Morgan Riddle Is Making The WAG Label Work For Her

Scrolling through Morgan Riddle’s TikTok, you’ll see perfectly curated tennis ‘fits, a partnership with Wimbledon, and sweet videos of her tennis pro boyfriend, Taylor Fritz, with foster kittens. Among her followers (over 428,000 of them on TikTok alone), the 26-year-old is known for her aspirational lifestyle content, as she chronicles her travels and fashion moments following Fritz’s tennis tournaments across Europe, Australia, and Japan.

As the WAG renaissance reached its height in 2023, with it girls like Taylor Swift and Alix Earle becoming the toast of the NFL, Riddle has become a well-known figure in men’s tennis — all without ever having to play a set. From her tennis whites to her meme-worthy moments in the stands, the Los Angeles-based content creator is a WAG through and through, and she’s making the title work for her, even if she doesn’t love all the preconceived notions that come with it.

“A lot of people have this idea that if you’re a WAG, you just follow your partner around,” Riddle tells Elite Daily about the outdated caricature. “You don't do anything, you live off of them, you don't make your own money, you don't have your own life.” All of these assumptions are things she’s heard about herself online. “I've gotten bullied about it,” she says.

But, as Riddle points out, those stereotypes don’t always reflect reality. “For 90% of the women on the tennis tour or supporting their partner in a different sport, that’s not the case,” she says. “We have that NFL WAG [Kristin Juszczyk] who is creating custom jackets for Taylor Swift. I know girls on the tennis tour who are studying to become psychotherapists.” Meanwhile, Riddle is busy building up her own brand as a content creator.

Here, Riddle opens up about what it’s really like to date and travel with a pro athlete, her relationship with Fritz, and how she deals with online hate.

There are some men that would not like the attention that I get ... He doesn’t mind at all.

Elite Daily: There are so many corners of the internet dedicated to the appeal of being a WAG. Why do you think there’s such an interest there?

Morgan Riddle: Because it's over-glamorized, which makes sense. I probably feed into that through my content, too. It's really fun, but it's a different sort of lifestyle. I hope all of the people reading fanfics and buying into the lore surrounding it realize that being a WAG is like anything else — meaning it can be really difficult in its own ways, too.

ED: You’ve been dating Taylor for over three years. In that time, what have you learned is the best and worst thing about dating a pro tennis player?

MR: Best thing is getting to travel and see the world. Tokyo is probably both my and my boyfriend's favorite place to go to. We like the food there, and the people are so nice.

The worst thing is trying to stay sane with all of the travel, jet lag, and exhaustion.

ED: You show a lot of those different facets of WAG life in your content, but people still don’t see everything. What do you think is a misconception people have about dating an athlete?

MR: A lot of people think that you just coast, but it's a full-time job — at least in tennis. Taylor has his own personal team that only works with him. As his partner, you are a part of that team. I was literally texting his coach this morning.

ED: What do you see as your role on Taylor’s team?

MR: I care a lot about him, his success, and his career. I am very on top of him, and I do a lot to help. Making sure he is going to bed at the right time. Making sure he's eating well. Making sure all the accommodations are set up. I'm very Type A and organized. He is the opposite, but you need both to balance out.

ED: How do you think about your careers together and separately, especially considering the New York Times called you “the most famous woman in men’s tennis”?

MR: It's been cool. There are some men that would not like the attention that I get, especially since it’s involving his sport. Tennis is his thing — it's something he's worked for his whole life. So, when I first started, I was always checking, “Are you cool with this?” He was so supportive. He doesn't mind at all.

ED: Take me back to when you started dating him in 2020. What was your mindset like?

MR: When we started dating, no one cared because he was not super relevant on the tour. He wasn't highly ranked. He wasn't the No. 1 American. I was working in a corporate job, I didn't have any public presence. It wasn't like, “Oh my gosh, I started dating this famous guy, and my life completely changed.” That wasn't the case at all. It felt very normal.

We were together for a while before I made my first TikTok about him. At the start, it was a very low-key, relatively private relationship. Then, he slowly started rising in the rankings, and my following slowly started growing. It wasn't an overnight thing, and that helped me adjust to it.

ED: You mentioned growing a following as Taylor went up in the rankings. What has that been like, stepping into the public eye, when your identity is linked to your boyfriend’s career?

MR: When I first came on tour, it was a lot worse. I'd get a lot of criticism for making content about him and the sport. At the time, I had been working in corporate, but you can't work a 9-to-5 when you are spending five months in Europe.

I'd been with him for about two years, and I had to make a choice: Either I was going to barely see my partner and continue to work corporate, or I needed to switch things up. I decided to take advantage of this situation that I was in and capitalize off of it.

Some people might judge me for that, but why wouldn't you? Taylor’s supportive of it, and it's been great. I'm really proud of everything that I've done. Of course, a lot of it has to do with him and his platform, but that's just the way life works.

ED: When you see that kind of judgment online, how do you deal?

MR: People will always have certain perceptions of you. Your first instinct is to be a keyboard warrior and defend yourself. But it is never going to change anyone's opinion. All I can do is continue to be myself and show up online in the most authentic way.

I'm not going to go online and defend myself, but I will go online and defend another woman.

ED: Taylor Swift has a quote about the “dads, Brads, and Chads” who criticize celebrity girlfriends for attending their partners’ games and matches, as if it’s their fault the camera shows them. Does that resonate at all?

MR: Yes, 100%. I literally posted an Instagram story about it recently because I was looking at all this stuff about her going to the Super Bowl. ESPN posted a photo of them, and the comments were just disgusting.

They were all things I’ve seen about myself so many times. Across the board, there is a deep hatred and misogyny toward female athletes and female partners of athletes. And it's really disappointing.

I'm not going to go online and defend myself, but I will go online and defend another woman.

ED: Speaking of being shown on screen, what’s going through your mind when you know the camera’s watching you at a match?

MR: I try not to do anything that's going to get memed on Twitter, which happens a lot. I've had a couple of moments over the last year: There was one at Indian Wells where this guy that Taylor was playing took his shirt off. There was a viral moment from the French Open where I was recording the crowd. These things just happen without me even trying, so I don't want to be over the top.

ED: You spend a lot of your time on the road with Taylor. When you’re traveling together, do you adopt any routines to have time to yourself, separate from what’s going on with his career?

MR: When I'm on tour, I'm spending 80% of the day by myself. I am super independent. I really like going to museums. I'll go out to eat. Usually, I try to get in a routine so I'm more comfortable. Find me a local coffee shop, find me a Pilates class, and I'm good.

ED: More than three years in, you must have some tips for staying connected when you can’t travel together. Do you have any tips for people in similar situations — relationships where their partner’s often on the road?

MR: Set up dates. Taylor and I just had a video game date. He’s in Lithuania right now, and I hadn’t talked to him much in two days. There's this new video game that just came out that's similar to Pokemon, and my boyfriend’s a huge gamer. But he wanted to play this game with me, so we had a cute little virtual date where we played together. Maintaining that connection outside of just text messages is really important.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.