The latest issue of Vanity Fair surprised readers with a triple cover featuring Carlos Alcaraz, A'ja Wilson, and Kylian Mbappé, in what they describe as their first-ever global sports issue. Three of the stars of sports, known internationally, talking about "sports cultural, financial, and political influence at a time where it has emerged as one of the few forces still capable of commanding global, cross-generational attention".
Carlos Alcaraz, recently turned 23, tennis World No. 2, currently injured, is part of a new era of tennis many describe as the "Big 2", a generational replacement from the "Big 3". With Novak Djokovic getting older and Nadal and Federer long retired, it has been Alcaraz and Sinner who have dominated the sport, winning most of the men's major trophies in the last three years.
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"We're showing the world that we can be on court and give our best, and try to do the most possible damage to the other while playing, try to beat each other, and then, off court, just be two guys who get along really well", said Alcaraz about his relationship with Sinner, in an interview accompanied by a photoshoot covered on clay that didn't go unnoticed to his fans...
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A'ja Wilson, 29, is considered by many as the best WNBA player in its short history, with three WNBA titles (2022, 2023, and 2025) and four MVP awards. Recently, she became the first WNBA player to receive a multi-year contract earning over one million dollars per season, as the Women's basketball league has multiplied salaries across the board (the WNBA's salary cap goes from $1.5 million in 2025 to $7.5 million in 2026).
Several players have received the first one-million dollar contracts in the WNBA, but Wilson is the only one to have been offered more than one year with that salary, and will go from earning $200,000 in 2025 to $1.4 million in 2026, the maximum allowed in the current agreement.
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And Kylian Mbappé also features in the cover, with a bad timing as the 27-year-old French striker is being criticised by his lack of impact at Real Madrid and a perceived bad influence in the dressing room, with the Vanity Fair headline being "Kylian Mbappé is scoring all the goals and taking all the heat".
With World Cup approaching, a good performance at the competition, and maybe a second trophy, could change the bad press around Mbappé: "It's difficult to be in a situation like ours, where everyone expects us to perform miracles. But miracles only happen on the pitch, we don't need to play the match before the match", said Mbappé.