The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has announced that Saudi Arabia will host the WTA Finals for the next 3 years, with record prize money on offer to female competitors.
Shenzhen was scheduled to host the tournament from 2019 to 2028, however only one tournament was held in China due to the pandemic and the WTA has held the last 3 finals in Cancun, Fort Worth and Guadalajara.
However, Riyadh will now be the permanent venue for the tournament until 2026 after the WTA reached an agreement with the Saudi Tennis Federation that will also increase prize money from $9 million (£7 million) to $15. 25 million (£12 million).
“The WTA decided on Riyadh after an exhaustive evaluation procedure that lasted several months, which included the evaluation of various programs from other regions and the participation of players,” they said in a statement.
“All potential hosts were decided based on a transparent set of criteria: the ability to host and fund a world-class event for players and fans; for the WTA’s ambition for significant growth in the silver award; the strength of her commitment to reach the top of the WTA Finals. . . and I play with time. “
The announcement comes after tennis legends Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova wrote a joint letter condemning the proposal for Saudi Arabia to host the final, with the former rivals saying the move was “totally incompatible with the spirit and purpose of women’s tennis and the WTA itself. “”
They wrote: “Not only is this a country where women are not equal, but it is a country where the existing landscape includes a male guardianship law that necessarily makes women the property of men.
“A country that criminalizes the LGBTQ network to the point of imposing imaginable death sentences. A country whose long-term record on human rights and basic freedoms has been a source of fear abroad for decades.
“We cannot sit idly by and allow something as vital as awarding a tournament to Saudi Arabia to take place without an open and fair discussion. “Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in sports in recent years, and the country’s Public Investment Fund bought the Premier League. Newcastle United club and LIV Golf investment.
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