The Net Generation: Building loyalty and developing tennis at a young age.

The US Open started to be successful in the world of sports business because it is one of the most profitable sporting events in the world. In 2018, with a turnover of more than $369 million according to vocal media, the US Open has continued to be highly profitable creating revenu to generate for its good causes

However, many tennis experts say that American tennis has been struggling since the beginning of the 21st century, in terms of sports performance, with a drop in the number of American players in the ATP rankings and a declining number of tennis players across the country. The license system does not exist in the USTA like in the french system but since 2010 the amount of players in the US is growing, the trend has been reversed. In order to help tennis in the US, the federation has emphasised many important activations including the importance of diversity and inclusion.

This is a priority for the USTA, which seeks to promote the fact that "everyone should be able to play tennis. The new generation then became an issue for the presidents of the 18 sections that govern American tennis. So they decided to create the Net Generation programme in order to perpetuate tennis and also train the new generation of players.

During our stay in New York City we had the chance to attend a conference organised by the USTA and featured with Craig Morris who is in charge of the American Development Model of the USTA. This conference was showing their strategy around the new generation. In it's strategy, the USTA has associated itself with the Olympic and Paralympic Committees of the country, in order to associate the principles of long term development in young athletes and their entourage strategy. For more than 10 years, the USTA has been working with the younger generation to create the Net Generation movement.

One of the fundamental pillars of this project is to limit the precocity of young athletes by assisting and helping them in their daily physical activity and their relationship with sport. This project is guided by the principles of the federation, who want to develop a spirit that would improve the skills and potential of each player in a framework where the health and well-being of tennis participants is paramount.

In its quest to train the new generation, the federation emphasises its programme on key points:

- An appropriate training and development method for young athletes.

- Setting up a new training program for all coaches.

- Integrate tennis into the physical education programs of schools and recreational clubs in order to advance the competitiveness of the sport across the country.

- Link multi-sport programs with tennis to promote the sport in general.

- Develop a fun and positive atmosphere by team activities.

- Make tennis a universal sport accessible to everyone.

- Provide to the parents and players the necessary information to guide their development as a player.

Through these different points the federation has been able to adapt its program to each age group.

The USTA has therefore divided the young generation into 3 levels in order to offer a more specific program for each one. The "discovery and learning" programme for the under 11's, the development and challenge programme for 12 to 18 year olds and the play for life programme for those of the 18 years and over.

By leading young players with this program, the USTA has more information on the progress of tennis in the country. However, in order to perpetuate the program as well as possible, the USTA give particular importance to the controlled development of the athletes to prevent all injuries due to precocity in sports.

The new generation is also a digital issue for the USTA, we were lucky to be able to see the presentation of the new website of the federation exclusively for the Net generation. This tool is a major element of the development strategy of tennis in the United States because it facilitates the accessibility to the sport through the web. When they log on to the USTA net generation website, young athletes can personalize their offer, choose their coach, their competition, the course content, the location, the date, the schedule... In its determination to create a community around tennis, this website allows the different players to find their teammates to play doubles or to train, they can also have access to commentary areas to exchange and share information directly with other players about competitions, clubs or coaches of the federation. The USTA has completely changed the rules of how to improve, so it has made available a website to access all the programs offered by the USTA and partner clubs.

In order to highlight its program, the USTA's taking advantage of its major event, the US Open. This offer an innovative plateforme for the public to promote its tennis development program.

This Net Generation area is one of the largest in the park, mainly focused on

the young generation. This past year the late Kobe Bryant and Sloane Stephens (winner of the 2017 US Open) came on the stand to bring together the athletes of today and tomorrow. This stand is a central point of the Billie Jean King national tennis center, it embodies family, unifying and universal atmosphere that the USTA want to promote through the tournament.

The last 10 years have been very important for the USTA throughout the country, which has set up tennis development programs in the country. The Net Generation program is one of the most important developing youth programs in the US. It must allow the sustainability and development of tennis in the United States. This program focuses on the development of young players through sport and from an athlete development perspective. For that, the federation provides a program that can be adapted to everyone, which is what sport is all about.