Roger Federer sneakers give hope to new Tennis Hall of Fame president Patrick McEnroe, looks forward to 'magical' opportunity

Patrick McEnroe, the newly-appointed president of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, sported Roger Federer sneakers at a recent show and expressed his excitement at the new opportunity.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion joined On, a shoe and clothing company from Switzerland, as a shareholder in November 2019. In July 2020, the company released the 'THE ROGER' sneaker.

THE ROGER Pro was their first product designed for tennis, which was followed by the recently released THE ROGER Pro Clay. On posted a clip on social media in which the Swiss icon can be seen practicing on clay with the new shoes.

After serving as the CEO of the Tennis Hall of Fame for nearly a decade, former American tennis player Todd Martin stepped down in October last year. He has been replaced by Dan Faber, with McEnroe taking up the president's role and Kim Clijsters acting as the new honorary president.

Appearing on a recent show with the Tennis Channel, McEnroe sported the aforementioned Roger Federer sneakers and expressed his excitement at working with some of the all-time greats of the game over the next few years.

"I even did this special for this occasion. My Roger Federer sneakers. So you don't get to see them normally," McEnroe said. "It's going to be an unbelievable next five, seven, ten years for tennis and for these all-time players, these legends of the game. So that's going to be very exciting, great opportunities to continue to grow, to raise awareness for what the Hall of Fame does."

"I think that this opportunity that we're being given over the next decade for the Hall of Fame to increase this awareness with these all-time greats going into the Hall of Fame, is going to be magical," he added.

41-year-old Federer retired from professional tennis at the 2022 Laver Cup in September, where he took part in a doubles encounter alongside arch-rival Rafael Nadal.

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"Federer and Nadal are two of the nicest guys you'll ever meet" - Former Nike tennis director

Rafael Nadal (L) and Roger Federer

Nike's former tennis director Mike Nakajima recently weighed in on the rivalry between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. He remarked that while the two legends were the "nicest guys" with similar personalities, they were totally opposite each other on the court.

"Roger and Rafa, they’re very similar personalities. They are two of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet," Nakajima said. "But on the court, they were completely different. Roger plays like he is walking on a cloud, light on his feet. Rafa is the opposite; his physicality is just brute force."

After working together for 24 years, the Swiss maestro ended his partnership with Nike in 2018, following which he signed a multimillion dollar deal with UNIQLO.