ATP partners with TikTok to capitalize on rise of BTS content

NEW YORK (AP)—The newest popular influencer on TikTok's "For You" page might be the scroller's favorite tennis player. At least, the ATP hopes so.

The governing body of men's professional tennis announced Tuesday it will be partnering with TikTok to further develop tennis content and bolster engagement on the platform.

The partnership is two-fold. One of its stated goals is player engagement, aimed at helping more ATP players build up followings on the platform and give tennis fans "exclusive behind-the-scenes" access to the sport, according to a press release.

Its other goal is the creation of the "Tennis Creator Network," an initiative that will help existing non-athlete creators create TikTok content at ATP tour events.

"This strategic content partnership with TikTok builds on current trends with our audiences, places ATP at the forefront of the intersection of culture and sport, and creates discoverable content that cuts through for both players and tournaments," Andrew Walker, senior vice president of brand and marketing for the ATP, said in the release.

Currently, only 20 of the ATP's top 100 players have a presence on TikTok. Some of those 20 have become verifiable stars on the platform—Carlos Alcaraz has 1.1 million followers, Novak Djokovic has 666,000 and Ben Shelton has 448,000, to look at the upper echelon. They share everything from behind-the-scenes looks at tournaments to clips of them mowing the lawn and learning calligraphy.

The ATP TikTok account itself has nearly 600,000 followers.

The partnership is an acknowledgement of a blazing trend in sports media — candid, behind-the-scenes content created by athletes. Its popularity and virality is on the rise, manifesting itself everywhere from TikTok accounts to podcast studios.

In July, a pair of Minnesota Lynx players—Courtney Williams and Natisha Hiedeman, nicknamed "The Studbudz"—amassed hundreds of thousands of views and followers after live streaming the entirety of WNBA All-Star weekend, parties and all. The duo have now turned the momentum into official merchandise and newfound stardom.

Athlete-hosted podcasts, with an hour of casual conversation from star athletes, have also repeatedly become headline makers. "New Heights" with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is an obvious one, but shows like Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham's "Show me something" have spiked similar engagement as their hosts offer candid insight into life beyond the game.

The ATP is looking to tap into that surge in behind-the-scenes content with this partnership.

"(It) encourages more players to share their stories," said TikTok's head of global sports partnerships, Rollo Goldstaub, in the release, "further igniting tennis' cultural movement on TikTok.