 "Wimbledon 2025's viewership success has shown that the tennis fans have already moved on from the Fab Four. Images: Reuters")
The fading away of tennis’ ‘Fab Four’ is having little impact on viewership for major tournaments, as Wimbledon 2025 proved a massive success for both ESPN and the BBC. The grass-court major concluded on Sunday with Jannik Sinner winning the men’s singles title and Iga Swiatek claiming the women’s crown.
For both Sinner and Swiatek, it was their first Wimbledon title, as the tournament marked yet another edition where the influence of the Fab Four continues to fade. The last man standing from the iconic group, Novak Djokovic, lost in straight sets to Sinner in the semi-finals.
Wimbledon viewership rises despite no Nadal, Federer
That, however, had little impact on the viewership numbers for the Gentlemen’s final, which also included two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz. The summit clash that ended in four sets averaged 2.9 million viewers on ESPN, a 31% increase compared to 2024. It was also the most viewed final since 2019.
It’s not just the men’s final, but other matches have also broken new ground. As per ESPN, the women’s semi-finals, including USA’s Amanda Anisimova beating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, had the highest viewership since 2015. In 2015, Serena Williams was still a part of the top four.
The men’s semi-finals average 1.31 million views, again the highest since 2019.
The Ladies’ Championship was won by Swiatek in a lopsided contest against Anisimova as she won 6-0, 6-0. She is Wimbledon’s eighth consecutive first-time women’s champion since Williams won her seventh and final title in 2016. Nonetheless, her final match witnessed a rise of 18% in viewership as compared to 2024.
Interestingly, the first day of Wimbledon 2025 set the record for the most viewed Wimbledon Day One on ESPN.
Meanwhile, Wimbledon set a new record with 69.3 million online requests on BBC Sport between 30 June and 13 July, the highest digital engagement ever recorded for the tournament.
“This year’s record-breaking digital figures for Wimbledon are testament to the huge appeal of the sport amongst audiences and the power of digital innovation to bring both new and existing fans closer to the action than ever before. The way people are following Wimbledon is changing but that is exciting for us as we look to tell the best stories in different ways,” Alex Kay-Jelski, Director of BBC Sport, said.
French and Australia Opens witness similar growth
The growing viewership numbers for tennis matches are not just limited to Wimbledon. The French Open final between Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka earlier this year was the most-watched women’s final at Roland Garros since 2016.
The men’s final in which Alcaraz won a marathon five-setter against Sinner attracted 1.8 million viewers, making it the most-watched men’s final since Novak Djokovic defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in the 2021 finals (1.9 million).
The Australian Open 2025 had also registered record-breaking attendance numbers, as 1,218,831 fans attended the tournament, the most in history.
If anything, the rapidly growing stadium attendance and record-breaking Grand Slam viewership numbers point to one clear truth: tennis fans are ready to move on from the Fab Four and embrace a new generation of stars.
For those who feared the sport would suffer in popularity after the retirements of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and with Novak Djokovic losing his grip, those concerns have proven unfounded.