Nike’s tennis roster has expanded from a small group of stars to include China’s Zheng Qinwen, Japan’s Naomi Osaka, the Philippines’ Alexandra Eala and Indonesia’s Janice Tjen, as Asia’s 35.3 million players make up a third of the sport’s global base.
Naomi Osaka entered the Wimbledon court in a white kimono, a first for the sport. It’s significance was never just about the fashion.
Fashion and sport have often collided, but now diversity is driving every deal, and Asian tennis stars are the faces on magazine covers and billboards around the globe.
Roger Federer created the template for seven and eight-figure tennis sponsorship earnings with historic deals and endorsements, but now that Asian tennis stars are in the frame, every fan has their own icon, and the sponsorship floodgates have officially opened.
Southeast Asia is making its move on the court and off, as Indonesia’s Janice Tjen and Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew and Lanlana Tararudee all powered into (at least) the Wimbledon 2026 second round, sending a clear message to the sport.
Before the sponsorship boom, there was Yayuk Basuki
The current rise of Asian tennis stars goes beyond fresh faces and instead feels like a rebirth of the industry. A far cry from decades past. Indonesia’s highest-ever ranked tennis player Yayuk Basuki revealed recently the lengths she’d gone to, to fund her game.
“I once sold two cars for the sake of tennis because I loved this field so much,” Yayuk Basuki recalled in a Fimela interview, before laying bare the harsh truth: That the sacrifices athletes make, forged from childhood and demanding absolute devotion, are rarely ever met with state funding.
Basuki’s 1993 US Open doubles semifinal with Nana Miyagi and her Wimbledon quarterfinal in 1997 still stand as Indonesia’s greatest Grand Slam achievements, with no singles player since coming close to matching them.
Basuki is proof that tennis has always been a “bougie” sport where a personal bank account was the only way through the door. Is that about to change?
Diversity isn’t just fair – it’s commercially logical
Tom Griffiths, a marketing specialist based in Asia, argues that shifting the tide in underrepresentation is about more than fairness, and the issue of a diverse field of sponsored athletes also carries economic logic. Targeted audiences are easier to reach, and backing underrepresented athletes or sports allows a brand to establish a unique position in the market.
In the early 2000s, Nike’s tennis lineup was Sharapova, Serena, Federer, Nadal, and not much else.
Today’s tennis stars tell a new story. Nike athletes like Japan’s Naomi Osaka and China’s Zheng Qinwen sit alongside partnerships with the Philippines’ Alexandra Eala, and Indonesia’s Janice Tjen. All carry the banner alongside Carlos Alcaraz and Nadal. A reminder of just how far the sport’s commercial landscape has come.
Asia’s tennis participation boom
Tennis’ foothold in the region has only grown since the pandemic drew people to the courts. Those habits became permanent, turning casual players into passionate fans who now cheer for their homegrown heroes.
Tennis has historically been dominated by white players, but diversity is finally taking hold. According to the United States Tennis Association (USTA), the sport saw a net 33 percent increase in players from 2020 to 2023, with Hispanic and Latino participation up 90 percent, Black players up 46 percent, and Asian and Pacific Islander players up 37 percent.
According to the ITF, Asia tops the world in sheer player count with 35.3 million, or 33.4 percent of the global tennis population, and brands are taking notice.
Our Racquet Sports State of Play 2026 contains a detailed analysis of key trends happening in racquet sports today, including the global tennis market, as well as detailed figures on participation around the world. Read it here.
The right athlete is the ultimate entry point
“More diversity in elite sport is a win, and brands should be just as intentional with athletes as they are with models,” Griffiths explains. “Athletes bring built-in fan bases in their home countries, giving brands a clear entry point into new markets. And as marketing shifts from selling products to building worlds, the right athlete becomes the ultimate gateway.”
Australian Open viewership data confirms the trend. Audiences rose with Japan’s Kei Nishikori’s four quarterfinal appearances between 2012 and 2019, then spiked to more than 20 million in Japan alone when Osaka took the 2019 women’s title in a classic battle against Petra Kvitova.
The Australian Open 2025 delivered a 34 percent year-on-year surge in Japanese viewership, with Osaka and Nishikori seemingly behind the jump.
Moqian Sun of The Harvest agency in China takes a different view on the marketing shift, arguing that local Asian athletes connect better with local fans and earn their trust in fast-growing Asian markets than any imported global star can match.
Local Asian athletes drive engagement and save money while opening the door for regional brands to compete with global heavyweights like Nike and Adidas.
Anta, Wilson and the coming Chinese sponsorship wave
Chinese brands now have the arsenal to go after these athletes. Anta saw it coming in 2019, snapping up a controlling stake in Amer Sports and grabbing Wilson, Arc’teryx, Salomon, and Atomic in one sweep. Anta dipped into tennis before with Jelena Jankovic, and the current wave of Asian talent makes a return look likely.
China’s tennis equipment market is racing ahead, with market analysts putting its CAGR at between 5 and 10 percent between now and 2030; faster than any other major region. More city players, state-backed programs, and fresh courts are behind the spike.
Academies in Jiangsu, Guangdong, and Shanghai are churning out new tennis talent, while Head, Yonex, and the tennis arm of American-based Prince Sports, Prince Tennis, are cranking up production for everyone from weekend warriors to pros. Younger crowds, more media coverage, and nonstop investment in infrastructure and coaching are keeping the momentum unstoppable.
“Young fans give brands a straight shot at Gen Z and millennial wallets, the real fuel behind athleisure, and winning them early means keeping them [loyal] for the long haul,” Sun shared.
Social media changed the sponsorship calculus
Performance alone no longer wins the sponsorship race. Brands now place more value on the communities athletes build and the fans they bring with them.
“Inclusivity and diversity are essential for brands chasing socially conscious consumers, but making those selections without alienating key demographics is a delicate balance. And as athletes evolve into social media celebrities, their unfiltered remarks can damage a brand’s reputation through a mere linkage,” Griffiths stresses.
Against this backdrop, brands better think twice before signing off on any ambassadorship.
In the social media age, one wrong quote can torch an athlete’s image and the brand behind it. And this goes for everyone, not just Asian stars. Athletes today control their own narrative, and they’re not afraid to talk about racism, the pressure of the spotlight, or the exhausting day-to-day reality of their profession.
Asian athletes aren’t following the money. They’re leading it
Tennis fans have never been more invested in the players themselves. Zheng Qinwen just landed another sponsorship deal before stepping back on court, this time as global ambassador for Turkish Airlines, and with an estimated $21 million in sponsor earnings from 2025 already in the bank, she now ranks as the second-highest earner in tennis sponsorships worldwide, trailing only Coco Gauff.
Asian athletes are no longer the backup option anymore. Zheng has signed with Nike, Wilson, Dior, Rolex, Lancôme, Gatorade, McDonald’s, Audi, and Ant Group’s Alipay, plus regional deals across the board, making it clear they are the ones brands build around now.
“The athleisure race will be decided in Asia, and Asian athletes are the express lane to consumer trust,” Sun says.
“Asian standouts like Li Na, Naomi Osaka, Zheng Qinwen, and Zhang Zhizhen have turned heads at Grand Slams and the Olympics, sparking greater public interest and attracting new players to the sport, and that spotlight lifts every brand attached to them, from apparel to equipment and beyond,” Sun concludes.
Racquet Sports: from Wimbledon to Beyond
Tennis, padel, and pickleball. We track the business story: brand strategies, participation trends, product launches, sponsorship economics, and the major events that drive the sport: explore our Wimbledon 2026 coverage.
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