The most spellbinding experience for any tennis fan is to have the chance to meet their favorite player, but Roger Federer thrilled his fans when he mustered them on a cruise ship to meet him.
Federer, through his management team, organized and invited his most loyal fans to set sail on Switzerland's fourth-largest lake - Lake Lucerne - on the cruise ship Diamant. There, they would get a chance to chat with the 20-time Grand Slam champion for hours.
In a report published by Swiss publication Tages-Anzeiger, around 280 fans from Federer's official fan club 'fans4roger' were invited to a one-of-a-kind experience, and details of the meet-up were kept top secret in the initial stage. The fan club, which was incepted in 2005, will cease to operate at the end of the year.
Since Federer's retirement in 2022, the fan club made attempts to Federer's management team to schedule one last bonding event. They got their wish, but Federer flipped sides, and he was responsible for bringing the whole caravan from all four corners of the world, from countries such as Australia, Brazil, Japan, India, the USA, and all over Europe.
"We got the answer: Yes, but it wasn’t the fan club that was inviting, but Federer himself. The management organized everything. It was just up to us to inform our members."
The fans speculated about the location and exact nature of the meet-up, but none of them had any idea of the experience that was about to unfold until they stood at the jetty in Lucerne when they realized they were embarking on a boat trip. Each one of the 280 fans received a baseball cap with Federer's autograph as a souvenir.
During their first stop, Federer and his parents boarded the cruise ship, finally meeting the fan club. The Swiss legend answered a few questions from them and took pictures with the entire fan club. He would spend his whole afternoon with them, for about four hours before disembarking.
"Forever grateful for the legendary RF fan club. It was an honor to host a fan day on Lake Lucerne after so many great memories over the years. I can’t wait to see everyone again soon."