The Tennis Australia governing body has announced a new partnership with global marketing agency MKTG and Dentsu Sports Analytics (DSA), both divisions of Japanese advertising giant Dentsu, as it looks to boost the international appeal of its tournaments.
Under the multi-year deal, MKTG and DSA become Tennis Australia’s global research and insights partner covering the governing body’s tentpole events, including its flagship Australian Open grand slam, as well as the tournament’s warm-up events, the United Cup, Adelaide Open, Brisbane Open, and Hobart Open.
The partnership also includes the body’s grassroots programming, such as Hot Shots Tennis, Cardio Tennis, Padel, Pop Tennis, and Pickleball.
Tennis Australia said MKTG and DSA will combine their marketing and analytics capabilities to help evaluate the governing body’s global fan base by region and demographics to enhance its engagement strategies.
Martin Ansell, head of strategy and insights at MKTG, said: “We are excited to support TA by bringing the best of DSA’s research innovation to the fore and are laser-focused to help them understand the cultural impact of their brands, how to grow their already-strong player base, and to uncover the key opportunities to grow audience segments around the world.”
Specifically, the research program will use DSA’s Cultural Relevance Framework to identify growth opportunities in key and emerging markets.
Cedric Cornelis, Tennis Australia’s chief commercial officer, said: “The agency’s Cultural Relevance Framework, advanced fan segmentation, and seamless integration with Dentsu’s global insights network will empower us to better understand our global audiences and the cultural influence of our brands.”
“What truly stood out was the ability to turn actionable insights directly into strategy, propelling us toward our 2030 vision.”
DSA was launched in 2023 by Dentsu Sports International, the Japanese advertising giant’s sports marketing subsidiary, as a new global division led by former Nielsen chief executive Glenn Lovett.
The division brought together the research, data, and analytics of three Dentsu-owned agencies - MKTG Sports + Entertainment, Sponsorship Research (Sri), and Merkle - as well as the company’s wider data and media analytics capabilities.
The new partnership comes shortly after Tennis Australia secured a new partnership with Infront Bettor, the betting division of the international sports marketing agency.
Under the agreement signed earlier this week, Infront Bettor becomes the data and video streaming partner for TA, succeeding sports technology company Sportradar, which has held the designation since 2023.
It will provide licensed sportsbooks with access to live content and data for streaming and data distribution covering all TA-organized competitions, including the body’s flagship Australian Open (qualifying and main tournament), as well as warm-up competitions, the United Cup, Brisbane International, Hobart International, and Adelaide International.
