By the time the Australian Open hits the second week, it would be a big upset if there are any American men left to compete with the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. Nearly two decades after Andy Roddick’s U.S. Open win, our country’s Grand Slam drought has become such a new normal that it barely even registers as a story anymore.
Click here to read the story at usatoday.com.
Discussion Questions:
- Why do you think participation numbers are something a sports marketing professional might want to monitor?
- How do you think participation numbers might offer some insight as to how popular the sport might be?
- According to this story, how has the pandemic influenced the number of people playing tennis?
- Why do you think that might be?
- How might the tennis industry as a whole benefit from an increase in the number of people playing the sport?
- Who is the USTA?
- How might the USTA benefit from an increase in tennis participation numbers in the United States?
- How might events like the Australian Open, U.S. Open and Wimbledon benefit from an increased interest in the sport?
- Do you think more people will watch tennis just because more people are playing the sport? Why or why not?