Is Andy Murray the biggest sporting star in britain?

Has he surpassed the captain of England's football squad and Wayne Rooney as the most famous athlete? I mean gold medal and the first slam since 1936 has to make news across the globe and especially domestically. Does this make Andy murray the most marketable? Will Andy become a knight? Is it Sir Andy and the moaners? I am asking you guys because I don't know much about british sports outside of football and murray so does this shoot him past hamilton and rooney or the other olympic heroes? And what does this added interest and notoriety mean for the future of the viability of the sport in Britain? So let me know I am interested in your thoughts I think this will be huge for the popularity of the game in Football and might even have a chance of propelling tennis to the #2 sport in britain. But since I don't live there you guys would be able to give me a more accurate read.

David Beckham has the title wrapped up pretty tightly I would say, there is still the issue in England unfortunately where he's Scottish that they find hard to support. He has certainly gained a lot of respect in Britain, but I think football will always have the edge over Tennis in the UK as a fan base

So becks still holds the crown, but do you think Andy is making headway for tennis and getting closer? Does he have major national tv adverts like stars here in the US?

In England unless you are a big tennis fan Wimbledon is everything, it will get a lot of coverage that he won the US Open but it will pail in comparison to what he would get if he wins Wimbledon. Theres the Sport Pesonality of the year award, which is given usually to the most successful british athlete of the year. It will be interesting to see how that goes, Murray has a Wimbledon final, two Olympic Gold Medals and the US Open, yet incredibly I wouldn't say he is the favourite for it.

Well I don't know what he would have to do to win that distinction at this point. I think this win will energize tennis in Britain for some time. I mean on the global scale before this olympics the british weren't exactly none for their distinction in global sports outside the 66 world cup. Murray I think has changed the conversation quite a bit.

US Open is beneath the ordinary British person's knowledge. It was funny when they thought of Scotland as a tennis mad country that they would be playing bagpipes all night long because of this match..hardly anyone up there watches any sport except the Celtic and Rangers games.

Yes but it can't help visibility and publicity for the game Josiah. I mean the guy has done something nobody has accomplished out of britain in 70 years that means something to even the ordinary guy i think.

It will be interesting to see if he wins Sports Personality of the Year. I suspect Bradley Wiggins might pip him to it. Everyone loves Jessica Ennis at the moment as well. Trust Murray to finally win a GS in an Olympic year.

Wiggins should win by miles. To win the TDF - a physical challenge beyond comprehension - when no British man has ever been on the podium is the outstanding achievement.

Murray on the podium I expect.

socal1976 wrote:Yes but it can't help visibility and publicity for the game Josiah. I mean the guy has done something nobody has accomplished out of britain in 70 years that means something to even the ordinary guy i think.

Welcome to the REAL world socal... of course he is a hero for Britain as a whole and Scotland in particular Scottish News


http://sport.stv.tv/

In terms of sporting achievement this year, Andy is up there with Bradley Wiggins and well ahead of all the others - first male slam winner since before WW2 compared with our first ever Tour de France winner. Both also picked up gold medals at the Olympics and have had other good results over the course of the year. Mo Farah, with his two Olympic golds in athletics probably is 'best of the rest'

As others have said, in terms of fame and marketability, Beckham is still way ahead of any other sports star, but his sporting achievements over the last several years are fairly well irrelevant. Behind that, football still holds sway over most of the media and the population at large, to the extent that 'the public' will pay more attention to John Terry's latest injury/disrepute charge/extra-marital affair than to outstanding sporting achievements by any cyclist, tennis player, golfer etc.

Haddie-nuff wrote:

socal1976 wrote:Yes but it can't help visibility and publicity for the game Josiah. I mean the guy has done something nobody has accomplished out of britain in 70 years that means something to even the ordinary guy i think.

Welcome to the REAL world socal... of course he is a hero for Britain as a whole and Scotland in particular Scottish News


http://sport.stv.tv/

Yes I am not happy with the result but I do think it is good for the game and goes rather well with my argument that this is a brutally tough era of top level competition. I think it builds the game for years to come in an important and wealthy market for the sport. Yes football is king but maybe Murray's success can bring in some grass roots energy and insipration to the youngsters. Isn't tennis the number 2 sport in spain, or is it formula 1 Haddie?

I think its Tennis at the moment Socal.. since Spain has had such a very strong team.. however basketball is also up there and of course Football with great rivalry between the top clubs of Barca, Madrid Valencia etc. is the top. Cycling is another of course but in truth I think the success of Nadal, Ferrer Verdasco and Lopez (and of course the Davis Cup is highly prized amongst the Spanish supporters)..all have given the game a very high profile. Rafa is a National hero and has many footballers amongst his followers.. dont see much of the Spanish women as fangirls though ..but they know their tennis !!!

Quite amusing I put a congratulations on me Facebook for Murray and I get all kind of comments calling him a jock cnut and that he hates the English!!

The hatred still burns brightly I see.

Pretty sure Murray will not care a jot about whether he wins Spoty. Andy has got what he wants, a Grand Slam title and his place cemented in tennis history. Anything else now would be a bonus.

Most other years (especially non-Olympic) he would be a shoo in but there are so many contenders this year (Wiggins, Farah, Ennis, Ainslie, Weir, Simmons to name a few) he will do well to be on the podium. No issues with that. Like BB I think it should be Wiggins.

Pretty sure Murray will not care a jot about whether he wins Spoty. Andy has got what he wants, a Grand Slam title and his place cemented in tennis history. Anything else now would be a bonus

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I totally agree. Having watched the entire match I was amazed how very "low key" Andy´s reaction to his win was.. not least of all because he was in a state of shock. But he has a good Tutor in Lendl.. the man shows no emotion at all and I think he has had a calming influence on Andy- As you say Andy has achieved his ultimate goal I dont think having the additional accolade will bother him that much (though he has done the "double" with his Olympic Gold.. with the bonus of his bronze) Im sure he will get a public pat on the back if nothing else.

To think they are sometimes scrambling around to determine the BBC SPOTY and now this year they are spoilt for choice. You could certainly make a case out for any number of winners this year, including Andy M.
My choice - Mo Farah.

For me its the Weirwolf

This country is obsessed with numbers, so when someone achieves something that didn't happen in such a long time (70+ years for a slam winner) then that will take precedence over others. Fact that Murray made Wimbledon final, then won Gold and then won USO means he will certainly be SPOTY

OMG here we go again.

Beckham is not a great sporting star in terms of what he has ever offered as a footballer IMHO. He may be a great candidate every year for sports personality of the year and a cert. for lifetime achievement award but it's all image over substance.

The Sports Personality of the Year is simply a popularity contest stage managed and fixed by the BBC so no doubt Ennis (and yes she deserves to be on the short-list) will win.

The three top candidates for sporting achievement this year though are - in no particular order Any Murray, Mo Farah and Bradley Wiggins. Simply each achieved something that no other British performer has ever done in their respective sports.
Andy - Olympic gold and first slam title for 76 years,
Mo -first ever 5,000 and 10,000 Olympic golds
Bradley - first ever Tour de France win plus Olympic gold

How on earth do you decided between the three of them? You basically can't All three deserve the title so a joint three way tie for first with Jessica getting an honourable mention. Maybe they can get Mr. Beckham to present the awards so he gets to realise true sporting greatness rather than all the hype that normal surround him.

Andy isn't the biggest sporting star in Britain as tennis does not have mass popular appeal as say football. As for Sports Personality Of The Year I wouldn't complain one iota if it went to Bradley Wiggins as his achievements have also been immense. For Andy I think his time will come in the future for the award.

"For Andy I think his time will come in the future for the award" - CaledonianCraig.
Well CC. I hope you're right. Andy will have to win another slam in a non-vintage sporting year or perhaps get to number one to win it. To think Rusedski got SPOTY for merely being USO runner-up in 97 which, presumably, was not much of a year for British sport

He's certainly one of the most accomplished sports stars, and a country mile ahead of any footballer this nation has ever produced in terms of being world class and at the top of his sport.

One of after his summer his stock would have increased quite immeasurably.

What is in important is the profile this gives tennis in this country in general. Look at Murray and they have someone to look up to.

legendkillarV2 wrote:One of after his summer his stock would have increased quite immeasurably.

Been celebrating the win LK?

Either that or I am being a bit dim (very possible). I can't work out what you are saying here.

carrieg4 wrote:

legendkillarV2 wrote:One of after his summer his stock would have increased quite immeasurably.

Been celebrating the win LK?

Either that or I am being a bit dim (very possible). I can't work out what you are saying here.

I have been hitting the water here in the office.

I meant one of the biggest sport stars in the country right now.

super_realist wrote:He's certainly one of the most accomplished sports stars, and a country mile ahead of any footballer this nation has ever produced in terms of being world class and at the top of his sport.

Bobby Moore? Bobby Charlton? Gordon Banks? (Maggie Thatcher, Winston Churchill etc, your boys took a hell of a beating)

Certainly better than any of them.

super_realist wrote:He's certainly one of the most accomplished sports stars, and a country mile ahead of any footballer this nation has ever produced in terms of being world class and at the top of his sport.

George best for a couple of years might have been pretty world class, but generally you are right he is much higher up the totem pole than any current or recent british footballer has been. He is much closer to the top of his sport lets say then wayne rooney is when compared to football. I understand football is king but it would be nice if murray could firmly entrench tennis as #2.

I say probably not. What with it being an Olympic year and the achievements therein it is difficult to single AM as the biggest sporting star. I text a friend of mine last night and asked if she was watching the match and she replied no. This same person was watched Wimbledon and the Olympic finals supporting Murray. I think as it is an event away from the UK with limited coverage it was not followed as closely.

I agree with the above that Wiggins has a chance of winning the sport personality award but it might be given to Murray instead. Tennis is a marmite sport I think. Either you love it or hate it and I base this opinion on a lot of my friends who just do not like tennis.

Footballers will always be considered the biggest sports stars in the UK and even with Murray's win, I doubt he has been elevated to those heights.

Murray's stock has risen loads this year, but not really because of his gold medal or his win last night. Us Brits don't tend to warm too much to great sporting achievement. Certainly not as much as heroic failure. I know so many people who have never liked Murray, but then changed their opinion after his tears at Wimbledon.

See, there is this 'I don't like their personality' thing in the UK that we apply to all our sporting stars. Forget putting your medals or trophies on the table, we're more interested in how they conduct themselves in interviews and whether they seem a nice person. Andy losing to Roger and then opening up and crying on centre court changed more minds than a grand slam win ever could. Sad but true.

Of course, following that with a gold, a silver and a slam will help silence the doubters and detractors, but he won more friends when he took that microphone off Sue Barker than any victory ever will.

Biggest sports star in Britain? Well he should be. He'll never market himself to be the tennis Beckham though, he's not interested. He's after honours and not celebrity. I know that having read his book on holiday last week. Beckham will always be the most famous (though it shouldn't be forgotten that he captained England, was European champion at Man Utd, English champion multiple times, Spanish champion, and twice runner up in world player of the year - his trophy cabinet is just fine) but right now Murray is the golden boy of Britain in terms of achievement.

bogbrush wrote:Wiggins should win by miles. To win the TDF - a physical challenge beyond comprehension - when no British man has ever been on the podium is the outstanding achievement.

Murray on the podium I expect.

Tennis is one of the most international and played sports in the world, it beats any of the Olympians achievments by a mile. Wiggins has a fair chance, tennis is significantly more popular than cycling in the UK but then again Wiggins is English.

monty junior wrote:

bogbrush wrote:Wiggins should win by miles. To win the TDF - a physical challenge beyond comprehension - when no British man has ever been on the podium is the outstanding achievement.

Murray on the podium I expect.

Tennis is one of the most international and played sports in the world, it beats any of the Olympians achievments by a mile. Wiggins has a fair chance, tennis is significantly more popular than cycling in the UK but then again Wiggins is English.

Actually Wiggins had an Australian father and was born in Ghent in Belgium...

Disagree with the post a few back suggesting that Brits don't like successful sportsmen - look at how much support there has been for our Olympic champions. Maybe there is a bit of a lack of respect for the very driven characters like Nick Faldo (great golfer, but never a fan favourite), but look at the media love of Redgrave and Pinsent or Ben Ainslie - surely as dominant in their sports as anyone has ever been.

Dummy - what I meant was the British warm to a heroic loss by a likeable character more than they will warm to someone who wins.

Obviously exceptional sportsmen like Pinsent and Redgrave and co will be celebrated and lived, and rightly so. I guess my point is that we are the only country where Eddie the Eagle can finish last and become a national treasure for it!

Danny_1982 wrote:Dummy - what I meant was the British warm to a heroic loss by a likeable character more than they will warm to someone who wins.

Prime example being Henman and Murray.


As for the OP, not really. We don't really have sportsmen/sportswoman on TV advertising products. Actually, the last sportsperson I saw on TV was Wozniacki advertising something for blisters or corns or something. Andrew Castle advertisies a lawyers firm now that I think about it. But yeah, David Beckham is still at the top here in Britain.

This is like saying is Del Potro the biggest sporting star in Argentina, after all they both have 1 slam...

The Special Juan wrote:

Danny_1982 wrote:Dummy - what I meant was the British warm to a heroic loss by a likeable character more than they will warm to someone who wins.

Prime example being Henman and Murray.


As for the OP, not really. We don't really have sportsmen/sportswoman on TV advertising products. Actually, the last sportsperson I saw on TV was Wozniacki advertising something for blisters or corns or something. Andrew Castle advertisies a lawyers firm now that I think about it. But yeah, David Beckham is still at the top here in Britain.

You mean you haven't seen that terrible Turkish Airlines ad when the umpire 's scoffing down Wozniacki's airline meal between points? Worst ad ever.

Andrew Castle promoting an injuries law firm does push it quite hard though to be fair.