Tennis royalty joined the plethora of celebrities in attendance in Paris to watch the closely-contested Rugby World Cup final between New Zealand and South Africa.
Novak Djokovic, who is in France preparing to play the 2023 Paris Masters next week, sat side by side with British singer Rita Ora who was in the company of her husband and New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi. The Serbian tennis star was unwinding after holding his first practice session in Bercy.
Roger Federer, who retired from professional tennis in 2022, and a longtime rival of Djokovic was also in the stands in the jam-packed Stade de France. Federer, spotting a Springboks shirt and scarf, was cheering for the defending champions South Africa.
The Springboks narrowly defeated New Zealand 12-11 to retain their crown and become the first team to win the Rugby World Cup four times. Federer flew with his entire family to Paris including his mother Lynette who is a South African national, which pretty much explains the 20-time Grand Slam champion's alliance in Saturday's final.
Federer, his wife Mirka and his four children were all wearing matching green tops pledging their support for the champions. The Swiss tennis legend had been to the landlocked South African country, Lesotho, earlier this year doing philanthropy work for his foundation.
Although he has retired from tennis, Federer has not stopped following events that are happening on the tour and has spoken highly of Djokovic's accomplishments this year, most notably when he won a 23rd Grand Slam title at the French Open.
Djokovic is statistically in a league of his own, winning the most Grand Slams of any man (with 24), and owns the most Masters 1000 titles too. His Big Titles lead over both Federer and Nadal is now in double digits and could extend that lead even further at the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals before the 2023 season comes to an end.
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