Former World No. 1 Andy Roddick tells me tennis is “going nuts in the best way right now.” And he’s a growing part of it at every step, recently signing a multi-year partnership to join Psycho Bunny as a global ambassador.

Roddick says he would have bet his house there was no way tennis would have the cultural moment it is now, so quickly following the retirements of legends—from Roger Federer to Rafael Nadal to Serena Williams and more—with the sport “entering a cycle of cool and relevance with stars oozing charisma.” It’s not surprising, then, with the pop culture draw of tennis, that an outsider brand like Psycho Bunny would want to join. And Roddick’s ready to jump in with them.

Born in 2005, but since a rebirth in Montreal, Psycho Bunny began first as a tie company before growing. The brand entered tennis in 2024 by sponsoring the National Bank Open in Canada. Then, earlier this year, they signed tour-level players Alexei Popyrin and Arthur Rinderknech.

Roddick’s knowledge of a brand his social media manager told him was “a bit cooler” than a guy like him, was seeing the gear on Popyrin and then walking past a storefront in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he lives now. “It is a bold, edgy brand that seems to be super interested in tennis,” he says, adding that with his recommitment to the sport, the two make a good fit.

With a lot of the historic tennis brands, the history can serve as a benefit, but also a limitation. Roddick calls Psycho Bunny edgier and a bit of a disrupter, along the same lines of how he views his media company, which now hosts Served, the top tennis podcast in the world and one of the top four sports podcasts during Roland Garros. “We are kindred spirits in each other a little bit,” he says, adding he appreciates how companies new to tennis want to be part of the sport.

But the tennis world was something Roddick wasn’t a part of for a while. After retiring from playing in 2012 with a World No. 1 ranking and a 2003 U.S. Open championship to his name, he spent the first eight years nowhere near the sport. Instead, he was building different business ventures. Then when COVID occurred, he was drawn back into the sport through Tennis Channel needing to diversify content without live tennis to air. What started as a six-week trial has turned into Served and business partnerships, first with Wilson and now Psycho Bunny. It’s all a way for Roddick to get heavily involved in the world of tennis without the 40 weeks per year of travel the tour required.

“I haven’t had to learn from scratch in order to do it,” he says. “It is pretty easy for me to get on and talk about tennis in a responsible way.”

His presence in the sport has brands wanting to connect. “Andy isn’t just a tennis legend—he’s a disruptor, a trailblazer and someone who has always done things his own way,” says Anna Martini, Psycho Bunny CEO. “That’s exactly what Psycho Bunny stands for. We’re thrilled to have him as a partner in celebrating tennis culture.”

As a global brand ambassador, “Roddick will advise on the brand’s expanding presence in tennis and play a pivotal role in enhancing its credibility within the sport.”

Roddick says Psycho Bunny has entered the sport in the right way, becoming available to fans, first by gaining the rights to one of the largest tournaments in the world with the National Bank Open and then adding players. “I don’t think you have seen Psycho Bunny sign their last player,” Roddick says. And the next one could have his mark. “I would have an educated view into the next prospects and who the next players could be,” he says.

That’s exactly how Roddick wants the new effort to be: a partnership. He says each of his new tennis-related ventures now needs to be less of a hired gun brought on just to promote a brand, instead he’s been attracted to the partnership side of the opportunities, a chance to advise and really be part of meaningful directions on engaging the tennis community.

“There have been conversations already around players, how Psycho Bunny can invest in tennis in different ways,” he says. “Tennis seems to be a space they are interested in.” It may come as a surprise to Roddick, but it’s also a space he’s again fully committed to.