There’s plenty of tennis to watch this weekend with top players in action in Beijing and Tokyo—but Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have their attention on golf.
The retired tennis legends and now avid golfers tuned into the Ryder Cup, joining forces to send Team Europe a video message of support before the competition kicked off Friday.
“Hello everybody from the golf course here in Mallorca,” Federer said. “I wanted to wish you all the very, very best for the Ryder Cup for Team Europe. We are behind you.
“And maybe, in the future, we’ll have a new player on the team,” he added with a grin, as the camera panned to Nadal teeing off—though his swing didn’t win much praise.
“I mean, with that swing…?” Federer said skeptically amid laughter, as Nadal replied, “With that swing maybe we need a couple more years!”
The Ryder Cup is a prestigious men’s golf tournament held every two years, pitting the United States (led this year by Scottie Scheffler) against Europe (headed up by Rory McIlroy) in a three-day team competition. The 2025 edition is being staged at Bethpage Black in New York.
If that setup sounds familiar, it should—the Ryder Cup is what inspired Federer to launch the Laver Cup in 2017, bringing a similar team format to the traditionally individual sport of tennis.
This year’s Laver Cup took place at San Francisco’s Chase Center, where Team World—led by Taylor Fritz and Alex de Minaur with captain Andre Agassi—edged past Team Europe, fronted by Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev under captain Yannick Noah. The tie went down to the final match, giving Team World its third title.
Federer made the trip to San Francisco as well, juggling promotional duties, media interviews, and even a courtside hangout with Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry. He was also spotted showing off a new Rolex watch alongside Alcaraz—and still managed to squeeze in a few rounds of golf with Laver Cup players.
He also teed off with Nadal back in July during a surprise visit to the Spaniard’s academy in Mallorca.
But for fans hoping to see the one-time rivals reunite on the tennis court, there could be more good news ahead. Federer teased the idea during a Laver Cup interview last weekend.