Ralph Lauren K-popped to the top
Nike’s Keys to success and backing another winner in Sinner
Djokovic slams headlines with Jones drama
Emirates logo recognition takes off
The 2025 Australian Open delivered a tournament of surprises, breaking attendance records through an expanded strategy designed to appeal beyond traditional tennis fans. Meltwater, a global leader in social and media intelligence and data analytics, reported a significant uptick in engagement, with the tournament attracting 2.63 million mentions and 28.6 million engagements—up from 2.24 million mentions in 2024.
The tournament’s success extended across social media with brands and sponsors benefitting from this year’s engagement. Ralph Lauren’s multi-channel campaign strategy at the Australian Open emerged as a standout success, achieving 96.3% brand Share of Voice (SOV) with 304,000 posts and 1.9 million engagements. A key driver of this achievement was its collaboration with K-pop star Mark Lee, with one of his posts alone generating an estimated 1.47 million reach, 517,955 likes and 270,000 engagements for the brand.
Among key Australian Open 2025 sponsors, Emirates was the most recognised visual logo with 43.8% SOV and 3,680 mentions via logo recognition, however, headline sponsor Kia maintained its lead in overall mentions with 26.4% SOV. Yet Nike was overall the most recognised brand via logo recognition, capturing 31.7% SOV and 608,000 mentions, thanks to its sponsorship of finalists Jannik Sinner, Madison Keys and Aryna Sabalenka.
Ross Candido, VP ANZ at Meltwater, said “The 2025 Australian Open provided valuable insights into the power of multi-channel strategies and collaborative partnerships.
Ralph Lauren's multi-channel campaign, featuring K-pop star Mark Lee, and Nike's strategic sponsorship of top seeds demonstrate the effectiveness of influencer collaborations in driving engagement and enhancing brand visibility.
The really exciting thing is how AI is changing the game for analytics. It helps marketers dig deeper and understand their audience better. This leads to more personalised, impactful, and targeted campaigns that truly grab people's attention.”
Meltwater’s analysis of billions of social media conversations and its Klear Influencer Marketing tool also identified the most talked-about and influential players in this year’s tennis tournament.
Novak Djokovic Leads Mentions and Influence: While not the men’s winner, Djokovic remained in the spotlight for his on-court prowess and off-court controversies. He garnered 37.7% of mentions, edging out world number one Jannik Sinner at 36.1%. Tony Jones’ commentary drama alone generated 13,300 mentions, peaking at 9,480 on January 20. Djokovic also leads as the most influential tennis player, earning a Klear Score of 99/100 with an average post engagement of 598,800 and 35.4 million followers.
Jannik Sinner vs. Alexander Zverev: Sinner dominated the men’s finals conversation, with 163,064 mentions compared to Zverev’s 98,552 mentions. Nike, Sinner’s sponsor, also outperformed Zverev’s sponsor Adidas, securing 8,600 mentions versus Adidas’ 2,230 mentions.
Women's Tournament Highlights: Madison Keys beat former number one Aryna Sabalenka, but Sabalenka led the conversation with 114,835 mentions compared to Keys’ 90,785 and maintained the highest engagement, averaging 158,900 per post, based on Klear data.
Eva Lys' Cinderella Run Captivates Fans: Last-minute wildcard entry, former world No. 128 Eva Lys, exceeded all expectations by reaching the fourth round. Her historic journey earned 3,680 mentions on January 18, followed by a spike to 4,850 mentions on January 20 during her final match.
Men’s players dominate mentions: Overall, mentions of men’s players accounted for over two-thirds of the total Share of Voice, with 317,000 mentions compared to 155,000 for women’s players.
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About Meltwater
Meltwater empowers companies with a suite of solutions that spans media, social, consumer and sales intelligence. By analysing ~1 billion pieces of content each day and transforming them into vital insights, Meltwater unlocks the competitive edge to drive results. With 27,000 global customers, 50 offices across six continents and 2,300 employees, Meltwater is the industry partner of choice for global brands making an impact. Learn more at meltwater.com.
Meltwater also operates the Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST), a nonprofit organisation devoted to nurturing future generations of entrepreneurs. For more information, follow Meltwater on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube or visit our website.