Will Jódar's father continue as his son's coach?

The image of Rafa Jódar's father, sitting alone on the bench, went viral last spring, and since then it has become common to see just him accompanying his son at all tournaments. The same questions always arise about whether he will add someone new or when he will include other members. The truth is that this is the case for now because this is what they have decided at this moment.

Rafa has been stating for several tournaments that, for now, his team will be just his father and him. It is what they want to present to the public, and in a ritual almost of superstition, only his father can sit in the front row of the box. When they have had companions, like Iñaki Montes de la Torre, doctors Ignacio Pérez Buendía and Ángel Ruiz Cotorro, or his own mother, they always sat in the back. This, however, will not change until 2027, unless there are drastic changes in the plan.

A plan decided by the Jódars

Rafa was clear that 2026 was going to be a learning season. They set the goal of breaking into the Top 100 and beginning to take their first steps in the world of tennis, but they have exceeded all expectations, and everything that has happened in the last months has been a gift they did not expect.

Therefore, seeing that everything is functioning perfectly, they have decided not to change anything for the moment. Since their emergence, the Jódars have received requests and calls. Several coaches have offered and several academies have knocked on the door of the Madrid native to be his main tennis player, offering him a complete team at his disposal. The response they have received from all has been the same: for now, no.

In this 2026, and seeing how well everything is working, only his father will sit on the bench of the Leganés tennis player. Whether they end up winning several tournaments or losing in the first round of anything they play from now until the end of the year, Rafa Jódar senior will be the only coach of his son. For 2027, it will be a different story.

Two coaches in the final stretch of casting

According to what we have learned at Punto de Break, Rafa and his father have narrowed down the list of candidates to be his future new coach, either as the main one or to share duties alongside his father, and they have narrowed it down to just two names. Both are Spanish coaches, and the decision on who is the chosen one will be made by Rafa and his father at the end of the season, unless something unusual happens.

At least that has been their intention for a couple of months now. Everything can change later because the world of sports is unpredictable and something could arise that makes them change their minds, but Rafa and his father's intention is to choose their new coach at the end of the season and prepare for the preseason and the following year with him. They will have to sit down with them and hear what ideas they have for Rafa and see if they are on the same wavelength, but these are the two coaches that Jódar has as candidates to take the next steps in the circuit starting in 2027.

With every tournament that Jódar plays, the image of his father sitting alone on the bench goes viral.

And the same question is always asked:

Will Rafa add a new coach alongside his father?

The truth is that there is already a name on the table for that... pic.twitter.com/Tpy3N8tKhy

— José Morón (@jmgmoron) August 13, 2026

He doesn’t only work with his father

Debunking the myth that he does absolutely everything with his father, Rafa also works with other people in his preparation for the tournaments, it’s just that, for now, they don't sit on the bench during the matches. Just because you only see the father doesn’t mean that they do everything together since, as we have learned, Rafa has been working with someone on his fitness, although it has not yet been officially confirmed.

Thus, whether the year ends on a high note or with worse results, Rafa and his father will remain the only visible faces of the team until the end of the year, unless there is a change in the script. If everything goes well and there is an agreement, for 2027, Jódar will be accompanied by a complete team that will work alongside him to help him continue creating his own story in the circuit.
 

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, ¿Seguirá solo el padre de Jódar como entrenador de su hijo?