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Saudi wealth fund becomes sponsor for ATP Tour  

By Pramod Kumar
Crowd, Person, Adult ATP chief executive officer Massimo Calvelli and PIF head of corporate affairs Kevin Foster sign the sponsorship agreement ATP Tour
ATP chief executive officer Massimo Calvelli and PIF head of corporate affairs Kevin Foster sign the sponsorship agreement

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has become the official naming partner of the ATP rankings, part of its wider sponsorship of men’s tennis governing body.

The Public Investment Fund will partner with ATP Tour events in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Beijing and the Nitto ATP Finals, in addition to the Next Gen ATP Finals, hosted in Jeddah until 2027.

The financial details of the deal were not given.

Tennis is rapidly becoming a key sport in Saudi Arabia. Between 2019 and 2023, registered players increased by 46 percent.

PIF will use ATP’s expertise to develop further tennis opportunities for young Saudis.

PIF has established SRJ Sports Investments to drive the growth of the sports sector in the Mena region.

The company acquired a minority stake in the Professional Fighters League, a mixed martial arts organisation, reportedly valued at $100 million last August.

The kingdom’s sports and tourism ministries have set an ambitious target for sports to contribute 0.6 percent of GDP by 2030, up from the current 0.2 percent.

The wealth fund launched the LIV Golf circuit in 2022, competing with the established PGA Tour. The two tours ended a lengthy legal battle in June 2023 by deciding to merge their commercial interests.

Saudi Arabia has also secured a five-year deal to host the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah, the end-of-season tennis tournament for the best under-21 men.

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