Guides
How many rounds to play in an Americano
2 min read · Updated 31 October 2026
For a full Americano, play one round fewer than the number of players: 7 rounds for 8 players, 11 for 12, 15 for 16. That way everyone partners everyone once. Short on time? Lower the points per match.
| Players | Courts | Rounds | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 2 | 7 | 1 h 30 min – 2 h |
| 12 | 3 | 11 | 2 h 15 min – 3 h 15 min |
| 16 | 4 | 15 | 3 h 15 min – 4 h 30 min |
Why players minus one?
With 8 players, each of you has 7 possible partners. You get one new partner per round, so 7 rounds lets you play with all of them once.
How long will it take?
A point takes about 40 seconds with the walk back, plus a couple of minutes to change courts between rounds. Here’s how that adds up:
| Rounds | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 5 | 7 | 9 | 11 |
| 16 | 1:00 | 1:30 | 2:00 | 2:15 |
| 21 | 1:15 | 1:45 | 2:30 | 3:00 |
| 24 | 1:30 | 2:00 | 2:45 | 3:15 |
| 32 | 2:00 | 2:45 | 3:30 | 4:15 |
Can’t fit a full rotation? Play fewer rounds. Padellama still spreads partners as evenly as it can, so nobody repeats a partner before they need to.
Other player counts
When the number of players doesn’t divide by 4, some sit out each round. Pick rounds that let everyone sit out equally: with 9 players on 2 courts, 9 rounds (each sits out once); with 10 players, 5 or 10 rounds. More in how sit-outs work.
In a Mexicano any number of rounds works, or play until you stop.
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