WHY EMMA RADUCANU IS FAR MORE THAN JUST A NUMBER

Credit: The Telegraph

Yesterday (20.10.21) Emma Raducanu announced a partnership with Dior, the second since winning the US Open following Tiffany & Co. in September. Here’s a marketeer's view on the rise of Emma Raducanu from Co-Founder Lisa Parfitt.

The day after the 2021 US Open Final I sat down with my 11-year-old daughter to watch (or re-watch in my case) the last set in what has now become arguably the greatest game of tennis of the 21st Century, certainly the most historic Grand Slam win. Revelling in the win, she soaked up the on-screen celebrations - the singing of ‘Sweet Caroline’, the inevitable ‘box climb’ and some bewilderment at the fuss over Tim Henman. However, it was the announcement of the prize fund that drew the biggest reaction. ‘$2.5 million!’ Staggered, my daughter continued: “Think how many people that could feed?”  

There it was, in one simple, innocent, and virtuous comment she had summed up all that’s wrong and troubling about the media obsession to reduce Emma Raducanu to a commercial commodity. It also highlighted all that is right about the next generation growing up in the age of Marcus Rashford, Naomi Osaka and Greta Thunberg, who’s desire is to fix a world their parent’s generation failed to protect. Distilling Raducanu’s sporting achievement to monetary gain is phenomenally crass, reductive and side-lines the actual conversation we should be having - one an eleven-year-old could identify more clearly than adults - and that is her impact on society.  

Nelson Mandela famously said ‘Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand.’ In Emma’s Grand Slam-winning moment she was certainly speaking to youth. 

There is no doubt Emma will inspire boys and girls to play tennis, but one player is not a panacea for ensuring the next generation pick up a racket. Turning inspiration into a participation reality is more than a single role model alone can achieve, it’s a complicated matter that has far reaching implications into government funding and long-term strategy. The ‘Play Your Way’ and ‘U In?’ integrated marketing campaigns have been central to the LTA’s strategy of ‘Tennis Opened Up’ to mobilise people from all backgrounds to access tennis in an affordable way.   

Implicit in Mandela’s observation about sports’ power to unite is the ‘marketability’ of transcendent sporting talent, and the opportunity for brands to capitalise on their unifying star power. Just as athletes are embracing their own activism, brands are increasingly looking to sport as a way to help shape the society future generations strive for, as they are increasingly held to account by said future generation. In our new research, comparing the attitudes and behaviours of fans of women’s sport with fans of men’s sport, the role of brands in the lives of women’s sports fans, and their desire for them to positively impact society, is particularly marked.  

Fans of women’s sport are twice as likely to be ‘values’-driven and place higher expectations on brand sponsors than fans of men’s sport in addressing societal issues – and the difference in expectation levels versus fans of men’s sport is stark. 50% of women’s sport fans strongly agree that brands should act with purpose and try to make the world a better place, compared to just 20% of men’s. Women’s sport fans are more likely to expect brands to address societal issues of gender equality, environment, health & wellbeing and sustainability compared to fans of men’s sport. The numbers are stark: 86% of women’s sport fans believe it is important for brands to address diversity and inclusion versus only 57% of men’s sport fans, 93% of women’s sport fans believe it is important that brands address society’s health and wellbeing and 90% want brands to actively address environmental issues.  

The greater receptivity of women’s sport fans to brands involved in sport extends to action – they are 24% more likely to consider buying a brand they see sponsoring sports, 27% more likely to have talked about brands they’ve seen sponsoring sport and 25% more likely to recommend a brand they’ve seen sponsoring sport. 

The dual nature of the attitudes and behaviours of women’s sports fans suggest that brands have an enormous opportunity to work most successfully with Emma if they align with her passions to make a difference - whether that be to tennis or society or both - and build affinity with a more progressive set of fans who are looking for purposeful, meaningful partnerships to enact change. That change won’t be measured by the size of her pay cheque, but by her cultural impact way beyond the tramlines of tennis.