TopSpin 2K25 Is Helping Change the Landscape of Women’s Tennis

Tennis is certainly a sport that is on the rise, especially women’s tennis, with young figureheads like Coco Gauff, Naomi Osaka and Iga Świątek just three names of the next generation, who are aiming to further build upon the legacy of what their heroes like Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova created before them.

Now, there is an additional way to help promote the sport to young women and girls, thanks to the highly anticipated release of the latest iteration of the TopSpin series, TopSpin 2K25.

It has been 13 years since tennis has had such a top-tier feature video game, and stars Sloane Stephens, Paula Badosa and Caroline Garcia all expressed in a sit down with GIVEMESPORT at the French Open that TopSpin 2K25 has the power to attract an even bigger female audience into their sport.

Women’s Sport Is on the Rise Everywhere

Tennis is hoping to see growth in the sport of female participation like football/soccer and basketball has

It’s no secret that women’s sports are becoming more and more popular by the day. In fact, it’s something that is being widely encouraged across the world.

When the England Lionesses defeated Germany 2-1 in extra time of the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 with 87,192 people in attendance at Wembley Stadium, they became the first English team – men or women – since the World Cup winning team in 1966 to lift a major trophy.

This victory on home soil then acted as a catalyst for a seismic shift in the landscape of women’s football, not just domestically but on a global scale.

The viewing figures spoke for themselves, with an estimated 50 million people worldwide tuning in just for the final alone, almost three times that of the 2017 final, while 17.4 million watched domestically, making the day the Lionesses made history even more poignant, with it going on to be the most watched programme on the BBC for the entirety of 2022.

Stateside saw a similar trend, but in college basketball, with viewing records continually being set throughout the March Madness tournament, ending with the women’s NCAA final drawing in an estimated 18.7 million viewers – an NCAA women’s record – while the men’s final attracted far fewer numbers, only 14.82 million, despite taking place the following day.

A large part of this soaring rise in engagement was due to the number of college athletes who had built up significant personal brands, with the list of athletes headlined by Caitlin Clark – arguably one of the greatest college players to have ever played the game – while Angel Reese, Cameron Brink and Kamilla Cardoso each played their role in attracting a large following on their way into entering the WNBA, where this trend, though the season is still in its early stages, has appeared to be continuing on an upward trajectory.

Following a similar mold, women’s tennis is also on the up with stars like Naomi Osaka and Emma Raducanu leading the way with their social media profiles generating 2.8 million and 2.4 million followers, respectively, making them the two most-followed active tennis players.

Serena Williams – who retired in 2022 – has done her part in creating a new and exciting culture in women’s tennis, boasting a 17.2 million-strong following, and has continued to be a trailblazer for the sport.

Larger followings in individual athletes has meant more uptake in the sport, which has set off a cascade of more money being filtered into the women’s game from branding and sponsorships, improved training facilities, and most of all, provided more access and widened participation for young girls to follow in the footsteps of their heroes.

French tennis star, Caroline Garcia’s path into tennis was slightly different, and admitted she took part in multiple sports because her parents encouraged her to be active, and after having to choose one due to scheduling issues, she settled on tennis and worked hard to be the best she could be at it.

The former world number four now acknowledges that the world is different, and that young people of today grow up in a more digital space, with easy access to games consoles.

But, Garcia feels that tennis can use that to their advantage by using video games, such as TopSpin 2K25, to inspire newer, and perhaps more unexpected, audiences into wanting to step out into reality and find a local court to play tennis on.

The Importance of Having Female Representation in Video Games

TopSpin 2K25 has doubled its number of in-game female athletes since the previous iteration

With an estimated 3.09 billion active gamers worldwide, there is a soaring market for video games. But, a recent report conducted by Global Gamer Study estimated that 72 percent of women in the online population also play video games, only nine percent down on engagement from men (81 percent).

This figure is hugely important to both the present, and future, of gaming as it promotes the need for ensuring there is a pathway to a more inclusive and diverse gaming culture.

In the latest installment of TopSpin 2K25, they have ensured to keep up with the trajectory of the gaming market, and have doubled the number of female athletes that can be played with in the game to 14.

Back in 2011, players had access to the likes of Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Eugenie Bouchard, among a couple of others, but now the roster has grown to include both legends, like Williams and Maria Sharapova, and modern day stars such as Gauff, Osaka and Raducanu.

Sitting down with Paula Badosa and Stephens – who are both playable characters in the game – and Garcia, they all shared the view that an increase in female avatars in the game has the power to promote tennis as a sport in real life.

For Garcia, who has won 11 WTA titles in her career, she feels that the game can bring about a friendly – yet competitive – atmosphere among friends and families, which, in turn, could see young girls wanting to go out to play the real thing.

One thing the 30-year-old did mention was that sometimes there is a lack of access to sport and especially tennis, which requires more equipment in the form of rackets and balls, while also needing a court that has a net, where sports like football can require only a ball to get playing.

While former World No. 2 Badosa echoed Garcia’s views, she recalls when she was inspired by seeing people who looked like her on television playing tennis, and argues that in the modern world, where gaming is such a central focal point to many young people’s lives, being able to be behind the control of female players who are represented in the game could ignite that same interest.

Women Are Always ‘Fighting for a Little Bit More’

TopSpin 2K25 helps give female athletes the chance to be learned about more

In the current climate of the world that we live in, though, women are still fighting for a similar level of respect and recognition as their male counterparts, and tennis, and Roland-Garros in particular, has helped bridge that gap, with the winners of the men’s and women’s French Open singles each pocketing €2.4 million ($2.59 million).

But the USA’s Stephens still thinks there’s much more work to do, especially as it pertains to diversifying the representation in tennis, praising TopSpin 2K25 for its promotion and inclusion of diverse figures in and around the game (and its cover art).

She further identified the game’s ability to create the opportunity for players to learn about both these contemporary stars and legends, which is just one of many pieces of the puzzle that could help raise the profile of the female athletes.

Perhaps one of Stephens’ memorable victories in the sport came earlier on in her career in 2013, where she eliminated then-title favorite Serena Williams at the quarter-final stage of the Australian Open. It would be her only victory with Williams holding a dominant 6-1 record in her head-to-head against her fellow American.

That particular match-up, though, still brings back fond memories for the now 31-year-old, though she is honest that her approach to Grand Slam tournaments is much more settled in routine now than when she was a fresh-faced 19-year-old playing against seasoned champions with no-fear.

Now a seasoned pro in her own right, with her best rank coming in 2018 when she was World No. 3, she understands that there is much more pressure placed on her younger opponents, especially those who find success very early on in their careers, and acknowledges that in the world of social media, it takes players to be more mentally strong because the expectations and pressure is made even higher.

For the women’s side of the game, 2024 Roland-Garros has come to an end, after world number one Iga Świątek – who is in TopSpin 2K25 – handed Jasmine Paolini – the new world number seven – a 6-2, 6-1 straight set defeat to win her third consecutive French Open title, and fourth in five years, deservedly earning her the nickname ‘The Queen of Clay’.

Oh, and she’s also only 23-years-old.

The future of women’s tennis is very bright indeed.

Sloane Stephens, Paula Badosa, and Caroline Garcia spoke exclusively to GIVEMESPORT courtesy of Top Spin 2K25, the latest installment of the popular tennis video game franchise, which is available for purchase here.

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