Why WTA’s Rebrand Put Women’s Tennis Players at Center Court

Swanson said the players’ multifaceted interests and the way they drew new attention to the sport changed the way the WTA approached editorial and social content. It drew attention to Carolyn Garcia’s Tennis Insider Club podcast and Daria Kasatkina’s What the Vlog—and collaborated with Mirra Andreeva on nail content for Wimbledon. It encouraged selfies and social videos during tournaments and saw sponsors, including Morgan Stanley and Hologic, respond with demand for more player content and stories.

“It’s so noticeable because everybody’s scrolling through Instagram every day, and that’s our partners too, the people that we want to be in business with,” Swanson said. “Our athletes are superstars, and so the more that we’re able to put them at the forefront, the more that our partners have responded to that.”

Match points

With the players at the front of the rebrand, changes to the other elements had to support their content and efforts.

The rebrand unofficially launches on February 28 in Los Angeles with an event hosted by Aryna Sabalenka and filmmaker Ava DuVernay to kick off Oscars weekend. However, the new elements make their debut at Indian Wells, with new broadcast graphics accompanied by an “off-court fits” nod to players’ pre-tournament fashion on media day. But some changes have already been implemented, as broadcasters and the WTA’s site have received refreshed logos for 125, 250, 500, and 1000 tournaments to guide fans through the levels of events.

“The more that we can do to help a fan find a way into the tour, it’s going to elevate those tournaments and the things that are important to them: to get sales, tune-in, and then their own sponsors,” Swanson said. “The more that we can elevate each of our tournaments through our brand, the better, and this player storytelling conversation just opens up a lot of doors to talk to our tournaments, content teams, and brand and marketing teams.”

While the new branding can help point the way, in many cases, the fonts, colors, and logos are designed to stay out of it.

The new “glimmer” graphics on broadcast serve mostly as an enhancement to matches rather than a distraction from them. The WTA logo itself, meanwhile, is designed to present the viewer with more modern colors—Swanson compared the new green to both Hulu’s and Charlie XCX’s Brat motif—while minimizing its impact on social video and clips.