Keytrade Bank 'Second Serve' project gives a new lease of life to old padel balls

As Belgium's official padel sponsor, Keytrade Bank is proud to present its 'Second Serve' project. This innovative recycling initiative is being launched in collaboration with the padel federations of Flanders, Wallonia & Brussels and Belgium. This programme benefits from the participation of 90 Belgian padel clubs and is part of the bank’s wider sustainability initiatives.

'Second Serve' provides special boxes to various padel clubs into which players can deposit their worn-out padel balls. The balls are then recycled and reused as insulation material in student accommodation. Keytrade is combining the recycling of padel balls with several other socially responsible initiatives to have a positive impact on both the environment and the community.

"This campaign is a great example of our sponsorship approach. We recycle balls, we reward clubs that promote access to this fantastic sport, and we ask social enterprises to handle the collection. It is a project we are very proud of." states Morgan Libert, Chief Marketing Officer at Keytrade Bank.

The project has already undergone a successful three-month test phase at 15 padel clubs, during which no less than 976 kg of worn-out balls were collected. Based on these encouraging results, Keytrade Bank is now extending this initiative to 90 clubs throughout Belgium. Social enterprises Axedis, La Lumière and Wase Werkplaats will collect the balls every month. Keytrade Bank is also looking for a long-term alternative to reuse the recycled materials within the sports sector as a whole.

In addition, Keytrade Bank is applying its usual '5 cents per transaction' principle to this recycling campaign. This means that for every ball that is collected, the bank will donate 5 cents to organisations that are helping to make padel accessible to everyone. If, for example, 500,000 balls are collected, this would generate up to 25,000 euros.