Viktor Axelsen: This will be a golden age for badminton

By Milly McEvoy, Sportsbeat

Viktor Axelsen is ready to usher in the golden age of badminton at the YONEX All England Open Badminton Championships 2025.

The two-time Olympic champion begins his quest for a third All England title on Wednesday.

Prior to getting onto the hallowed court in Birmingham, Axelsen launched his first signature collection with YONEX as an extension to his long-running partnership with the brand was also announced.

Part of continuing his collaboration with YONEX, with his contract now set to run until the end of 2026, is his commitment to inspiring the next generation.

“My goal is to do as well as I possibly can and reach my fullest potential on court as a player,” the 31-year-old said. “But the sport is way bigger than I am.

“I want to stay involved and with YONEX, we have a great future together, I am sure. And also, to be able to join the legends mission and do a lot of great work when it comes to the grassroots.

“The fanbase in badminton has become way more involved than when I first started, particularly with social media.

“I feel like this will be a golden age for the sport moving forward, so many things are happening, and it is very important that we focus on the young generation coming up and navigating through their career.

“I hope they realise that every person is different, every play style is different so finding their way through the sport.

“Continuing to motivate the young generation in the sport is something I am very motivated to do.”

Axelsen joins Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei as the only three badminton players to have their own YONEX collections, cementing his place as a legend of the sport.

And while his trophy cabinet is already glittering with accolades, he is hopeful of adding more to his collection.

The Dane is the penultimate match on the Minoru Yoneyama court on Day 2 of the 2025 All England as he takes on Lin Chun-Yi of Chinese Taipei.

He added: “I remember my first All England, coming here playing the qualification back then, coming into the arena.

“The atmosphere here is just different, as a player it is very hard to describe, but it is almost like when you go to the Olympic Games, there is an atmosphere that is very different to everything else.

“On the HSBC World Tour, this is different, you come to the All England and the vibe is badminton.

“I’ve been very fortunate to be very successful at the All England and every time I come here I just hope I can do well because an All England final is just something extraordinary.”

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