The WTA has confirmed its season-ending finals event will take place in Saudi Arabia for the next three years.
The agreement with the Saudi Tennis Federation will mean record prize money of $15.25 million at the WTA Finals in 2024 with further increases in 2025 and 2026.
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Steve Simon, WTA Chairman and CEO, said: “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.”
The move will anger human rights campaigners with Saudi Arabia continuing to have one of the worst records on the planet.
Former WTA stars Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert have also voiced their opposition to the move, stating taking the event to Saudi Arabia would represent “significant regression”.
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, will host the next three editions of the WTA Finals from 2024-2026.
The 2024 season-ending Finals will take place November 2-9, featuring the top 8 singles players and doubles teams in the Race to the #WTAFINALS
— wta (@WTA) APRIL 4, 2024