Coco Gauff will have her own signature shoe, becoming the only active women’s tennis player with her own sneaker. She also becomes just the second active tennis player with a signature shoe, joining Roger Federer, Forbes reported Sunday.

🚨: @CocoGauff debuts her new signature shoe, the NB Coco CG1, at the Atlanta Open. 🔥 👟 🎾 #madeforthew | @newbalance pic.twitter.com/ZXRKhfqQ19

— Made for the W (@madeforthew) July 25, 2022

While superstar in Serena Williams collaborated on the NikeCourt Flare sneakers, which first came out in 2015 (and have since been discontinued), Nike has not put its tennis athletes’ names on its sneaker models — i.e., no NikeCourt Serena Flare — and so remains without a true signature shoe, according to Racquet Magazine.

The New Balance Coco CG1 will be released on Aug. 26, the result of two years of development.

“We looked at this opportunity to enter into a category that doesn’t have signature and have a female lead that,” Evan Zeder, head of tennis sports marketing at New Balance, told Forbes. “It puts us at a different place and puts her at a different place. We are building off where she is going and not what she has done, using that as a starting place.”

The launch colorway, titled Pompey after Gauff’s childhood court, is meant to give off a ’90s vibe, but still hold modern elements.

“There’s just something freeing about the color palettes and blending of styles in that era that has always stood out to me,” Gauff told Forbes. “I love putting a modern spin on those ’90s elements and it’s cool to see it coming back with my generation in so many ways.”

Gauff had a huge hand in the development of the shoe’s technology, which is one of the first retail-accessible tennis shoes that has a carbon fiber plate, dubbed Energy Arc technology. The plate and the FuelCell foam give the shoe a “super responsive feel” that is also comfortable and light, according to Gauff.

“I honestly feel like it is going to help my ability to hit high balls and stay fresh,” Gauff said.

There are more colorways to come, including a U.S. Open edition that has yet to be revealed, as well as other Slam and classic colorways. There are also personal elements, including a basketball on the left heel and a track spike on the right, meant to represent the sports her parents played in college. On her own personal shoe, her brother’s names are on the shoelaces.

“This style was meant to offer the best in tennis technology but be able to be worn off court as well,” Gauff told Forbes. “Popularity would be great, but I’m really hoping it can encourage kids to strive to be their best in whatever they love on and off the court.”

Gauff has had a standout year so far, reaching her first Grand Slam final at the French Open before reaching her first grass court quarterfinal at Wimbledon.

As the 2025 tennis calendar hits the home stretch, the WTA's finest will hit the hardcourt at the 1000-level China Open this week — with invites to November's WTA Finals on the line.

Top US players including world No. 3 Coco Gauff, No. 4 Amanda Anisimova, and No. 7 Jessica Pegula will begin their 2025 China Open campaigns when the tournament's Round of 64 starts late Thursday night.

Also aiming for the lion's share of the competition's nearly $9 million prize pool — including a winner's check over $1.1 million — are 2023 China Open champ No. 2 Iga Świątek, 19-year-old rising star No. 23 Victoria Mboko, and recent US Open semifinalist and fan favorite No. 14 Naomi Osaka.

The world No. 1, however, will miss this edition of the tournament, as back-to-back US Open champ Aryna Sabalenka withdrew due to "a minor injury" earlier this month.

As for the competition's reigning champion, Gauff will kick off both her title defense and the Round of 64 on Thursday, following up her 2024 success by winning her second career Grand Slam at the 2025 French Open in June.

"I think winning the French Open helped me take that weight off," Gauff told reporters about the pressure of defending her 2024 trophy. "I definitely feel a lot lighter. It feels like a practice tournament."

How to watch the 2025 China Open

The Round of 64 at the 2025 China Open kicks off with Gauff taking on No. 89 Kamilla Rakhimova at 11 PM ET on Thursday.

All tournament matches will stream live on the Tennis Channel.

The PWHL is gearing up for a blockbuster third season, with the pro hockey league reporting surging season ticket sales across all markets — and 2025/26 expansion sides Seattle and Vancouver are leading the charge.

PWHL executive board member Stan Kasten told Sports Business Journal last week that each of the new teams amassed more than 5,000 season ticket deposits for the 2025/26 campaign as of May, fueling growth throughout the emerging league.

"In every city this year — every city — we have sold more season tickets than we had last year," Kasten said. "The two expansion teams we added this year are just the two leaders of what is going to become a movement. We are going to be adding more teams much sooner than other people thought because the demand is there, the players are there."

The league is also banking on the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics to boost interest, with more than 50 current PWHL players expected to take the global stage in Italy this February.

"I expect it to be a really important milestone for us," Kasten said of the Winter Games earlier this summer. "It should be a really special time for our league, and I hope a launchpad for the next phase of our development."

The Black Women's Player Collective (BWPC) is making moves, with the organization announcing plans to co-host a first-of-its-kind national showcase for top-ranked Black women's soccer athletes this November.

In partnership with Allstate and Black Star, the BWPC's Next Wave National Showcase will take over the Texas campus of HBCU Prairie View A&M from November 22nd to 25th.

The new BWPC program will feature 20 to 30 of the country's best Black high school soccer players, with the showcase looking to help bridge the professional gap left following the abolishment of the NWSL draft in the most recent CBA — much like the recently announced NWSL combines that will debut this December.

Founded by NWSL standouts in October 2020, the now-global non-profit aims to establish a talent pipeline to ensure diversity as the sport grows, with Black players currently making up 12% of the US pro league.

"We founded the BWPC with a clear mission: to create space and open doors within the existing soccer framework for girls whose skills, talent, and drive position them to compete at the highest level," BWPC board member and North Carolina Courage midfielder Brianna Pinto said in a press release. "As the first women's soccer organization to champion the growth of the game through the lens of diversity, we remain committed to partnering with others equally invested in advancing women's sports."

Unrivaled 3×3 Basketball is loading up on fresh talent, officially signing the Top 3 WNBA rookies as first-year Washington Mystics stars Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen join Dallas Wings superstar Paige Bueckers on the offseason league's expanded 2026 roster.

As the only rookie WNBA All-Stars in 2025, Bueckers, Citron, and Iriafen led their class in points per game, field goals made, and field goal percentage while breaking multiple rookie records along the way.

Connecticut Sun first-year Saniya Rivers will also be making her Unrivaled debut this winter, joining the league's second season after ranking sixth in WNBA rookie shooting while leading her class in blocks per game.

Unrivaled has already proven to be a springboard for young players, with 2024 newcomers Rickea Jackson (LA Sparks) and Aaliyah Edwards (Connecticut Sun) stepping into the 3×3 spotlight this past January.

Both Jackson and Edwards will return to the Miami-based competition in 2026, with fellow 2024 WNBA rookie Kate Martin of the Golden State Valkyries also entering the Unrivaled fray.

Unrivaled has also tapped future WNBA rookies in off-court deals, racking up more than a dozen big-name NIL signings ahead of its 2026 tip-off.

Unrivaled roster announcements will continue through October 1st, with the league set to tip off in January.