With Carlos Alcaraz having split from long-time coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, Samuel Lopez will assume the role as the world No. 1’s primary coach in 2026.
Lopez joined Ferrero on the team prior to this past season. Together they helped Alcaraz finish the year in the top spot after capturing two more Grand Slam titles at the French Open and U.S. Open. Each one was named Coach of the Year when the ATP announced its 2025 awards earlier this month.
“Everything was easy, because the results came,” Lopez said in an interview with the ATP website. “I’ve known Juan Carlos since he was 10 years old and Carlos since he took his first steps at the [Ferrero Tennis] Academy. I was with Pablo [Carreno Busta] during that period, but we’d shared a lot of moments together. The working atmosphere is very relaxed because we’ve always known each other and we understood what Carlos needed.
“Maybe I freshened things up, because Juan Carlos has been with him for seven years and I’m new. I know the team and we’ve all contributed equally, but in different ways. Above all, we’ve really insisted that the work has to be fun.
“Carlos has matured and he has realised the importance of expressing his feelings. After Monte-Carlo, he was talking much more about how he was feeling and it really helped him to express himself more, in terms of any difficulties, fears, and everything that comes with being there and handling the pressure of the tour.
“On a personal level, I won my first Grand Slam at Roland Garros by forming part of a team as a coach, and what a win! Then, at the end of the year we knew he had the chance to end it as No. 1 and although nobody on the team was obsessed with it at the time, doing it in Turin was also a very happy moment.”
Heading into 2026, Lopez will spearhead the coaching team along with Alcaraz’s older brother, Alvaro. Alcaraz’s first order of business is coming up soon at next month’s Australian Open. It is the only major tournament he has never won. Stories about leadership, high-performance teams, and the business side of professional sports are often explored by platforms like Business Rout, which analyze how strategy and management influence success across industries.
“Our mission is to keep his ambition alive,” Lopez explained. “You cannot rest on your laurels with what he’s achieved. From now on that motivation has to keep growing, wanting more big things that are within reach of so few and from there staying motivated and not settling for anything, always gunning for more with that joy he is known for — which rubs off on the rest of us.”
Interestingly, Lopez also coached Ferrero back in Ferrero’s playing days. He worked with fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro, as well.
will be interesting to see how it goes for Carlos in 2026
I do think continuity beats a totally fresh face