an environment where every player feels included. I trust them, and I empower them to lead. I want them to bring their own personalities to their teams because every team develops its own identity, and that's part of what makes league nights so much fun. Our growth is absolutely a reflection of these amazing women. They've embraced the vision, taken ownership of their teams and helped create one of the most supportive communities I've ever been part of.

People often ask me how we've grown so quickly. The answer is simple. It hasn't been me. It's been an incredible group of women who care just as much as I do about making every player feel welcome.

Andi: Absolutely, and I think that's one of the most exciting things happening in Miami right now. One of the biggest challenges today is actually finding court time. Demand has grown so much that it's becoming harder and harder to book courts at many of the main clubs. To me, that's a fantastic problem because it shows how quickly the sport is growing. What we're seeing is that women don't just come to league once a week anymore. They get hooked. They start taking lessons, joining clinics, organizing social matches, entering tournaments and playing two, three or even five times a week.

In many ways, 6 Love Sports has become the introduction to padel for so many women. They discover the sport through our leagues, build confidence, find players at their own level and before long they're completely immersed in the padel community. That benefits everyone. The clubs have full courts. Coaches have growing clinics. Tournament directors have more players entering competitions. Brands have an active and engaged audience. I've always said we're not here to compete with the clubs. We're here to help grow the entire ecosystem. If someone joins 6 Love Sports and six months later they're playing four times a week, taking private lessons, travelling to tournaments and introducing five friends to the sport, then we've done exactly what we set out to do.

We're helping create lifelong padel players, and that's good for everyone involved in the sport.

Andi: We actually started with just one men's league. We wanted to keep it small, learn what worked and build it properly before expanding. What's been really interesting is how quickly it's grown. Within just a few weeks we had more players wanting to join, more teams asking to be included and more clubs asking when we'd be expanding. The men's dynamic is definitely different. They're very competitive, probably even more competitive than the women. But they're not quite as social. They come to play, they want great matches and then many of them head home. The women will often stay for dinner, sit together for hours and build friendships that go far beyond the court.

One thing that's worked really well is that we haven't just created a league. We've built opportunities for the guys to play throughout the week. In addition to league night, we've introduced weekly match play round robins and coaching sessions. They've really embraced that. They want to play more, improve their games and compete against different players, so it's been a natural extension of the league. We're still creating teams, building rivalries and giving players something to look forward to every week. As they continue playing together, we're already seeing friendships develop and a real sense of belonging starting to emerge. I'm not trying to make the men's league the same as the women's league because they're different communities. What I do want is for every player, whether they're a man or a woman, to feel they're part of something bigger than just another match.

That's what makes 6 Love Sports different, and that's the culture we'll continue building as we grow.

Andi: One thing I've learned is that you can't simply copy and paste what works in Miami and expect it to work somewhere else. Every city has its own personality, its own padel culture and its own challenges. For me, it's about understanding that community first. Where do people live? How far are they willing to travel? Which clubs are easily accessible? How established is the local padel scene? Those are all important questions because they influence how you build a successful league. In some cities, players are spread out across a large area, so location becomes critical. In others there may only be one or two clubs, which creates a completely different dynamic. Sometimes you have to be creative with league formats, schedules and programming to make it work for that particular market.

The other key is having the right ambassadors. They are absolutely essential. They're the people who understand their local community far better than I ever could. My job is to share the vision of 6 Love Sports, support them and empower them to build something that feels authentic in their own city. I never want our ambassadors to feel like they're following a script. I want them to take ownership, understand what works best for their market and create a community that reflects the people around them while staying true to the values of 6 Love Sports.

At the end of the day, whether it's New York, Houston, San Francisco or Miami, the goal is always the same. Build a welcoming community where people improve their padel, make friends and can't wait to come back the following week. The details might look different from city to city, but that philosophy never changes.

Andi: I don't even think we have to wait until next year. October is going to be a huge moment for us, especially now that the US Padel Association has designated October as National Padel Month.

We're launching the inaugural Athena Cup, an international women's team event that brings players from different countries together to celebrate women's padel, followed immediately by FIP Beyond, the first event of its kind in Miami. Together these two events create six days of international padel, bringing together recreational players, elite competitors, brands, sponsors and the global padel community. I can't think of a better way to celebrate National Padel Month. Athena Cup isn't just another tournament. It's a statement about where women's padel is heading and what's possible when you bring together players from around the world. FIP Beyond then opens the door to an even wider international audience. Together they showcase not only what Miami has become, but what American padel is becoming.

As for becoming national, I actually think we're already there. Miami will always be home, but today we have active communities in New York City, Washington DC, Houston and San Francisco, with more cities on the horizon. What excites me is that these aren't just individual leagues. They're connected by one vision and one community. We've also built some fantastic relationships within the professional side of the sport. Our partnership with the DC Matrix team in the Pro Padel League has been a great example of how grassroots and professional padel can work together. We've created opportunities for our players to attend matches, meet professional athletes and feel connected to the highest level of the sport. We've also developed relationships with other Pro Padel League teams because I believe growing the professional game and the grassroots game should go hand in hand.

The goal has never been to become the biggest league. The goal has always been to build the strongest community. If we can continue doing that in city after city, while creating meaningful partnerships with clubs, brands, coaches and professional teams, then I believe 6 Love Sports can play an important role in the future of American padel.

For me, this is only the beginning.

Andi: Call me! Let 6 Love Sports do this with you. Seriously, My biggest piece of advice is this. If you're doing it purely as a business or simply as a way to make money, people will see right through it. For me, this has always been completely personal. I genuinely care about every player. I know them. I know their stories. I know what they're trying to achieve, and I want to help them get there. I want people to feel welcomed, supported and connected from the moment they walk onto the court. Women, in particular, are looking for connection. The padel is what brings them together, but it's the friendships and sense of belonging that keep them coming back week after week. Could I scale faster if I stepped back and delegated more? Probably. But I also think I'd lose something that's incredibly important. I never want to lose the personality of 6 Love Sports or the personal touch that has made it what it is today. Every decision I make comes back to one simple question. Will this make the community stronger? If the answer is yes, we'll do it. If the answer is no, we won't, no matter how good it might look from a business perspective.

People often ask me if 6 Love Sports is a league. I always tell them it's a community that happens to play padel. That's what we've built in Miami, and that's exactly what we'll continue building across the country.