Why Is Women's Tennis So Much Bigger
- Thread starter Midaso240
- Start date
I think its a mix of things. Its an individual sport and the players are very marketable because so many ladies around the world play the game for recreation. The drama is very good. Soccer for women although big in the US(kinda odd considering mens soccer is maybe 7th on the list maybe) a few european countries China and Brazil just doesnt have the pull right now. Womens Tennis players are the highest paid female athletes in the world by far with only golf even close. Also I think alot of guys dont mind watching pretty decent looking girls run around in skimpy clothing screaming
The Green Mile
Bionic Poster
Yep, agreed... that's pretty much it.
cluckcluck
Hall of Fame
The Green Mile
Bionic Poster
Cause tennis as a whole is bigger than beach volleyball.
TERRASTAR18
Hall of Fame
it's an individual sport so it's easier to market and make money as an individual player. not being in a team sport allows women to become independent contractors who can set their schedules around their other business ventures. why do you think ppl like your fav talk about their "brand"?
and comparing soccer to tennis is apples to oranges. soccer as a team sport needs an infrastructure to develop. tennis for the most part is a one on one sport and as long they get a sponsor. while soccer is a global sport, remember that women's equality varies around the globe. so just because likes soccer doesn't mean they like women's soccer. in team sports you are a cog in a machine with less individual spotlight. in a game like tennis yo make your money by standing out. also keep in mind the majority of sports fans are male so it's easier to market looks over team play, where they would unfavorably compare it to the men's version. hence why ppl like bouchard w/ no titles is getting pushed so much.
MasturB
Legend
Sex appeal.
Sharapova, Bouchard, etc. can still look extremely sexy even during a grueling 2 hour match in 90 degree heat...
Even some of the meh tennis girls look hotter than most soccer/basketball ladies.
As someone else said, long legs and short skirts help it too.
Li Na may not have the prettiest face but her lower body/legs are amazing.
Beach Volleyball is only talked about during Olympic years much like nobody else cares about Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt until it's a summer olympic year... indoor volleyball has plenty of hot girls too but the sport doesn't get recognition.
Sharapova, Bouchard, etc. can still look extremely sexy even during a grueling 2 hour match in 90 degree heat...
Even some of the meh tennis girls look hotter than most soccer/basketball ladies.
As someone else said, long legs and short skirts help it too.
Li Na may not have the prettiest face but her lower body/legs are amazing.
Beach Volleyball is only talked about during Olympic years much like nobody else cares about Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt until it's a summer olympic year... indoor volleyball has plenty of hot girls too but the sport doesn't get recognition.
Flash O'Groove
Hall of Fame
Also Billie Jean King and some other players fought to make it recognized.
And I guess that if it was tennis women who fought and not soccer women, it's part due to the fact that more women were playing tennis than soccer in the past.
Women sport is better recognized in individual sport (athleticism, skying, etc.) because women were prevented for a long time to participate to team sport (viril sport and so on).
And I guess that if it was tennis women who fought and not soccer women, it's part due to the fact that more women were playing tennis than soccer in the past.
Women sport is better recognized in individual sport (athleticism, skying, etc.) because women were prevented for a long time to participate to team sport (viril sport and so on).
heninfan99
Talk Tennis Guru
I asked a friend this and he said "because women are actually good at tennis"
I agree except with the Li na face remark. To me she is one of the more attactive women in tennis.
NADALRECORD
Banned
In the 1990s, yes.
But now they wear the most unattractive underwear (or shorts basically) on the face of the earth. Plus their legs are too muscular nowadays. WTA is at an all-time low, in terms of beauty. Plus there is no Kournikova/Hingis.
HRB
Hall of Fame
You are correct in that soccer is huge world wide, however what is NOT worldwide, sadly, is WOMAN RIGHTS! A very large part of this world still thinks this is a mans world, and woman are best looking pretty, keeping their mouths shut, cooking and looking after kids. In fact by the attitudes of many on these threads towards WTA, I suspect plenty of sexually insecure, inadequate 3rd world thinking types lurk around here!
Tennis was the FIRST sport where a woman could really stand out, make an impact, spotlight their athletism, and make a decent living (eventually). It's the sport with the longest tradition of giving woman their own "spotlight".
Over time I think other sports will follow...I for one love lots of sports, and certain ones for me are best viewed when it's the woman version..those include Tennis, Soccer, and Volleyball (Beach especially...and not JUST for the "scenery" but like tennis it's a nice bonus).
MasturB
Legend
I agree except with the Li na face remark. To me she is one of the more attactive women in tennis.
She's certainly not ugly...
Just saying that there's girls with prettier faces on tour than Li.
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
she is not ugly. but there are certainly more prettier Chinese women on tour. I just wonder though why there are not any really good Korean women on tour. this was always confusing to me..........
Flash O'Groove
Hall of Fame
TERRASTAR18
Hall of Fame
disagree about them being hotter, i just think as an individual sport they are easier to market plus they are white......
bjsnider
Hall of Fame
Sports need stars. Maybe it piggybacked on the popularity of the men's side at the slams in the early days and stars developed after that. In other words, we're going to show you Laver vs. Rosewall, but first we're going to show you this women's match. That doesn't happen in golf, right? I expect the WNBA to be a lot more popular after it gets more stars (Brittney Griner is their George Mikan).
Kalin
Legend
Another, admittedly quite unpopular, reason is that most other women's sports suck balls compared to their men's counterparts. Volleyball (the real one, not this contrived beach abomination), gymnastics and figure skating are exceptions but only in volleyball one can say the women's game is close to the men's version by virtue of the women's net being 8 inches lower. Watch a top male gymnast or figure skater and the level is off the charts compared to the women but the women still have major skills.
No 3-rd world sexism here, mind you. Just 40 years of watching and playing sports.
No 3-rd world sexism here, mind you. Just 40 years of watching and playing sports.
Steve0904
Talk Tennis Guru
Yeah, I think this part is being overblown. Of course, I'm not naive enough to believe there's no sexism in the world anymore. There's still racism in the world in 2014 for god's sake, but generally it's gotten much better than it was to the point where it's USUALLY confined to a few knobs on a tennis forum.
That said, I have nothing against women, but it is generally true that men are stronger and faster.
And let's be completely honest here. For all the talk on this forum of "sex appeal" and "long legs and mini skirts" there are a fair few women on this forum who like to look at the guys too. I know that for a fact. It's not just the guys that ogle and/or drool
My mom loves Federer for example, but has never watched him play a full tennis match in her life. Thinks he looks "great in anything" and hates that Nadal picks his @ss, but also finds him "very attractive."
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tennisaddict
Bionic Poster
Womens tennis is just feeding off the popularity of mens, especially this decade.
wait for Serena/Sharapova to hang up and the popularity will nosedive.
wait for Serena/Sharapova to hang up and the popularity will nosedive.
TERRASTAR18
Hall of Fame
suzanne lenglen......
Bdarb
Hall of Fame
and when it's on I watch..
Vcore89
Talk Tennis Guru
Seriously, if attire is the criteria for watching I'd be watching beach volleyball more than women's tennis.
Bdarb
Hall of Fame
Misty Mae combo... yikes.. :shock:
Vcore89
Talk Tennis Guru
That is the wrong combo for ogling purposes.
Bdarb
Hall of Fame
It's not big here where I am. I was flipping channels and saw them. God enough for me.
Open to suggestions though.
Sex appeal. Best looking female atheletes.
And easy-to-understand, familiar baseline tennis all year long, familar star
players every weekend.
That's what ATP has been trying to copy with baseline tennis and successfully
created Federer-Nadal-Djokovic-Murray dominance. :wink:
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