Seven players from ATP Tour with largest social media fanbase ft. Roger Federer, Carlos Alcaraz & more

Rafael Nadal boasts of the largest social media audience on the ATP Tour.

In the world of tennis, where personalities are as diverse as playing styles, social media platforms have given players an opportunity to build powerful, personal connections with millions of fans worldwide. Platforms such as Intagram, X have become essential for athletes to connect with fans and showcase their personal brands.

The tag of the overall leader in the race to the top across the sports industry for social media followers belongs to football legend Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese forward, has always had a simmering rivalry with Argentine Lionel Messi, with deeply-polarized fans on opposite sides of the fence. Similiarly in tennis there have been several personalities who have a massive fan following.

What tennis fans lack in numbers, they make with intense debates around their favourite players. Each viewpoint is shot down by the other camp – the most controversial being the ‘GOAT’ topic, but that is a story for another day. These debates also spread around social media each time a player wins a major event such as the grand slam.

The players have effectively harnessed social media not just to elevate their profiles but also to bring fans closer to their journey on ATP tour. This fine balance of sports and social media has reshaped how fans experience tennis, making each post or an update an intimate experience of the game.

The ‘Big 3’ command a significant chunk of faithful followers despite retiring or nearing retirement age. Not to be left out, the newcomers are keen on crashing the party in the social media space. The follower tally is across Instagram, X and Facebook.

7. Jannik Sinner – 3.26 million

Jannik Sinner, the “Iceman” of tennis known for his calm demeanour on the court, has a total follower count of 3.26m. Most of them are on Instagram and came after winning the 2024 Australian Open. The Italian added 800,000 followers in February and another 700,000 between then and the third week of September. This brings his follower count on Instagram to 2.9m followers.

The 23-year-old was popular even before winning his first Grand Slam title and had deals in place with Nike, Rolex, Gucci and Alfa Romeo by the time he won the 2024 Australian Open. He jostles for attention with his travelling entourage of fans, dubbed the ‘Carota Boys.’

At one point, the young Italian conceded they probably enjoyed greater popularity than him. They turned up to support him in New York and posed with Sinner while he held up the title. The 2024 season saw the Italian be crowned the ATP World No. 1 for the first time.

6. Nick Kyrgios – 5.4m

Love him or hate him, you cannot ignore Nick Kyrgios. Despite being on a sabbatical from tennis, he remains in the spotlight. The Australian has 4.2m followers hanging on to his every word, while just over a million follow him on X and Facebook combined.

The current bad boy of tennis and John McEnroe of the 21st century has quite the list of controversial views he publicly aired. These are in addition to his on-court actions, which have earned him fines for unsportsmanlike conduct, including mouthing expletives and racquet abuse.

His comments directed towards Anna Kalinskaya was termed misogynistic and led to calls for him to be dropped from the ESPN commentary panel during the 2024 US Open. 

5. Carlos Alcaraz – 7.43m

Carlos Alcaraz takes the lead among the newer crop of players coming through the gates. His Instagram follower count of 6.2m keeps him in the race for most social media followers. Alcaraz’s Instagram profile is a collage of his greatest triumphs – a string of photos showing him with the trophies he’s won in his young career.

The Spaniard’s X handle also chronicles the eventful 2024 season, such as his tournament wins and support for Real Madrid and the Spanish national football side. Tributes to fellow tennis players also make the cut. Alcaraz helped the Spanish squad make the final eight of the Davis Cup after missing out last season. Helping Team Europe to victory on his Laver Cup debut was another feather in the cap for the Spaniard.

4. Andy Murray – 9.2m

Andy Murray’s unique brand of British humour has earned the Scot 9.2m followers. A chunk of his followers come from X and Facebook – 2.5m each, followed by Instagram with 2.2m.

Since his retirement on August 1st, he has been busy with everything from trying on face masks to trolling his wife over her vocabulary and Roger Federer over his dietary choices. Federer drew Murray’s attention with an Instagram post about an overly large pizza that the legend was helping himself to.

Also Read: Andy Murray takes cheeky dig at Roger Federer – ‘What a shame…’

3. Novak Djokovic – 34.8m

Djokovic may lead the ATP Tour with accolades and numbers, but he comes in third with 34.8m social media followers. Like Nadal, most of the Serb’s followers are on Instagram (15.5m) followed by X and Facebook, with follower counts of close to 10m.

The Serbian shares his milestones on social media as well as heartwarming moments with his partner, Jelena Djokovic. The  Novak Djokovic Foundation, setup by the former World No. 1, aims to improve the lives of Serbian children.

The polyglot was spotted during the Flushing Meadows fortnight posing with an apple leaning on a yellow cab in where else, the “Big Apple.” Djokovic helped the Serbian team overcome Greece in their Davis Cup fixture in their World Group first round tie in September 2024.  

2. Roger Federer – 43.3m

Next up is crowd favourite Roger Federer, whose social media numbers do not reveal the extent of his popularity. The Swiss has a nearly identical number of followers on Instagram (12.7m) and X (12.6m).

The ever-popular Federer is keeping busy with a string of endorsement activities, including for Swiss mobile service provider Sunrise Telecom and Swiss Tourism. For the latter, he shared screen space with Danish actor Mads Mikkelson. In July 2024, he took on Zendaya in a game of air tennis as publicity for On Shoes.

1. Rafael Nadal – 50.9m

Rafael Nadal leads the pack in the three-way battle with Federer and Djokovic, with nearly 51m followers. Approximately 21m of those can be found on X. The Spaniard keeps his posts related to tennis practice sessions and on-court exploits.

However, Nadal does include glimpses of his off-court activities. His posts include the special occasion where he took on Hollywood actor Will Smith in an E1 electric boat race at Italy’s Lake Como in August 2024. Nadal owns the Team Rafa outfit, while Will Smith owns Westbrook Racing.

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