WTA Finals destination confirmed! Saudi Arabia locks in multi-year deal as controversies surge on social media

Tennis fans lash out at WTA management for its decision to make Saudi Arabia its season-ending event host, despite months of criticism.

WTA Finals destination confirmed! Saudi Arabia locks in multi-year deal as controversies surge on social media

WTA Finals to be held in Saudi Arabia (Image via WTA)

After months of speculations, it has now been confirmed that Riyadh, Saudi Arabia will host the WTA Finals from 2024-2026. Despite clamour by fans and legends not to accept the Saudi Tennis Federation deal, the WTA believes Riyadh is the best host for the season-ending event after numerous evaluations.

Since the 2023 WTA Finals in Cancun ended in a horrendous way plagued by poor weather conditions and planning, Saudi Arabia became a speculation as the new venue for the tournament. However, with no official statement from the WTA, fans and women tennis players suspected it was true. Now, the latest confirmation by the WTA has sent shock waves amid fans.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) reported that the agreement with the Saudi Tennis Federation to host the season-ending event will see a record prize money of 15.25 million in 2024 and an increase subsequently in 2025 and 2026. In addition, it believes that with the recent grassroots growth in the Arab country’s sport, an expansion of its fanbase will see an increase in investment in the WTA generally.

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According to Steve Simon, WTA Chairman, the WTA Finals in Riyadh will be a positive step for the long-term growth of women’s tennis. He added that he has no doubt that players and fans will look forward to it.

Bringing the WTA Finals to Riyadh is an exciting new opportunity for us and a positive step for the long-term growth of women’s tennis as a global and inclusive sport. We’ve been impressed by the commitment shown by the Saudi Tennis Federation to grow the sport at all levels, and we have no doubt that players and fans can look forward to a world-class event in Riyadh as the finale to the 2024, 2025 and 2026 seasons.
Steve Simon said in a statement

Meanwhile, the 2024 WTA Finals with take place from November 2 to 6. Regardless of that, the Middle Eastern country seems not to be relenting in their eagerness to make their presence felt in tennis.

Fans brutally bash WTA management on social media over ‘death of tennis’

Tennis Fans on social media have lashed out at the WTA after confirming Riyadh, Saudi Arabia will host the season-ending event. This has come as a shock to fans, who believed that the women’s tennis governing body would have looked into the country’s history of women’s rights abuse, with many labeling the news as the “Death of tennis”.

Steve Simon
Steve Simon WTA Chairman (via Imago)

“Disgusting, you should be ashamed,” a fan wrote. Check out some of the other reactions on X:

https://twitter.com/AlineKazu/status/1775859001562996907?t=gbWY2aijB_KVOXS0an-Jzg&s=19

“It’s hypocrisy to take a women’s tournament to a country like this…not to mention that the stands will be empty (like every tournament in the region). Congratulations, WTA!” another fan wrote.

https://twitter.com/lyn_knott/status/1775856295012073844?t=Iei-zgQoDxedRGwLvN83tg&s=19

However, this seemingly proves that the WTA management does not listen to the players, who are the engine of the sport. It will be interesting to see if the event gets welcomed by the tennis community once it kicks off.

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