Tennis Players vs. Entrepreneurs: The Surprising Similarities in Risk and Pressure

On a Saturday morning in April 2026, former Spanish tennis star Marc López and Kristoff Puelinckx, CEO of Tennium, sat down for a conversation that revealed surprising parallels between elite athletics and business leadership. The discussion, hosted as part of Banco Sabadell’s “El poder de las empresas” podcast during the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell – Trofeo Conde de Godó, highlighted how both worlds demand similar mental frameworks despite their different arenas.

The core insight from their dialogue was that success in tennis and entrepreneurship isn’t just about talent or opportunity—it’s about how individuals manage risk, diversify income streams, handle relentless pressure, and make critical decisions in isolation. López, a former doubles specialist who won multiple ATP titles, emphasized that athletes don’t start playing for money but for passion, much like founders launching startups.

Both speakers described early-career uncertainty as a shared experience. “Nobody starts playing tennis thinking about the money they’ll earn,” López noted, mirroring how entrepreneurs often begin ventures without guaranteed financial returns. This initial phase requires betting on oneself without a safety net—a concept Puelinckx likened to launching a company with an open Excel sheet filled with variables, where outcomes remain uncertain until execution begins.

Income diversification emerged as another critical parallel. Just as top tennis players supplement prize money with endorsements, appearance fees, and investments, entrepreneurs must build multiple revenue channels to survive market fluctuations. López pointed out that even during his playing career, financial stability came not solely from tournament winnings but from leveraging his personal brand across different ventures—a strategy Puelinckx confirmed is essential for business longevity.

Pressure management formed a central theme in their conversation. López explained that tennis players learn to cope with stress through repetition and routine—having a racket in hand during high-stakes moments creates familiarity. Similarly, Puelinckx described how entrepreneurs develop resilience by constantly engaging with spreadsheets, forecasts, and variables, turning anxiety into a manageable part of daily operations. Both acknowledged that the most consequential decisions—whether calling an aggressive shot or approving a major investment—are often made alone, without immediate feedback.

The discussion as well touched on forward thinking as a competitive necessity. López stated that tennis “doesn’t forgive those who don’t feel two shots ahead,” a principle Puelinckx applied directly to business strategy. Anticipating opponents’ moves on the court mirrors forecasting market shifts or competitor actions in entrepreneurship, where reactive thinking leads to disadvantage.

Personal branding was identified as a key asset in both fields. López’s legacy as a Spanish doubles specialist and Puelinckx’s role in organizing the Barcelona Open through Tennium illustrate how athletes and entrepreneurs alike must cultivate recognizable identities that extend beyond their primary performance. This brand value becomes a platform for opportunities long after active competition or initial business launches.

While the conversation drew from specific examples—López’s tennis career and Puelinckx’s leadership at Tennium, the company behind the WTA 500 event in Barcelona—the insights reflect broader patterns observed across sports and business. Neither speaker claimed universality for their experiences, instead presenting them as observed parallels from their respective journeys.

The timing of the discussion coincided with the 2026 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, an ATP Tour event held annually at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona. Though specific match results from that year’s tournament weren’t detailed in their dialogue, the event’s status as a clay-court prelude to the French Open provided relevant context for discussing athletic performance and business operations in tennis.

As both men acknowledged, the similarities they discussed aren’t meant to equate the challenges of professional sports with those of business leadership—each domain has unique demands. Rather, their conversation highlighted how transferable mental disciplines—risk assessment, adaptive planning, emotional regulation, and solitary decision-making—can create unexpected common ground between seemingly disparate pursuits.

The next edition of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell is scheduled for April 2027, continuing its role as a key European clay-court tournament on the ATP and WTA calendars. For readers interested in the intersection of sports performance and business strategy, this dialogue offers a verified starting point for understanding how core competencies translate across high-performance environments.

What parallels have you noticed between athletic discipline and professional success in other fields? Share your observations in the comments below, and consider sharing this article with anyone navigating career transitions between sports, business, or other performance-driven industries.