Who are the players that actually help to sell specific racquet models?

socallefty

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
Which active players do you think help to actually sell a lot of the specific racquet models they endorse? I can think of multiple Slam winners like Djokovic, Sinner, Alcaraz, but are there a lot of other players who move large sales volumes of the specific model they endorse? Is the main value of most player endorsements just branding of the racquet company rather than the actual model they endorse?

In my case, the endorsement of a player hasn’t affected my desire to buy a particular model since I was a kid in the early Eighties. I was wondering if many of you would go buy a racquet model if it was endorsed by a non-Slam winning player who is around top 10-30 typically.

Is it better for a brand to spend most of their endorsement budget on a superstar rather than sponsor 20-30 players in the top 150?
 
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I don't think so anymore... Going to look back into history first and why these players sold their racquets:

- Sampras - All-time great, only played with the Pro Staff 6.0 85, and thus, helped sold a bunch of them.
- Chang - Unique because he was the only player on tour playing with racquets with a cross bar, helped sold a bunch of them.
- Roddick - Very marketable, first to that famous blue Babolat racquet. Practically put the brand on the map.
- Federer - Stayed with the traditional box beamed Pro Staff 90 for a majority of the career. Even when he moved onto a "mainstream" racquet, it was still unique being a traditionally spec'd players racquet. When the sport has fully moved onto tweener-type racquets. He was basically the last hold-out from the prior era of racquets.
- Nadal - Same as Roddick, except with that famous yellow Babolat racquet. Cemented the brand in the sport.

Everyone up there who moved racquets had something unique about them, whether it's the unique playing style, or that signature shot. They had something that helped identify themselves with the racquet they were using/endorsing/marketing.

Now, the most marketable and successfully players are not using anything as "the first, the last, or even unique". Two of the most marketable and successful players are just using run-of-the-mill versions of racquets that don't make them unique from one another.

- Alcaraz - Off the shelf Pure Aero
- Sinner - Off the shell Speed
In any of their matches, if I mute the TV, and cover the baseline with a piece of tape, I wouldn't be able to tell who's who.

There's nothing unique about their playing style, racquet of choice, etc...

So how are racquet companies like Babolat and Yonex dominating?
1) They're making racquets that helped ushered in the current generation of players.
2) They're hitting the juniors scenes hard. Because they understand that even as juniors, once a player find their "racquet", there's a slim chance they'll deviate from it in the future.
 
Say Chi Sin Lo said:
I don't think so anymore... Going to look back into history first and why these players sold their racquets:

- Sampras - All-time great, only played with the Pro Staff 6.0 85, and thus, helped sold a bunch of them.
- Chang - Unique because he was the only player on tour playing with racquets with a cross bar, helped sold a bunch of them.
- Roddick - Very marketable, first to that famous blue Babolat racquet. Practically put the brand on the map.
- Federer - Stayed with the traditional box beamed Pro Staff 90 for a majority of the career. Even when he moved onto a "mainstream" racquet, it was still unique being a traditionally spec'd players racquet. When the sport has fully moved onto tweener-type racquets. He was basically the last hold-out from the prior era of racquets.
- Nadal - Same as Roddick, except with that famous yellow Babolat racquet. Cemented the brand in the sport.

Everyone up there who moved racquets had something unique about them, whether it's the unique playing style, or that signature shot. They had something that helped identify themselves with the racquet they were using/endorsing/marketing.

Now, the most marketable and successfully players are not using anything as "the first, the last, or even unique". Two of the most marketable and successful players are just using run-of-the-mill versions of racquets that don't make them unique from one another.

- Alcaraz - Off the shelf Pure Aero
- Sinner - Off the shell Speed
In any of their matches, if I mute the TV, and cover the baseline with a piece of tape, I wouldn't be able to tell who's who.

There's nothing unique about their playing style, racquet of choice, etc...

So how are racquet companies like Babolat and Yonex dominating?
1) They're making racquets that helped ushered in the current generation of players.
2) They're hitting the juniors scenes hard. Because they understand that even as juniors, once a player find their "racquet", there's a slim chance they'll deviate from it in the future.
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As much as you want to deny the role of Djokovic, he made the Speed Line from non-existent to best seller within the Head offer and was the highest paid racket contract of the Big three…
There are other marketable guys like Kyrgios and Yonex, Goran/safin, and a few within the TF line that increased the TF market Share
 
dr325i said:
As much as you want to deny the role of Djokovic, he made the Speed Line from non-existent to best seller within the Head offer and was the highest paid racket contract of the Big three…
There are other marketable guys like Kyrgios and Yonex, Goran/safin, and a few within the TF line that increased the TF market Share
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I can't remember the last time I saw a Speed racquet out in the public in the sea of Babolat and Yonex.

Let alone Head's seemingly annual release of "special edition" Speed racquet, no one's buying them.
 
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dr325i said:
As much as you want to deny the role of Djokovic, he made the Speed Line from non-existent to best seller within the Head offer and was the highest paid racket contract of the Big three…
There are other marketable guys like Kyrgios and Yonex, Goran/safin, and a few within the TF line that increased the TF market Share
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I see a lot of Speeds at my club and especially with juniors.

Who do you think has made an impact for TF? Med?
 
Alcaraz/Nadal/whoever is endorsing the PA 98, other than that, I'd argue that Luca and Beckett sell more rackets than any of the other guys on tour
 
JK208 said:
Alcaraz/Nadal/whoever is endorsing the PA 98, other than that, I'd argue that Luca and Beckett sell more rackets than any of the other guys on tour
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No idea who Luca and Beckett are - are they some influencers or something?

If Tsitsipas moves to the Aero98 from the Blade as he seems to have done this week in Dubai, will that spark a surge in Aero sales?
 
Say Chi Sin Lo said:
I can't remember the last time I saw a Speed racquet out in the public in the sea of Babolat and Yonex.

Let alone Head's seemingly annual release of "special edition" Speed racquet, no one's buying them.
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I see tons of Speed frames all around. Speed, Gravity, Boom and occasional Extreme.
 
dr325i said:
I’ve seen quite a few men too. Average club players probably don’t know what exact model she’s using/endorsing
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I felt like getting the endorsements of both the male and female #1s at one point two years ago helped TF suddenly get recognized as a serious racquet brand unique from many of the other small brands they competed with. So a case of the brand recognition being improved tremendously more than players going out to buy the specific model used by Med or Iga. Would you agree?
 
socallefty said:
I felt like getting the endorsements of both the male and female #1s at one point two years ago helped TF suddenly get recognized as a serious racquet brand unique from many of the other small brands they competed with. So a case of the brand recognition being improved tremendously more than players going out to buy the specific model used by Med or Iga. Would you agree?
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I agree, it did help them a lot but the big 3 own 80% of the racket market
 
Say Chi Sin Lo said:
I can't remember the last time I saw a Speed racquet out in the public in the sea of Babolat and Yonex.

Let alone Head's seemingly annual release of "special edition" Speed racquet, no one's buying them.
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I got back into tennis last year and bought a Speed MP legend 2024. I did watch a lot of reviews, but their similarity to the racquet Jannik uses was a big factor also.

However, being an all black racquet with a "normal" head shape and no stencil on the strings, I'd guess most people don't know what it is.

Babolat paint jobs and aero beams, as well as Yonex head shapes, are really easy to identify.
 
Say Chi Sin Lo said:
I can't remember the last time I saw a Speed racquet out in the public in the sea of Babolat and Yonex.

Let alone Head's seemingly annual release of "special edition" Speed racquet, no one's buying them.
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do you typically walk into your club blindfolded? Speed MP has been one of the best selling racquets year after year and it and the extreme and radical are the most used head racquets at my club. yonex is the most popular at my club though.
 
socallefty said:
No idea who Luca and Beckett are - are they some influencers or something?
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Wouldn't quite call them influencers as they don't do much of the "hype" or fashion stuff, but they are both racket reviewers that are pretty popular on YouTube.
socallefty said:
If Tsitsipas moves to the Aero98 from the Blade as he seems to have done this week in Dubai, will that spark a surge in Aero sales?
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No way. The only people who I think really sell rackets are generational greats and strong club players. The average rec player doesn't know who Tsitsipas is, and anyone that does will either buy the Aero because of Alcaraz, not care because they think that Tsitsipas is still washed, or not care because they know that the best racket for their favorite pro is not necessarily the best racket for them. Strong club players who are decent guys sell a surprising amount of rackets. Just last week I was screwing around and a few guys came to ask me what racket I have because they liked my game. 2 min later, they ask to play a few points with it, I oblige, and within 30 minutes they both want an ezone 98...
 
isnt alcaraz playing w a pretty much stock aero98. I think the frame is already well regarded so Tsitsipas may not move people that way. Of course if he gets a pure aero w a pure strike paintjob, he could bring interest to that line of racquets.
 
Well djokovic sure sold a ton of speed he has never touched. What a legend. coco almost sold a lot of booms this way. Remember they used Murray to move the radical pros back then and they changed the mold every two years lol.
it is so ironic how head players are only allowed to use a paintjob of a racquet they never use.
This is called misrepresentation, not marketing.
 
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Tiger Tim quite successfully 'endorsed' 5 Slazenger rackets in a row via paint-job; Phantom Tour Braided, Pro Braided, PB Trinity, X1 and NX One; and never used one of them.
 
AndrewUtz said:
do you typically walk into your club blindfolded? Speed MP has been one of the best selling racquets year after year and it and the extreme and radical are the most used head racquets at my club. yonex is the most popular at my club though.
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No clown, when I walk onto the tennis courts in my area, it's a sea of babolat and yonex.
 
JK208 said:
Alcaraz/Nadal/whoever is endorsing the PA 98, other than that, I'd argue that Luca and Beckett sell more rackets than any of the other guys on tour
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Not even close. Look at the numbers of subscribers those guys have. And a small percentage of those subscribers may buy a frame because of that person. You need to get off the forums and live in the real world more.
socallefty said:
No idea who Luca and Beckett are - are they some influencers or something?
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There you go! Thanks for proving my point.
 
Vicious49 said:
Not even close. Look at the numbers of subscribers those guys have. And a small percentage of those subscribers may buy a frame because of that person. You need to get off the forums and live in the real world more.

There you go! Thanks for proving my point.
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What I mean is that I don’t know people who would actually buy a frame because their favorite pro uses it. For most people, reviews, testing, and personal experience mean far more than any endorsement.
 
Can only speak from my experience in the US market, but the only racquet I've seen where a customer is more likely to name-drop the pro endorsing that racquet line is the RF97. Occasionally you'd hear some ask about the "Nadal or Djokovic racquet," but more often than not they were already familiar with the Pure Aero and/or Speed line.

I'm not sure the pro endorsement matters that much. From my experience, the average consumer is pretty open to trying racquets from all the manufacturers, including smaller companies like Dunlop and Volkl. I can probably count the number of times a customer has asked which pro(s) use this racquet on one hand. The racquets that are generally the easier ones to play with sell more than ones that require better technique and mechanics. Obviously, the Big 3 racquet manufacturers still do quite well by comparison, but it's not like I've had trouble convincing people to demo a TF-X1/Vostra V8/FX 500.

I think the bigger challenge for the manufacturers going forward is what to do with some of their racquet lines that may have done well in the past but are just not suited for the modern game or are geared towards more advanced players and have a more niche audience. I know people on here love the Prestige and the Pro Staff, but there is a reason we've seen sales on both these lines continue to slump.
 
StormyPetrel88 said:
Can only speak from my experience in the US market, but the only racquet I've seen where a customer is more likely to name-drop the pro endorsing that racquet line is the RF97. Occasionally you'd hear some ask about the "Nadal or Djokovic racquet," but more often than not they were already familiar with the Pure Aero and/or Speed line.

I'm not sure the pro endorsement matters that much. From my experience, the average consumer is pretty open to trying racquets from all the manufacturers, including smaller companies like Dunlop and Volkl. I can probably count the number of times a customer has asked which pro(s) use this racquet on one hand. The racquets that are generally the easier ones to play with sell more than ones that require better technique and mechanics. Obviously, the Big 3 racquet manufacturers still do quite well by comparison, but it's not like I've had trouble convincing people to demo a TF-X1/Vostra V8/FX 500.

I think the bigger challenge for the manufacturers going forward is what to do with some of their racquet lines that may have done well in the past but are just not suited for the modern game or are geared towards more advanced players and have a more niche audience. I know people on here love the Prestige and the Pro Staff, but there is a reason we've seen sales on both these lines continue to slump.
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Absolutely agree with this, the best selling racket is the Pure Drive even though no household name currently endorses it. After that there is the PA (Alcaraz), and the Blade (no major player), iirc. I would think that far fewer people actually care about the endorsement than expected.
 
JK208 said:
Absolutely agree with this, the best selling racket is the Pure Drive even though no household name currently endorses it. After that there is the PA (Alcaraz), and the Blade (no major player), iirc. I would think that far fewer people actually care about the endorsement than expected.
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Ditto the Wilson Clash. No pro player endorses the racquet line but you will see tons of them at the public courts. The TF-X1 285/300 has been a pretty consistent seller despite the lack of pro-player endorsements and the fact some people still struggle to pronounce Tecnfibre. Even the Head Instinct line sells relatively well despite the price drop and the fact that Head has decided to put zero marketing effort behind it.
 
StormyPetrel88 said:
Ditto the Wilson Clash. No pro player endorses the racquet line but you will see tons of them at the public courts. The TF-X1 285/300 has been a pretty consistent seller despite the lack of pro-player endorsements and the fact some people still struggle to pronounce Tecnfibre. Even the Head Instinct line sells relatively well despite the price drop and the fact that Head has decided to put zero marketing effort behind it.
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2 girls I know with UTRs of over 6 play with the instinct. The 3.0 ladies that I occasionally see use an instinct, a SX300, and the other 2 use random Walmart specials- I doubt most rec players even follow pro tennis.
 
JK208 said:
2 girls I know with UTRs of over 6 play with the instinct. The 3.0 ladies that I occasionally see use an instinct, a SX300, and the other 2 use random Walmart specials- I doubt most rec players even follow pro tennis.
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It's a mixed bag. I'd say almost all keep up with what's going on at each of the slams and the big Masters 1000 events in the US, but most don't follow the weekly goings on the tours. I reckon most don't even know there was a tournament in Dubai last week.

It kinda makes me wonder why we expect things to be different in tennis compared to other sports. I love watching Bukayo Saka play football, but I'm not about to run out and buy his particular New Balance shoe. I doubt many people rush out to Dick's to ask for Rory McIlory's exact clubs and bag. Why are we holding the average tennis consumer to a different standard? They just want a racquet that's comfortable and works for their game, regardless of whether or not some ATP/WTA pro has been paid to endorse it.
 
Say Chi Sin Lo said:
No clown, when I walk onto the tennis courts in my area, it's a sea of babolat and yonex.
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no need to call me clown. the speed mp being one of the best selling racquets year after year just makes you look like the clown bruv. Head still has a far larger market share than Yonex as well and I believe Babolat but someone may have to fact check me on that one.
 
Say Chi Sin Lo said:
I can't remember the last time I saw a Speed racquet out in the public in the sea of Babolat and Yonex.

Let alone Head's seemingly annual release of "special edition" Speed racquet, no one's buying them.
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Again, can only speak to what I see in the US market, but this take is not accurate. The Speed line, specifically the MP and the MP L, do very well in comparison to Babolat and Yonex. The Radical and the Gravity lines both hold their own as well. Head still has rock-solid connections to many of the local clubs and teaching pros here as well. And I reckon Head is still doing just fine in continental Europe as well where it also has long-standing ties to many of the clubs.

I think most people here would be surprised to learn how few customers have brand loyalty to any one manufacturer. Not saying that there aren't people who say "I only play with Babolat or Wilson." But I can tell you that it's way less than you think it is. Even the high-performing juniors in the area chop and change based on what sort of deal they can get from a sponsor.
 
I've only ever seen one Head Extreme in the wild.
It should be more popular given Berrettini is the face of the line.
Perhaps he's too handsome and it intimidates buyers?
 
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