Vivobarefoot doesn’t have a dedicated tennis court shoe (yet), but that hasn’t stopped the brand from partnering with American tennis player Caty McNally on a sponsorship deal. How the two came together didn’t start with footwear.

McNally, recovering from an elbow injury, started working with German fitness group Integralis, which extolled the virtues of barefoot activity. “I learned a lot about how everything starts from the ground up, and that a lot of issues throughout the body and the hips can stem from the feet,” McNally tells me. While enjoying barefoot movement, she noticed staff wearing Vivobarefoot.

Soon McNally was training in a pair gifted her by the head of the company and the 24-year-old was loving the experience. Soon, a deal between McNally and Vivobarefoot materialized. “It’s been really cool to work with such a big brand like them,” she says, “as they are worldwide, and so many people know about them.”

Nicholas Charlier, general manager of Vivobarefoot USA, tells me that the organic connection between McNally and the brand offered an ideal fit. “Given the genuine role our footwear played in her journey, partnering in a more official capacity felt like an authentic and natural next step,” he says.

With a mission to help people reconnect with their natural health through movement, Charlier says that working with professional athletes provide a powerful way to demonstrate real-world benefits and tennis is no different as one of the most physically demanding sports, requiring agility, balance, power and resilience. “Healthy, strong feet form the foundation of athletic performance, and partnering with elite players allows us to showcase how foot strength and natural movement can support performance, recovery and long-term physical health,” he says.

Athletes help tell the message. “Tennis is a truly global sport, and seeing professional players embrace natural movement principles provides a compelling example of how strong, healthy feet can support performance at every level,” Charlier says. “It’s a natural extension of our mission and an exciting opportunity to continue growing awareness of the brand.”

As the British brand continues to grow it plans—tennis included—it plans its first U.S. retail presence with the opening of a flagship store in Manhattan’s SoHo district this September, following on successful formats in London and Bristol.

While Vivobarefoot didn’t share specific product details about plans for tennis footwear, Charlier did say they have an ambition to help tennis and court-sport players “both on and off the court” and that the brand is excited about the opportunities ahead. With the barefoot movement already hitting the sport with dedicated performance models from Xero and Notace, there’s a growing interest from consumers. “We see significant opportunities for barefoot footwear within tennis and other racket sports, both at the recreational and elite levels,” Charlier says.

McNally’s hopeful that Vivobarefoot adds a tennis shoe to the lineup, but for now she’s content using Vivobarefoot Motus Strength II in the gym “because I feel like they give me a little bit more support if I’m doing a change of direction or lifting. I just feel more stability in my foot.” She wears additional silhouettes for her everyday life.

“I’ve had to put a lot of work into my feet,” she says. “I think it benefits myself and my health and that’s the most important thing. I think in the last year or two especially, I’ve seen how they’ve grown as a company, and it’s really exiting to bring myself into it from a tennis side.”

Fellow players are taking notice too, with McNally saying she sees plenty of players wearing barefoot shoes, others already educated on their purpose and some interested in why she’s wearing them. “I do all my exercises in the gym barefoot, so I think players have seen me wearing my Vivobarefoot shoes or just going barefoot itself,” she says, “and I’ve tried to explain and educate them on the importance of your foot being able to do what it’s meant to do, and to be able to move in so many possible ways.”