{"id":233593,"date":"2025-09-17T10:25:19","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T10:25:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/233593\/"},"modified":"2025-09-17T10:25:19","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T10:25:19","slug":"the-mayor-meets-the-20-time-grand-slam-champ-at-mclaren-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/233593\/","title":{"rendered":"The mayor meets the 20-time Grand Slam champ at McLaren Park"},"content":{"rendered":"

Want the latest Bay Area sports news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here<\/a> to receive regular email newsletters, including \u201cThe Dime.\u201d<\/p>\n

They say you can\u2019t walk 10 minutes in this city without hitting a park, and the same thing is becoming true about seeing mayor Daniel Lurie.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There he was, at McLaren Park on a perfectly sunny, second-summer San Francisco day, shaking hands and posing for pictures.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Oh, and rallying with tennis legend Roger Federer. The 20-time Grand Slam champion even let the ubiquitous first-term mayor win a point.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if you could call it taking a point, he was kind of giving me a couple overheads,\u201d Lurie told The Standard. \u201cBut it\u2019s an honor to have an icon visit our great city and to bring the Laver Cup here.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Federer, Lurie, Golden State chief operating officer Brandon Schneider, and several tennis dignitaries welcomed the Laver Cup to San Francisco by refurbishing six public concrete tennis courts and hitting balls with kids in the local Youth Tennis Advantage program. <\/p>\n

The Laver Cup, founded in part by Federer in 2017, pits \u201cTeam Europe\u201d against \u201cTeam World\u201d in a tournament that\u2019s akin to golf\u2019s Ryder Cup. For Lurie, it\u2019s another data point in his city\u2019s revitalization as he touts a commitment to sports and entertainment. For Schneider and the Golden State Group, the event is further proof that Chase Center can be a versatile (and lucrative) host.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And for Federer, it\u2019s not only an opportunity to give back, but an excuse to stay close to the game he retired from in 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"ARoger Federer spent part of Tuesday afternoon hitting forehands at the third-largest park in San Francisco. | Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades\/The Standard<\/p>\n

\u201cClearly, I\u2019m a little bit focused on my kids right now, they\u2019re 11 and 16 already,\u201d Federer, 44, said. \u201cBut there\u2019s going to be a time where I enter the game even more than just the Laver Cup, let\u2019s say. Don\u2019t know if that\u2019s commentary, don\u2019t know if that\u2019s coaching, don\u2019t know if that\u2019s mentoring. But the game has given me all the opportunities in life, and I\u2019m super grateful to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of the best tennis players in the world, including top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, will compete on Steph Curry\u2019s home floor this weekend. Former tennis stars Yannick Noah and Andre Agassi are set to coach the European and World teams, respectively. All five sessions are already sold out and thousands of fans are expected to participate in the free watch party outside the arena at Thrive City.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Laver Cup, which started in 2017, alternates host cities every year. This is only the second time the United States has hosted the tournament with the other being Boston in 2021.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOur city, we had a few years we were down,\u201d Lurie said on Tuesday. \u201cBut I hope all of you from around the world get to see that we are a city on the rise. We\u2019re investing in our sports, our arts, our culture.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Yannick Noah, left, and Roger Federer play doubles at McLaren Park on Tuesday afternoon | Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades\/The Standard<\/p>\n

The competition is another in a jam-packed sports schedule in the Bay Area. Levi\u2019s Stadium in Santa Clara is hosting this season\u2019s Super Bowl as well as World Cup games next summer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Chase Center hosted the 2025 NBA All-Star festivities, which generated more than $300 million in total economic impact <\/a>for the city. Schneider said he hasn\u2019t seen the revenue projections for the Laver Cup, but said it should bring in \u201ctens of millions of dollars, for sure.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that\u2019s one of the things that was important to us when we built Chase Center: we wanted to have diverse events inside Chase Center and outside at Thrive City for everybody,\u201d Schneider told The Standard.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we wanted to have events that leave a lasting impact. So, being here today watching Roger Federer play with these kids on brand new courts was important. But the economic impact for small businesses is a big deal for us, too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AKids lined up to chat with Federer, who said he needs to spend more time in San Francisco in the coming years. | Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades\/The Standard<\/p>\n

The Valkyries\u2019 playoff game against the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday night came at the expense of the Laver Cup. Because of the lengthy setup required for converting the Chase Center basketball court into a tennis arena, the Laver Cup needed the building for two weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Golden State booked the Laver Cup months before it was even awarded a WNBA team, so there was nothing the organization could do to preserve the Valkyries\u2019 first-ever playoff game at Chase. The Valkyries, who became the first expansion team to ever reach the postseason in its inaugural year, face an elimination matchup at SAP Center in San Jos\u00e9 after losing a Game 1 blowout on Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMoving forward, the only thing I want to make sure people know is we treat the Valkyries the same way we treat the Warriors, which is how all teams should be,\u201d Schneider said. \u201cWhich is, we\u2019re going to protect playoff dates, all dates, and play everything we possibly can at Chase Center. And that\u2019s been the case and that will continue to be the case. This was just a matter of timing our first year.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n