Jules Marie: Five Things To Know About Tennis’ YouTube Star

One of the most interesting players in tennis is Jules Marie, currently No. 245 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. At 32, the Frenchman is working hard to earn his place in qualifying at the four majors.

But Marie is also a YouTube star, whose channel has more than 100,000 subscribers. Fans around the world follow his journey as a professional tennis player.

ATPTour.com spoke to Marie to learn more about his tennis journey, YouTube channel and more.

1) Jules’ Start In Tennis Might Surprise You
Some tennis players are whisked into the tennis world from a young age because of family members loving the sport. That was not the case for Marie, who began tennis aged eight because a friend at school was playing it.

None of Marie’s family members had been involved in the sport. He did not learn tennis at a big club, either.

“The club was really small. There was only one court. The court where you can play basketball, handball with all the lines, a very fast court with only one court. It was great,” Marie said. “I appreciated a lot tennis, but I was playing as well basketball, football, swimming and judo, because my father was teaching judo.

“When I was 11 years old, my father told me to choose only one sport and to do it 100 per cent. I was liking tennis more than the other sports. I loved the game.”

Marie admitted he was not one of the best juniors in France for most of his childhood. But when he completed his Baccalaureate at 18, he found his game. At 19, Marie entered the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time.

2) Marie Stopped Playing Professionally For Six Years
In March 2015, Marie climbed to a career-high World No. 228. Players he defeated that year include Robin Haase, Tallon Griekspoor, Zhang Zhizhen and Ilya Ivashka.

In May, he competed in qualifying at Roland Garros for the second time (also 13). Four months later, his professional career was seemingly over. By September, he stopped competing professionally following a seven-match losing streak.

“I lost seven times in a row, first round, and I was a bit surprised. I didn’t have confidence in myself,” Marie said. “I was not believing in myself anymore, because I lost a bit and it was costing a lot taking the flights every week. I was a little bit bored. So I said I’m going to stop.”

Marie played just nine professional tournaments in the next six years.

3) Then Came The YouTube Channel…
After he stopped competing on the world’s stage, Marie played prize money tournaments in France consistently, which helped him maintain his level. Living in Paris, he also gave lessons and worked a bit with the French Tennis Federation.

“I have a twin brother, Arthur. During Covid he got an idea how we can continue to help people to improve their games without playing,” Marie said. “He said he’s going to create a YouTube channel and to do one video per day during 30 days to improve, [provide] tennis tips.”

Jules joined his brother and began filming himself competing at prize money events, which helped build an audience. As a hitting partner at Roland Garros in 2021, he trained with stars including Novak Djokovic. All of it was on film, which he said gained attention. A top-level performance at a prize money event that December helped convince the Frenchman he still had the level to play at Grand Slam events. Marie then resumed his career, simultaneously focussing on YouTube.

4) He’s Earned More Than 19 Million YouTube Video Views
Since Marie’s channel launched in November 2019, there have been more than 19 million views on his videos. Today the Frenchman. has more than 100,000 subscribers.

“Thanks to the YouTube channel… I can pay everything, like the cameraman, the six other people who help me on this project,” Marie said. “I can pay the flights, the food, the hotels for everyone. It’s thanks to the YouTube channel, the sponsors. In 2014, and ‘15, it was my parents, it was me, so it was more difficult.”

Fans learn about Marie’s journey in the YouTube videos, but there is a big team behind his success. Some members of his team include a camera operator, someone who edits the videos, Instagram reels, TikToks and more, a graphic designer for YouTube thumbnails, a community manager for his channel, and an agent.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Jules Marie (@julesmarie_tennis)

5) His Future Goals Include…
Marie has quickly ascended the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and is already up to No. 245, close to his career-high, which he earned nearly nine years ago. Focussing on both his tennis and YouTube has helped, according to the Frenchman.

“Now it’s not the same pressure and it’s fun to do something next to the games,” Marie said. “It’s not only the games, it’s the games plus… I’m preparing for after my career.”

But for now, Marie is enjoying pairing his tennis and content creation. And he hopes to continue his climb to make things even more interesting for his fans.

“My first goal is to play all four Grand Slams,” Marie said. “When I was a child, my goal was to be No. 1 in the world, of course. And then my goal was to be Top 100. And now of course, I would like to be Top 100. But I will be really, really happy to play all four Grand Slams.”