Why The ATP Tour Is Taking A Sponsorship Away From Tennis Tournaments
The post Why The ATP Tour Is Taking A Sponsorship Away From Tennis Tournaments appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. For years, tennis balls have been the sport’s fuzzy yellow scapegoat, blamed for poor play and even injuries. Now, the men’s tour finally has a plan to ensure consistency. There’s plenty to look at during a tennis spectacle like the U.S. Open, where a night match in Arthur Ashe Stadium might hold 23,000 fans, hundreds of sponsor activations, dozens of celebrities and who knows how many Honey Deuces. But everyone watching, whether in-person or on TV at home, looks at one thing more than any other during a match: the tennis ball. Given that exposure and the makeup of a crowd at a typical ATP Tour event—where 60% to 75% of spectators identify as tennis players themselves, according to tour data—manufacturers have long paid for the privilege of serving as the official provider of tournaments’ tennis balls, hoping to increase their market share in a global marketplace that sells $1.5 billion worth of balls annually. With each tournament free to negotiate with any brand it chooses, Forbes estimates the biggest events on the calendar can fetch $200,000 to $500,000 annually, in addition to a supply of the 70,000 or so balls used during play. This sponsorship free-for-all has become a hot-button issue for professional players since different brands make balls with slightly different weights, densities and felt—all of which affect how it feels to hit for hours each day. Balls have become a scapegoat for players’ inconsistent performance and, increasingly, for shoulder, elbow and wrist injuries. “A lot of players are adamant about the effects that changing balls week in and week out have had on their body,” says Chris Eubanks, a former Wimbledon semifinalist and the ATP’s 160th-ranked singles player, who will serve as an analyst for ESPN at the U.S. Open next week. “At least give us time…
The post Why The ATP Tour Is Taking A Sponsorship Away From Tennis Tournaments appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
For years, tennis balls have been the sport’s fuzzy yellow scapegoat, blamed for poor play and even injuries. Now, the men’s tour finally has a plan to ensure consistency. There’s plenty to look at during a tennis spectacle like the U.S. Open, where a night match in Arthur Ashe Stadium might hold 23,000 fans, hundreds of sponsor activations, dozens of celebrities and who knows how many Honey Deuces. But everyone watching, whether in-person or on TV at home, looks at one thing more than any other during a match: the tennis ball. Given that exposure and the makeup of a crowd at a typical ATP Tour event—where 60% to 75% of spectators identify as tennis players themselves, according to tour data—manufacturers have long paid for the privilege of serving as the official provider of tournaments’ tennis balls, hoping to increase their market share in a global marketplace that sells $1.5 billion worth of balls annually. With each tournament free to negotiate with any brand it chooses, Forbes estimates the biggest events on the calendar can fetch $200,000 to $500,000 annually, in addition to a supply of the 70,000 or so balls used during play. This sponsorship free-for-all has become a hot-button issue for professional players since different brands make balls with slightly different weights, densities and felt—all of which affect how it feels to hit for hours each day. Balls have become a scapegoat for players’ inconsistent performance and, increasingly, for shoulder, elbow and wrist injuries. “A lot of players are adamant about the effects that changing balls week in and week out have had on their body,” says Chris Eubanks, a former Wimbledon semifinalist and the ATP’s 160th-ranked singles player, who will serve as an analyst for ESPN at the U.S. Open next week. “At least give us time…
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