PHD loses Tennis Australia media account to Atomic 212
Australian Open 2022
Atomic 212 has won Tennis Australia’s media account following a competitive pitch, marking the end of the organisation’s relationship with incumbent PHD.
Tennis Australia is hoping to evolve its media approach, ensuring “data-led, audience-first thinking” is embedded across all touch points. It is also significantly investing in building deeper connections with fans and participants, both in Australia and around the world, according to a release.
Cedric Cornelis, chief commercial officer at Tennis Australia, said Atomic 212 matched this ambition.
“The agency’s strategic vision, digital strength and deep understanding of our ambition to grow both fandom and participation really stood out – as did its team culture, which felt like a natural fit from day one,” he said in a media release on Monday.
Australian Open 2022
“We’re excited about the impact this partnership will have across our events, our brand, and the sport more broadly.”
It marks the end of a four-year partnership with incumbent PHD. Tennis Australia thanked the agency in the release, saying that its contribution played a key role in helping the organisation “break new ground” across event campaigns, brand growth, and audience engagement.
Prior to PHD, the account was held by Publicis Groupe’s Zenith. Atomic 212’s win means it returns to the Publicis stable, because Atomic was acquired by the holdco at the start of the year.
Atomic 212 had been one of the country’s largest independent media agencies, and the deal was estimated by commentators at $35-50 million.
Publicis Groupe’s CEO, Michael Rebelo, said at the time that the addition of Atomic 212 to its media agency roster — which also includes Zenith, Starcom, Spark Foundry Australia, and NZ-based MBM — solidified the holdco’s position as “the only group in ANZ capable of offering truly comprehensive end-to-end marketing transformation solutions”.
Commencing immediately, Atomic 212 will lead media strategy, planning, buying, performance marketing, and analytics across the full Tennis Australia ecosystem. It will focus on specific events including the Australian Open, as well as year-round efforts to inspire more people to engage with the sport.
Work has begun for the upcoming Summer of Tennis and Australian Open 2026.
The agency’s chief executive officer, Rory Heffernan, described Tennis Australia as an “important cultural organisation” and said Atomic 212 is “ecstatic” about winning the account.
“Thank you to the Tennis Australia team for sharing your ambition and vision for the organisation, and being so open to a new strategic approach underpinned by our ‘Smarter, Faster, Accountable’ proposition,” he said in the release.
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