Alexander Zverev announced that he has split with his management agency, TEAM8. TEAM8 is owned by Roger Federer and has been representing Zverev for a few years.  Zverev also announced that going forward, his family, especially his brother Mischa and Sergei Bubka will take an active role in managing his business deals.

2020 was a difficult year for Sascha on many fronts. His ex-girlfriend Olya Sharypova accused him of domestic abuse. Zverev denied the allegations but the abuse details are backed by chat messages and appear to be true. He also announced that he is expecting a baby with another girlfriend Brenda Patea. Zverev and Patea were not on speaking terms but since the baby announcement, the two have reconciled. 

When Zverev was asked about the domestic abuse allegations at a post-match press conference, he pulled out his phone and read a message written by his public relations staff. Zverev has not been impacted financially by these allegations.

Zverev’s Adidas contract was up for renewal at the end of 2020. No details are available on where the discussions are but Adidas is likely to keep Zverev, who is one of the top young players on the tour.

Zverev is not the first tennis player to split from TEAM8. Grigor Dimitrov also split from Federer’s agency in 2018 citing too much emphasis on Federer. 

Eugenie Bouchard started off the new year with a new sponsorship with New Balance. She was previously sponsored by Nike. Her contract with Nike expired at the end of 2020.

Reports suggested that Nike stopped paying Eugenie Bouchard for wearing Nike gear due to her steep drop in rankings. Nike has also shown little interest in recent years in investing in its tennis line. Given these factors, it is not entirely surprising that Bouchard and Nike decided to split.

Bouchard was first seen wearing her New Balance outfit at the Australian Open qualifying round in Abu Dhabi. She wore an outfit from New Balance’s 2021 Spring collection.

Bouchard is one of the most sought after athletes for her good looks. Bouchard’s compatriot Milos Raonic also has a sponsorship deal with New Balance.