Biography Flash: Naomi Osaka Exits Her Own Agency Evolve to Rejoin IMG in Stunning Career Reset
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Biography Flash: Naomi Osaka Exits Her Own Agency Evolve to Rejoin IMG in Stunning Career Reset
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About this listen
Naomi Osaka has spent the past few days quietly reshaping the next chapter of her life and career, and the biggest move is happening off the court. According to tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg and detailed by Bounces and Tennis Temple, Osaka has decided to leave Evolve, the sports agency she co founded in 2022 with longtime agent Stuart Duguid, and is preparing to return to powerhouse agency IMG at the start of 2026. This is not just a routine business shuffle: we are talking about one of the highest earning women in global sport effectively walking away from her own agency to rejoin the company that built her brand from her rookie days in 2016 through her rise to four Grand Slam titles.
The Spun and Tennis Temple report that Osaka confirmed the move herself in an Instagram statement, telling fans she would be parting ways with Evolve in the new year. On social media, that single post has triggered a wave of fan speculation about a serious falling out with Duguid, though no such rift has been confirmed by either side; any talk of behind the scenes drama remains just that, gossip and guesswork. Publicly, Osaka has kept the tone gracious and forward looking, positioning this as a strategic reset as she chases a full scale comeback on the WTA tour.
What makes this development biographically significant is the timing and symbolism. Osaka created Evolve at the peak of her commercial powers, signed stars like Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios, and helped drive projects such as the upcoming Battle of the Sexes exhibition between Sabalenka and Kyrgios later this month. According to Tennis Temple, stepping back from that entrepreneurial role to return to IMG suggests Osaka wants maximum institutional support for her competitive return, global endorsements, and potential future ventures beyond tennis. In other words, she seems intent on refocusing her story from founder back to full time superstar.
Over the past few days, coverage across tennis outlets and sports sites has zeroed in on this agency decision rather than on court results or public appearances, underlining how much of Osaka’s legacy now lives at the intersection of sport, business, and culture. For a player who has already changed the conversation around mental health, activism, and motherhood in tennis, this pivot could shape the next decade of her influence.
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