King of the Court padel: rules and format
King of the Court is played on a single court: four players on, everyone else waiting in a queue. Win and you stay on. Lose and you join the back of the queue. It is fast, loud, and makes an excellent finale to a tournament evening.
The format in four steps
The first four players take the court; everyone else lines up in the queue.
The match runs to a target score — often just 8 or 11 for a fast format — or purely on time with no target at all.
The winning pair stays on court. The losing pair joins the back of the queue.
The next two from the front of the queue come on as challengers. Repeat until the session ends.
When does it end?
Two stop conditions are common: a fixed number of matches, or a time limit on the whole session.
With a time limit the game is never cut off mid-rally — the current match is played out and counted. Whoever banked the most points wins the session.
King of the Court or King of the Hill?
The two names get mixed up constantly. King of the Court is the official single-court format with a queue, described here.
King of the Hill means climbing across several courts: winners move towards court 1, losers move down. That is the same movement a normal Mexicano tournament uses.
Short on courts? Play King of the Court. Got several courts at once? Play King of the Hill, or Mexicano.
Who is it for?
King of the Court is ideal for six to twelve people with only one court — the classic training night, or the final after a group stage.
Since only four play at a time, waiting is part of the deal. Short target scores keep the queue moving.
Frequently asked questions
How many players do you need for King of the Court?
At least six, so that there is a queue at all. Six to twelve works best; beyond that the waiting gets long.
What score do you play to?
Short targets keep it moving: 8 or 11 points are typical. Alternatively you play purely on time with no target and end the running match by hand.
What is the difference between King of the Court and King of the Hill?
King of the Court runs on one court with a queue. King of the Hill runs across several courts, with winners promoted and losers relegated — the same logic as Mexicano.
Start a King of the Court session with an automatic queue, target score and time limit.
Start a tournament for free