Italy’s Tennis Fever hits Theatres
TORONTO – Pierfrancesco Favino’s upcoming film My Tennis Maestro will be handled internationally by Playtime Group, an announcement coming out of this year’s Cannes Film Festival. The news came after the first images from the film were shown in Cannes – and the interest was instant. Although headquartered in Paris, Playtime Group has offices and partnerships in key film markets: Berlin, Brussels, London, and Munich.
The timing of My Tennis Maestro is not coincidental either, as the sport in Italy is experiencing a massive surge in popularity. The main catalyst for the recent increase in interest is the historic standing of current Italian Tennis players. There are eleven Italian male players ranked inside the ATP top 100 – an Italian record. Not to mention the Bel Paese boasts the top ranked player in the world – Jannik Sinner (from the province of South Tyrol in Norther Italy).
And while Motorsports, Cycling, Volleyball and Basketball have long vied for the country’s number two spot behind Calcio, recent surveys in 2024 indicate that Tennis may be usurping them all. According to some recent statistics, Tennis is fast approaching the second spot as the most followed sport in Italy, with nearly 40% of the population following matches and broadcast. In 2001, there was a measly 129,000 registered tennis players in the Peninsula, but today that number exceeds a million.
“Everyone is crazy about tennis,” says Alfredo Tumminello, a coach at Italy’s award winning tennis club Circolo Tennis Palermo. “In the summer, before the start of the courses, I receive dozens of calls from parents who want to enrol their children. Not only that, the children’s passion has been transmitted to the parents. There are hundreds of adults who accompany their children to tennis lessons and then also ask to attend courses themselves. We have even opened a free course for players over 65”.
So crazed are Italians for tennis, that they’ve absorbed another racquet sport along with it: Padel. It combines tennis, squash and badminton, and is played in an enclosed court with walls. Padel’s growing popularity in Italy is perhaps even more shocking than Tennis’ rise. Prior to Covid, barely 100 Padel courts existed, compared to almost 8,000 in 2024.
With all this in mind, it’s hardly surprising that Favino’s new tennis film, My Tennis Maestro, was snatched up before a final cut was even completed. The plot, set in Italy 1989, follows 13-year-old Felice who’s “carrying his father’s expectations on his shoulders as he finally sets out to compete in the national tennis tournaments. While dreaming of a simple summer vacation, he’s instead placed under the wing of ex tennis champion Raul, an unconventional coach hired by his father”.
Director Andrea Di Stefano: “My Tennis Maestro is a tribute to the mentors who show up in unexpected ways, flawed, wounded, but full of heart. It’s a journey through the ache of growing up, the power of guidance, and the beauty of human connection, for anyone who still believes the world can be a better place, one lesson at a time”.
(Images courtesy of Playtime Group)
Massimo Volpe is a filmmaker and freelance writer from Toronto: he writes reviews of Italian films/content on Netflix
