Tennis is Open for Business

It’s my favorite time of the year again.

No, not back to school, although I do love how certain brands make this their Super Bowl.

No, not post-Burning Man photo dump week, although I do love a good Playa recap.

And no, not Pumpkin Spice season, although I do enjoy all the pumpkin infusions.

What I’m talking about is when the final week of the US Open collides with the start of Fashion Week in NYC.

This year is going to be on another level thanks to the global tennis explosion. The US Open is the sport’s place to be.

Big budget media has played a role in tennis’ rise. While the movie Challengers brought new popularity, the second season of Netflix’s “Breakpoint” is doing for tennis what “Drive To Survive” did for F1. These shows generate fandom and help audiences to connect deeper to the athletes and their stories.?We now feel connected to the next generation of tennis stars while getting a chance to do slow goodbyes to Federer (his movie The Last 12 Days is highly recommended), Nadal (who will hopefully have a beautiful swan song), and Djokovic, who may be cementing himself as the actual GOAT and becoming more likable in the twilight of his career. Media helped us all move beyond the big 3. We now know so many great young players globally and from America. With 4 Americans in the quarter finals this year, the plan to build the next stars is working!

I had a chance to attend the Open last week with some brand innovators. We saw both Osaka and Alcaraz lose on what is being dubbed Black Thursday. The stadium was alive with friends in every corner. IBM had a beautiful suite full of New York’s tech community. They always have an interesting spin on data and the game and are back at it with some fresh innovations. Moet, who signed on to be an official sponsor, had their own bar flowing. The grounds, as always, had great shops with great partners. I’m loving the tech integrations too. On top of that, this year the USTA debuted an immersive gaming space inside the Chase Center, where fans can indulge in 13 tennis-themed games and experiences on-site, including Fortnite, US Open: Champions of the Court on Roblox, TopSpin 2K25, and Tennis Clash.

The players this year have so many interesting sponsorships and so much room for growth. As more brands come to recognize tennis as a global community and culture rather than a trend, more brands are trying to find their angle in, and there are a lot of opportunities to do so.

I haven’t seen many straddle the line with fashion week as well as they could, but I’m on the lookout. Hit me up, maybe next year we can crack that egg together.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??

Jesse Kirshbaum

Co-Founder of Nue