Coco Gauff explains 'IROC' media company name after partnering with former NFL legends
NewsSunday, 28 September 2025 at 21:00
Coco Gauff has given fans an insight into her media company's name after an exciting collaboration with two other American sports stars was revealed.
Despite still being just 21, Gauff is already building a legacy off the court as one of the most marketable athletes worldwide because of her personality and behavior that make her an ideal role model.
That led to Gauff being ranked as the most marketable tennis player last year, ahead of legendary figures like Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Serena Williams. She has also been the highest-paid female athlete for the last two years.
Gauff can continue to build her brand in the initiative announced with former NFL stars Tom Brady and Michael Strahan. The two men run a large creative agency, Religion of Sports, which opened up an opportunity to work with this year's French Open champion.
Brady and Strahan's company will collaborate with Gauff's media company, IROC, on projects focused on athletes' lives. The content is expected to include scripted and unscripted content, and an effort will be made to include a diverse range of people from different backgrounds.
While the announcement generated much excitement, some wondered about the name of Gauff's media company. To outsiders without a deep knowledge of the WTA world No. 3, IROC seemed like a random choice.
Gauff cleared up any confusion during a press conference after her thrilling 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 victory against Leylah Fernandez. She confirmed that IROC is her real name spelled backwards.
"IROC is my real name spelled backwards. It's Cori spelled backwards. I think my mom came up with it when I was younger. I played Little Mo. My grandma made visors and named them IROC bcause it was just my name spelled backwards. My parents also said, 'Oh, that could be something one day."
"I was like, 'Oh, well I don't have much names.' I don't know. I think everybody can relate to IROC (smiling). So, that was the thought process behind the name. It's something I've had my whole life."
The 2024 WTA Finals winner then said she is excited to partner with Religion of Sports. She also admitted it allows her to stay focused on tennis and not be overly involved while her media company still produces exciting content.
"As far as the religion of Sports, I'm going to be involved obviously in things that I do. But I think partnering with them is helping me keep my focus onto tennis and allowing them to put my vision out there without me being so much on hand."
"I haven't met Tom Brady or Michael Strahan or anything like that. I've had a couple of meetings with Religion of Sport, which I'm super excited about. We just are really in the beginning. I can't tell you if there's any projects. We don't have anything lined up as of yet."
"But yeah, I always wanted to do this, be executive producing some things. Partnering with them I think allows me to focus more on tennis and letting them kind of carry out the projects and things that I want to do, and having a great team behind that."
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