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ritish tennis star, Emma Raducanu, earned a USD$2.5 million (AUD$3.39 million) prize for becoming Great Britain’s first female Grand Slam singles winner in 44 years.

According to sports marketing firm CSM director, Tim Lopez, Raducanu’s earnings could eclipse $37 million within two years due to her marketability, with some sports marketing experts suggesting she’s a potential billion-dollar athlete.

“There is no limit in what she can achieve on the court,” Lopez told Reuters.

“She’s hugely in demand already but to follow that up with continued success in the majors in tennis will see her rapidly become one of the most marketable athletes on the planet,” he said.

Lopez explained how Raducanu’s mixed Romanian and Chinese heritage, along with being raised in Britain and representing Great Britain in tennis, presents a unique opportunity for brands, comparing her to Naomi Osaka of mixed Japanese and Haitian heritage.

“If you use that as a yardstick not just because of their career trajectory but also their shared appeal and that they are both engaging and from mixed heritage backgrounds,” Lopez said.

“That’s a huge benefit from a brand perspective, from an eyeballs point of view there is no bigger market to tap into,” he said.

Raducanu has already secured a commercial opportunity with British Vogue to be the cover figure for the October edition, and a sponsorship deal with Nike.

Further explaining Raducanu’s brand appeal, GlobalData head of sport analysis, Conrad Wiacek, told Reuters: “Her victory takes her way beyond tennis and sport in terms of marketability.”

“One of the most impressive things for me was her message in Mandarin for the Chinese audience because the major issue westerns sports stars have in breaking China is the language barrier.

“The sky is the limit as any western brand positioning itself in China would be looking at her as an ambassador…

“With her Chinese and eastern Europe heritage as well as Britain, that puts her in a different stratosphere to other athletes.

“I’ve seen it being thrown around that she’s a potential billion dollar athlete.

“That’s a long way away.

“That’s based on consistency but just on the next 12 months I would say $5 million (AUD$ million) would be a realistic number.

“Ultimately the barometer for how commercially successful she will be will depend on how successful she is on the tennis court,” he said.