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STA Celebrates US Open Title with Gaby Dabrowski & Erin Routliffe

Posted on: September 8, 2025 |

SotoTennis Academy Celebrates US Open Title with Gaby Dabrowski & Erin Routliffe

SotoTennis Academy is incredibly proud of Gaby Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe, who have won their second US Open Women’s title!

After more than two years of working closely with STA Director Dan Kiernan, Gaby and Erin showcased incredible teamwork and resilience to lift the trophy once again in New York.

Having first won their first Grand Slam there in 2023, to now capture a second title in 2025 is an amazing achievement. We couldn’t be prouder of the girls, their partnership, and the team behind them, including Dan who has been with them every step of the way:


“These women are incredible. To have witnessed firsthand what they have both been through, and to understand what it takes to win a Grand Slam, is truly inspiring. They produced two flawless performances in the semi-finals and finals to take the trophy, and I couldn’t be prouder of them and everyone around them. It takes a village over many years for an achievement like this.” – Dan Kiernan

Their journey through this year’s US Open was anything but straightforward. In their quarter-final, Gaby and Erin found themselves 0-6 down before fighting back to win, before powering past 2nd seeds Sara Errani & Jasmine Paolini in the semi-final.

They beat the top-ranked pair of Taylor Townsend & Katarina Siniakova 6-4, 6-4 in an entertaining final at Arthur Ashe Stadium to secure their 2nd title in 3 years at Flushing Meadows.

Inspiring the Next Generation

For us here at STA, moments like these mean more than just a trophy. They serve as inspiration to every player training at base, an example of what’s possible with the right attitude, work ethic, and commitment to improving day after day.

Gaby & Erin have both spent time at STA, training alongside our full-time players. Watching them win a Grand Slam shows our juniors and pros alike the level of dedication needed to compete at the very top of the game.

“If you see it, you can be it. Erin and Gaby are so relatable and have built a lovely connection with STA over the last couple of years. They really appreciate the support from everyone at STA and love this place. I hope this can inspire others and show that this is absolutely possible in this sport with the right dedication, commitment, and longevity.” – Dan Kiernan

Listen to Gaby & Erin reliving their run to the title

Gaby and Erin joined Dan on our podcast, Control the Controllables, for a very special US Open Review episode. Listeners get exclusive behind-the-scenes insights into their preparation, challenges, and what it takes to lift a Grand Slam trophy. Dan also looks at all of the drama from this year’s tournament with our fantastic panel.

Don’t miss this special episode! Listen here or watch here, and keep up to date on all things CTC Podcast via our socials @ctc.podcast.

Train at SotoTennis Academy

What makes this victory extra special is the energy it brings back to our base in Sotogrande. Success on the biggest stage has a way of lifting everyone – players, coaches, and the wider team alike.

If you’d like to experience that environment for yourself, we’d love to welcome you to SotoTennis Academy. 

👉 Learn more about training at SotoTennis Academy

Congratulations once again to Gaby Dabrowski, Erin Routliffe, and our Director Dan Kiernan on this historic US Open victory!

STA’s AO25 Highlights

Posted on: February 3, 2025 |

Congratulations to Gaby Dabrowski, Erin Routliffe, and Michael Venus on their brilliant performances at the Australian Open, with the support of our Academy Director, Dan Kiernan.

Both teams made it to the semi-finals of their respective events – Gaby and Erin in the women’s doubles, and Michael and Erin in the mixed – fantastic achievements at the first Grand Slam of 2025! 🇦🇺🎾

Dan also bumped into some familiar faces in Melbourne… it was fantastic to reunite with former STA coaches Mark Smout and Ollie Cores, and former full-time player Billy Harris, who were all thriving at the Happy Slam!

It was great to see such a strong Team Soto presence in Melbourne, and we’re excited for what’s to come this year.

Here are some behind-the-scenes of an exciting quarter-finals day in Melbourne. 🤩❤️

SotoTennis Academy Student Placements 25-26

Posted on: October 21, 2024 |

Kickstart Your Career with SotoTennis Academy’s 2025-2026 Student Placements!

It’s that time of year again—our student placement opportunities are live and waiting for you! Over the past seven years, SotoTennis Academy has welcomed university students from all over to join Team Soto for their placement year. It’s a unique chance to gain hands-on experience, become an integral part of our vibrant community, and soak up the beauty of southern Spain.

For the 2025-2026 academic year, we have four exciting placement roles available. Click the links below to explore each role, including position details, requirements, and how to apply:

Wondering what it’s like to be part of the Academy? Watch the video below for a glimpse into life at SotoTennis and hear from our placement students.

Don’t miss out! These placements are highly sought-after, so we encourage you to apply early. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out via info@sototennis.com —we’d love to hear from you and help you take the next step in your career journey!

New STA Hub!

Posted on: July 24, 2024 |

We have some exciting news to share… our brand new STA Hub is ready!

Based in the recently renovated Plaza Blanca, we now have our very own performance gym, classroom, office space and merchandise store.

The space has been designed with the tennis athlete in mind, and will be our hub for athletic development at the academy.

Here our Strength & Conditioning Team have the space to deliver our Fitness Programme, including a range of sessions from strength training, conditioning and recovery.

We also look forward to running off-court sessions in our new classroom, and displaying our Team Soto stash on site!

We hope to see you down at our new Academy Hub soon.

Find us at Plaza Blanca below!

SotoTennis Academy, Local 40 Plaza Blanca, Sotogrande,

Av. de Paniagua, 11310 San Roque, Cádiz

Wimbledon 2024

Posted on: July 23, 2024 |

Wimbledon Finalists & New World No.1 Team!

We’d like to say a massive congratulations to Gaby Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe who powered through to the Wimbledon Women’s Doubles Final this year!

Supported by Gaby’s Coach and STA Director Dan Kiernan, along with Erin’s Coach Bruce Lipka, the girls have now become the highest ranked team in the world.

Following their Rothesay title, Eastbourne final and Wimbledon final appearances, Erin is now individually ranked No.1 and Gaby No.3!

What an inspiration to all our players training back here at STA. We’ve been lucky enough to meet both Gaby and Erin this year as they have joined us for training blocks here at the academy. We look forward to hopefully welcoming both back to base in Sotogrande soon.

Amazing work team. ❤️

Team Soto in SW19

Former Full Time Players Tom Linley and George Russell were also in action at Wimbledon, working as hitting partners for the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.

Watch below to hear more about Tom’s incredible experience hitting with the top tennis players in the world. 🤯

Wimbledon 2024 Review with CTC Podcast

Want to hear Dan and our fantastic Grand Slam Podcast Panel review everything that went down at this year’s Championships?

We’re joined by very special guests, this year’s Men’s Doubles Champions Harri Heliövaara and Henry Patten, along with Henry’s Coach, Calvin Betton, and CTC favourite Freddie Nielsen.

Our panel discusses:

  • Why have there been so many different winners of the Women’s Singles event?

  • Has Carlos Alcaraz ended Novak Djokovic’s reign over Men’s tennis?

  • Gaby and Erin reaching the Wimbledon final and becoming World No.1 pair.

Catch our latest pod here:

TennisAthlete: STA launches new Online S&C Programmes

Posted on: June 13, 2024 |

Introducing TennisAthlete

As a dedicated tennis player, you’ve invested significant time, effort, and resources into honing your skills and competing at your best. However, maximising this investment means sustaining peak performance year-round, on and off the court.

Enter TennisAthlete: your partner in elevating your game to new heights. We offer tailored programmes designed for players committed to enhancing their physical prowess, whether they’re seasoned athletes or newcomers recognising the importance of physical conditioning.

Understanding the dynamic nature of athletic development, our programmes evolve with you, adapting to different phases of your annual cycle and career trajectory.

From foundational training for ages 10-15, emphasising movement and basic strength, to specialised routines for players aged 15 and above, focusing on strength, power, and tournament readiness, our offerings cater to diverse needs.

  • For young athletes (Age 10-15), our programmes emphasise movement fundamentals and basic strength and speed development.

  • As players mature (Age 15+), we pivot towards comprehensive strength and power training, along with specialised programmes addressing tournament preparation and injury prevention. 

  • Even for adult players, our commitment remains unwavering, with targeted injury prevention, tournament preparation, and conditioning programmes tailored to suit every stage of your journey.

Elevate your game with TennisAthlete by SotoTennis Academy, where we’re dedicated to keeping you at the top of your game, every serve, every set, and every match.

Check out our first course, BulletProof Tennis, below!

Kiernan vs Cores 2024

Posted on: June 5, 2024 |

On the 31st May 2024 we hosted our annual STA Team Matchplay Event, and this year saw Team Kiernan take on a new side: Team Cores!

It was a fantastic day full of competitive spirit, court-side chants, teamwork, and some great performances for both teams. Enjoy some highlights in the video below!

Thank you to everyone who came along, and congratulations to Team Kiernan for taking the overall win. 🖤

Our First Live Podcast Show!

Posted on: May 3, 2024 |

We’re still buzzing from our first ever Live Podcast Show in London last month!

STA Director Dan Kiernan and the Control the Controllables Podcast team flew from Spain on April 19th to bring the show to a live audience, in person and online. It really was a fantastic night!

This was such an exciting event for us, and we feel very privileged to have been able to bring the passion behind our pod to so many. Thank you to everyone who joined us!

We’d also like to say a huge thank you to our fantastic panellists: Denmark Davis Cup Captain Freddie Nielsen, Tennis Agent John Morris, and former coach to Jack Draper and Jo Konta, Justin Sherring, for joining us in London and sharing their expert thoughts on what could be a complete game-changer for tennis: the ‘Elite/Premier Tour’.

You may have noticed some changes to the orginal line-up! WTA Doubles number 4 Gaby Dabrowski had to cancel last minute through injury which has forced her to miss the clay season, and ATP Coach Calvin Betton couldn’t leave his players who made the final of the ATP 250 in Bucharest.

A true test of “control the controllables”, Dan’s journey to London was spent on the phone finding a replacement! A special thanks must go to Justin, our ‘knight in shining armour,’ for coming to join the panel with just 24 hours notice, and he did not disappoint!

Our final thanks goes to the team at Podcasts Live, who provided a great venue and guidance on the night, and showed faith in CTC by making us their first ever live event.

Keep an eye on our social media for photos and more clips from the night!

For those of you who couldn’t make the live show, it’s been a few weeks since we’ve released an episode. But fear not, we have one of our favourite ever guests coming back onto the show!

Valorie Kondos Field is one of the world’s most celebrated gymnastics coaches. Now retired, she speaks to us about the art of coaching, and like her first episode, it’s packed full of learnings.

Watch out for her new episode in the next few days!

CTC Podcast Live Show April 2024

Posted on: April 11, 2024 |

We’re so excited to announce that Control the Controllables is hosting it’s first ever Live Show!

On Friday the 19th April we’re coming to The Gallery in Tileyard Studios in London, where Dan will be joined by special guests to discuss one of the hottest topics in tennis right now: Is the New ‘Elite Tour’ Good for Tennis?

This is the Grand Slams’ proposed takeover of the top level of the tour, inviting the top 96 male and female players in the world to compete on a reduced schedule. This ‘Elite Tour’ would comprise of the four Grand Slams and another 15 Masters Series tournaments in order to give the worlds top players more rest time, and in turn a higher quality of tennis.

It has, however, been criticized as a corporate money grab by some, and an attempt to create ‘tennis elitism’ by others.

Join us live in London on April 19th to hear our panellists debate whether this will in fact be good for the sport, and what it means for those of us who work in the tennis industry.

We’ll also discuss other topics surrounding the future of our sport, including Saudi Arabian influence in tennis, proposed changes to doubles by the ATP and WTA, whether disruption is inevitable in tennis, and so much more! 

You’ll also have the chance to ask your questions to Dan and the panel.

Our panellists for the night will be:

JOHN MORRIS

John is one of tennis’ super agents, finding himself right at the heart of the ‘Elite Tour’ discussions as he represents current Men’s World Number 5 Andrey Rublev and Women’s World Number 76 Elina Svitolina. John is also the former agent of some of the game’s biggest names, including Nick Kyrgios and Emma Raducanu. John also appeared in Episode 88 of Control the Controllables, discussing his insights and experiences on the tour.

GABY DABROWSKI

Gaby is one of the best Women’s Doubles players in the world, and is right at the top of her game having won both the US Open and the Billie Jean King Cup in 2023. She is currently a WTA Player Representative, giving her behind-the-scenes access to all of the discussions taking place in the halls of tennis. Gaby appeared in our 2023 US Open Doubles Champions episode alongside her partner Erin Routliffe, and has also featured in our most recent Grand Slam Preview and Review episodes. Gaby is currently being coached by CTC Host Dan Kiernan!

FREDDIE NIELSEN

Freddie is a tennis legend, winning the Wimbledon 2012 Men’s Doubles title alongside home favourite Jonny Marray, before taking up the mantle as Denmark’s Davis Cup captain. Freddie is an expert on the inner workings of tennis both at elite and at grassroots level, therefore is perfectly placed to explain how an ‘Elite Tour’ would disrupt the ecosystem of our sport. As a regular on CTC’s Grand Slam Preview and Review episodes, Freddie is a very recognizable face for regular listeners of our podcast.

CALVIN BETTON

Calvin is a coach on the ATP Doubles tour, and is the current coach of top 100 British doubles talent Henry Patten. Any regular listeners of CTC will know that Calvin always brings strong opinions to the show, and those who listened to our 2024 Australian Open Review will have heard a sneak preview of Calvin’s thoughts about the ‘Elite Tour’! Calvin is strongly opinionated, which promises to make this a blockbuster evening…

It’s going to be a fantastic evening! You can pick up your tickets for the Live Show below:

If you can’t make it to London, don’t worry! You can still join us by purchasing an online ticket and ask all of your questions as if you were in the room.

See you in London soon!

Control The Controllables Podcast Team

SotoTennis Academy 2024-2025 Placement Opportunities

Posted on: December 4, 2023 |

Calling all University Students!

Did you know SotoTennis Academy offers Student Placement Opportunities every year?

Starting in September 2024, we’re offering 4 Student Placement Roles in our Marketing, Communications, S&C and Podcast teams!

Going on a placement year is the perfect opportunity for university students to gain invaluable work experience before graduating.

Our goal at STA is to offer students the chance to not only work and connect with athletes and experts from different backgrounds and nationalities, but also become an integral part of our team.

In October 2022, STA also had the pleasure of accepting the Award for the University of Bath’s Humanities & Social Sciences International Placement of the Year.

If you want to know more about our current opportunities, including the job roles, requirements, remuneration and application details, please click the links below!

Equally, if you know somebody that might be interested in any of the opportunities, please do spread the word by sharing this blog.

Applications close in April 2024, but we strongly encourage earlier applications, as we might offer the roles to exceptional students before then. 

We look forward to welcoming some excellent Placement Students in September 2024!

STA Director Dan Kiernan guides players to two US Open Trophies!

Posted on: September 14, 2023 |

Grand Slam Champions

It’s been an incredible fortnight at the US Open for STA Director Dan Kiernan, as his players won not one, but two doubles titles!

First Denmark’s Harri Heliövaara and Anna Danilina from Kazakhstan became Grand Slam Champions for the first time, winning the 2023 Mixed Doubles title without dropping a set.

Harri and Anna only met for the first time at the sign-in desk the previous week, before beating top seeds Jessica Pegula and Austin Krajicek 6-3 6-4 in the final. 

Dan has been working with Hari Heliovaara and former STA Full Time player Lloyd Glasspool since January.

"Good things happen to good people. Harri and Anna deserve this for their ability to stay courageous in the key moments throughout their 5 matches beating some fantastic pairs. They performed to such a high level against the current world no. 1 doubles players in both the Men's (Krajicek) and Women's (Pegula) games to win the trophy. It is a real pleasure to be a small part of this amazing achievement and I have no doubt this experience will have a positive effect on their Men's/Women's doubles careers."
Dan Kiernan
STA Academy Director

Women's Doubles Triumph

Harri and Anna were followed by Canada’s Gaby Dabrowski & Erin Routliffe from New Zealand, who triumphed in the Women’s Doubles Final.

Gaby is a regular on Dan’s podcast Control the Controllables as a panelist who previews and reviews the Grand Slams. Dan and Gaby started working together at the US Open, and what a start they’ve made!

Gaby and Erin swept past No.12 seeds Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva 7-6(9), 6-3 in Sunday’s final. It’s Gaby’s 14th career doubles title, and Erin’s 4th, and their first together after only their fourth tournament as a team.

"This victory is a true example of sticking together unconditionally - something we don't do enough in 2023! The girls stayed in 'their moment' regardless of the situation, and their commitment to this has reaped the biggest of awards. I am very proud of them both, and this is only the start of what their partnership can achieve together."
Dan Kiernan
STA Academy Director

Team Soto Family in NYC

It was so special having some of our Team Soto family there to support Dan and the players court-side at Flushing Meadows.

A massive congratulations to all 4 US Open Champions on an unforgettable Grand Slam! And of course to Dan for guiding both pairs to victory!

Victory in Italy

Congratulations must also to Team Soto Pro Tamara Zidanšek on an amazing run at the Open Delle Puglie tournament in Bari last week – WTA 125 Winner! We are very proud of Tamara and her team, including STA Performance Coach Mike Digby.

Good luck to Tamara competing this week at her home event, WTA Zavarovalnoca Sava Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Let’s go Tamara!

Magic Moments

What an inspiration these magic moments have been to our Full Time Players here at SotoTennis Academy, who are all just starting the new year back at base.

You can hear Dan and Gaby chat all about the final Grand Slam of the year in the US Open 2023 Review episode of Control the Controllables, released later today!

Join SotoTennis Academy’s Pro Team

Posted on: August 16, 2023 |

SotoTennis Academy has a history of working with both professional tennis players and aspiring young high performance players as they start their journey on the ATP/WTA Tour.

We have limited spaces available in our Pro Team from September 2023!

Read on for more information about STA’s Pro Player Programme.

Success Stories

Over the years STA has seen many success stories including –

Lloyd Glasspool, who as part of STA went from unranked to #280 ATP Singles in one year, and is now a top ATP Doubles player (career high of #7) still working with our team.

Evan Hoyt, who went from unranked to #319 ATP Singles, as well as making the Mixed Doubles Quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2019.

Peter Bothwell went from an unranked ITF Junior to being #602 ATP, winning a 25k ITF Pro title, and becoming Ireland’s number 1 Davis Cup player.

Valeria Savinykh broke into the world’s top 100 WTA, and Panna Udvardy reached the top 10 juniors during her time at STA. Panna went on to enter the top 300 WTA in her first year on the tour supported by STA, and is now top 100 WTA.

Familiar Faces at Base

We have also loved welcoming multiple Pros and their teams to STA for training blocks in their personal programmes.

Players have included the likes of current WTA World Number 1 Iga Świątek, GB’s Dan Evans, WTA Player Shelby Rogers, and multiple Wheelchair Grand Slam Champion, Gordon Reid.

It’s been awesome to welcome them into our team environment, and many of them have been kind enough to spend time with our aspiring young performance players.

Team Soto Pros

Currently our Coaching Team supports 2021 French Open Singles Semi-finalist, Tamara Zidanšek (with a career high WTA Singles ranking of #22), and top 5 ATP Doubles Team Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliövaara.

Join our Team

Excitingly we are opening up 4 more spots in our Pro Team for September 2023.

To apply for a spot, please send us:

  • Your tennis CV – showcasing your journey to date 
  • A cover letter explaining your reasons for wanting to join Team Soto and what your goals and ambitions are
  • Please also detail what you can bring to the Academy, as our Pro Players have always been our cultural leaders – this is as important to us as winning trophies and titles

As an STA Pro Player, you will have access to the following:

  • Bespoke programming with experienced ATP and WTA Tennis Coaches & Hitting Partners
  • Strength & Conditioning support, including personalised fitness screening and tracking 
  • Hard and clay court year-round training base in highly-accessible location
  • Travelling Coach available
  • Remote tennis/S&C support when travelling 
  • Accommodation if required
  • A chance to play for more than just yourself, with a whole community behind you

For more information about opportunities for current and aspiring Pro Players, please contact:

Dan Kiernan, STA Director – dan@sototennis.com

Mike Digby, STA Performance Coach – michael.digby@sototennis.com

Lloyd Glasspool moves into the World’s Top 10 ATP Doubles

Posted on: May 22, 2023 |

Tennis is a relentless sport: multiple tournaments every week, the striving for the next event, the next feeling, and for many, the pressure of the next dollar, the next compliment, and justification for why we play. Anyone who stays in the game beyond the age of 18 deserves a massive pat on the back. You have shown persistence, perseverance and, in turn, learned a hell of a lot in terms of life lessons.

But do we really understand the challenges of the sport? Unless we have been close to a player’s journey, it is sometimes hard to truly understand the magnitude of the challenge. Yet, when we ‘achieve’, we often don’t stop and positively reflect on what we have accomplished, as we are off again on our next pursuit…

So, this blog post is about stopping and reflecting on a 20+ year journey for Lloyd Glasspool, and all the amazing people who have helped him on that journey. None more so than his parents, Sian and Neil, and the Warwickshire coach that started it all for him, Claire Williamson. We also have to mention STA Director Dan Kiernan, who has been a big part of Lloyd’s journey for almost 20 years, including when Lloyd was a Full Time Player at SotoTennis Academy.  

But most importantly, this is for Lloyd, who today moved into the World’s Top 10 ATP Doubles Players after his win in Bordeaux last week. An astonishing achievement, and yes, as current coach Dan says, “it’s only the start…”

Lloyd – keep striving, keep growing – but we want to take this moment to say a massive congratulations on this achievement from all of us at SotoTennis Academy. 

And of course, even though he is an old hand at this now, a big well done to Harri Heliövaara on regaining his place back in the Top 10.

All the best to Lloyd, Harri and Dan at Roland Garros!

Keep building boys, but don’t forget how far you have come.

Listen to Lloyd and Harri’s Control The Controllables podcast episode here

CTC wins Best Tennis Podcast at the 2023 Sports Podcast Awards!

Posted on: May 5, 2023 |

Best Tennis Podcast

Wow – we can’t believe it! Our podcast, Control The Controllables, has been awarded Best Tennis Podcast for the second year in a row at the 2023 Sports Podcast Awards!

We are so excited and proud of this achievement, and our Podcast Team, who all work so hard behind the scenes.

Thank You!

A massive thank you must go to YOU, for listening to and supporting Control the Controllables. If you took the time to vote for us, we are so grateful! 🙏

The Sports Podcast Awards are voted for by listeners, so this is extra special to us.

Here’s a little message from STA Director Dan Kiernan…

A Message from our Host

“You guys are the best! Not only listening in your thousands, but also taking the time to vote for us – it wasn’t an easy process, so thank you! We love podcasts and we love tennis, so we feel very lucky to have the opportunity to speak to so many amazing personalities in the sport and dig deeper into so many interesting subjects. 

I also want to take this opportunity to say thank you for your messages of support or for sharing your stories when you get in touch. This is your podcast, so please keep sharing and reaching out, as we love to connect with you!”

What's next for CTC?

We’ve got some exciting plans in the pipeline for Control The Controllables, including a “rocking” upcoming episode, so watch this space!

Episode #188 clue: widely regarded as one of the greatest serve-and-volley players of all time, this guest was the first player to climb into the Wimbledon stands to celebrate with his loved ones… any guesses? 

In the meantime, you can also catch up on all the latest episodes of the show here!

We hugely appreciate all of your continued support.

Vote for Control The Controllables at the Sports Podcast Awards 2023

Posted on: March 30, 2023 |

We have some exciting news to share with you!

Our Podcast Control the Controllables has been nominated for the “Best Tennis Podcast” at the Sports Podcast Awards for the second consecutive year, and we could not be more proud!

As a Podcast Team, our ultimate aim is to give those in the wider tennis community access to the most experienced people in the sport.

We feel the recognition from the Sports Podcast Awards would help us reach more aspiring young players, parents, coaches and tennis fans who can benefit from the incredible stories, learnings and advice that our guests give, which is at the heart of what makes our podcast tick. 

The amazing support from the Control the Controllables community helped us win Best Tennis Podcast last year, and we´d love it if you could spare some time to vote for us again!

If you would like to support us, please click the button below and vote for CTC!

Voting closes on April 6th! 🙏

We hugely appreciate all of your support.

Control the Controllables

Behind the Scenes at SotoTennis Academy

Posted on: |

Building relationships is very important to us here at STA. We love meeting players and their families who choose to come and train with us from all over the world. Sometimes, however, the friends we make are not from a pre-planned training week or visit and are more spontaneous. Our guest blogger Elise is one of our unplanned visitors-turned-friends!

Meeting Team Soto

Hi! My name is Elise, I’m a 19-year-old student, and I’m currently on my gap year – I have accepted a deferred place at Cardiff Metropolitan University to study Sport Media, which I am incredibly excited about. In my gap year so far, I’ve had the amazing opportunity to live in Sotogrande for 3 months as an au pair.

During my time here, I’ve not only been able to significantly improve my tennis level, but also gain some invaluable work experience in Sports Media and Marketing, all through meeting Team Soto… I have loved my time at SotoTennis Academy (STA), and I wanted to share some highlights with those who might be interested in visiting the Academy from both a player and work experience student perspective.

Accessing STA

My experience as an Access Player at STA has been instrumental for the development of my tennis, both my technique and mindset. Team Soto was incredibly welcoming from the start, and communicated with me daily to ensure I was having the best experience possible and getting the most out of my time here.

My first training session was with Carl Maes, STA’s Performance Director. The session contained a mix of drills, point play and video analysis, something that really helped me to recognise the areas of my tennis that I needed to develop in ways I had never considered before. The coaches’ level of expertise was second to none in each STA training session I did, and I was consistently fed new ideas to improve my game, which I was excited to immediately put into practice.

I especially valued the coaches’ time when meeting before a match to discuss my game plan, and then reflecting on the match after they had watched me throughout, when they were able to give me honest and constructive feedback. I felt that the coaches were genuinely invested in helping me to improve my tennis – this was a particular highlight, as it’s something I’ve not experienced that often in my training over the years.

Get Involved!

In addition to the quality of coaching, I had never before been surrounded by such high level players, and I enjoyed being challenged by the Full Time Academy Players in both sessions and matches. I was particularly impressed by the coach to player ratio, as most of my STA training sessions had one coach to every two players, which I had never experienced before.

From a player perspective, my advice to anyone considering training at STA would be to do as much as you can! Every session is valuable, and you will learn so much each time you talk to any of the coaches. A huge thank you from me to each and every one of them!





Podcast Planning

Alongside training, I was also able to shadow and work with STA’s ‘Off-Court’ Team. I initially carried out some market research for the Academy’s podcast, Control the Controllables. I found the podcast really informative, and the number of big names in the tennis world – such as Women’s World No. 1 Iga Światek, Top Ten ATP Player Holger Rune, and top-ranked ATP Doubles Players Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliövaara – who have appeared as guests was impressive.

I enjoyed sharing my opinions and thoughts from a listener’s perspective on how I felt the podcast could be improved and developed in the future. Faye, STA’s Head of Marketing, guided me through this project so that the Academy could achieve the maximum benefit from my research and consider the ways in which to develop their content in the future, as well as to enable me to gain a great insight into podcasting.




Getting Creative

I was also able to shadow and work with other members of the Marketing and Communications Team, including learning different social media techniques and strategies, creating assets using graphic design tools, and developing my writing and editing skills.




Be Proactive!

If anyone is interested in joining STA for a Placement Year or work experience, I would thoroughly recommend it. It is a fun and fast-paced work environment, with a level of excellence that is exciting to see. My advice would be to take a proactive approach and run with the creative freedom you are given, as this is how you will make the most of your time at the Academy. I cannot wait to start my Sport Media degree in September with my new-found skills!

Sunny Sotogrande

Living in the Sotogrande Marina for 3 months allowed me to experience the many different opportunities and explore the beautiful places that Sotogrande and the surrounding area have to offer. The Marina itself has some amazing restaurants which I tried throughout my stay, as well as the One4One Fitness Center which I was lucky enough to live just across from, so I could use it daily. Whilst the main language used at STA was English, there were still plenty of opportunities to practise my Spanish.








Life Lessons

Before I came to Sotogrande, I had never been away from home by myself for as long as 3 months, so at first I was slightly apprehensive as to how I would cope. Initially, the first few weeks were slow-moving, but once I got involved with the Academy and started playing tennis daily, I quickly settled into a routine that I loved.

My advice to anyone considering travelling here who has never been away by themselves is to push yourself out of your comfort zone. I have learnt so many life lessons from being independent in a new country, and have felt my character develop significantly for the better throughout my time here.

My time at SotoTennis Academy on and off the court has been invaluable from both a player and work experience student perspective. The life lessons I have learnt both on and off the court will stay with me forever. I have loved being a part of Team Soto, and will always be grateful for the time I have been able to spend here. I look forward to continuing my link with STA throughout my time at University, and to visiting again in the future!

We look forward to having you back in Sotogrande Elise!

Any questions about SotoTennis Academy Access Weeks or Work Experience Opportunities? Contact us here!