From tennis hotshot to internet star: how Federico Coria built the Mojarra phenomenon

For much of his career, Federico Coria had to endure a label that was hard to shake off: “Guillermo’s brother.” In time, the younger Coria sibling carved out his own path in tennis, reaching No. 49 in the ATP singles rankings. However, what has truly allowed him to shed the tag, even among those who didn’t regularly follow his matches, is his public persona: La Mojarra.

In April 2024, he started recording videos to show his friends and family what life was like as a professional tennis player away from the tournament cameras. Workouts, trips, hotels, meals, waiting around, conversations, and encounters with other players began to feature in his YouTube videos.

What started as small-scale project aimed at his inner circle went much, much farther. 

Coria’s vlogs earned him a following, and a new nickname. Among tennis fans, he became known as La Mojarra, after a small freshwater fish often used as bait to lure larger catches. The nickname stuck, even at tournaments where Coria wasn’t necessarily the main attraction.

The project offered something different in the world of professional tennis. 

Instead of focusing solely on matches, results, and moments of glory, Coria provided a glimpse into the daily routine of a player navigating the tour from a perspective different from that of the sport’s biggest stars.

A phenomenon of his own making Coria’s videos feature not only the most important events on the calendar but also the challenges and downtime that are part of a professional career: traveling, finding lodging, hours of waiting, and the uncertainty that comes with every tournament.

He found an unexpected way to connect with his audience, with spontaneity as one of the keys. 

Often filming with his cell phone, he was able to get up close to Grand Slam winners like Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner, but also capture everyday moments with other players and members of his coaching team. The casual conversations, jokes, and off-court exchanges added personality to a format that showcased a lesser-known side of the tour.

The phenomenon even reached the tour’s stars themselves. Some players began asking him to appear in their videos, and others approached him to ask about his posts. 

Almost without meaning to, Coria became a sort of informal tennis chronicler: someone with an insider’s view of the world of tennis who, at the same time, can present it with the ease of someone sharing an experience with friends.

Still a tennis player at the core Coria’s newfound popularity hasn’t taken over his career as a player, nor does it depend solely on it. He continues to compete and strive for results on the professional circuit. 

Currently ranked 834th in the ATP rankings following a series of physical setbacks that sidelined him for most of last year, the 34-year-old tennis player will be the top seed at the AAT Challenger IEB+ in Villa María, from November 1 to 8. 

Villa María will be the eighth Challenger of the year — a record number for the country — and six of them were organized by the Argentine Tennis Association (AAT). It will be a Category 50 event with $63,000 in prize money.

At Villa María, Coria will go up against some of the best players in the ATP’s second-tier circuit.

Germany’s Diego Dedura, one of the rising stars of international tennis, will enter as the second seed, in a draw that will also feature several of the top young Argentine players, such as this year’s AAT Challenger IEB+ Córdoba champion Juan Manuel La Serna, Valerio Aboian, Carlos Zárate, and Juan Estevez. 

The latter two are among the players under 22 who top the rankings for the Galperin Merit Scholarship, an initiative that recognizes the Argentine players who earn the most points in tournaments held in the country.

It will be an opportunity for Coria to pursue a goal he set for himself in late September, following his elimination from the Buenos Aires Challenger. 

“If I don’t win a tournament between now and February 2027, I’ll retire,” he warned.

Fans will undoubtedly be rooting for him to win, so La Mojarra can keep navigating the waters of international tennis and giving fans a glimpse behind the scenes of the sport.