Saudi Arabia bid to buy into tennis as they hold talks with ATP chief
Saudi Arabia bid to buy into tennis as they hold talks with ATP Tour chief, with the Middle East nation setting their sights on another sport after investing in golf and football
- Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund have already swallowed up golf
- They’ve also attracted stars like Cristiano Ronaldo to play in their football league
- They now want to get involved in tennis, and have held talks with the ATP chief
Saudi Arabia’s bid to take over sport has moved on to tennis as the head of the men’s tour revealed he held talks with the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund.
The Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia have already swallowed up golf, taken over Newcastle United, lured star footballers like Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema to their own domestic league while there are reports of a £16billion offer to buy the rights to Formula One.
Mail Sport reported last month that tennis’s NextGen finals, the end-of-year competition for the world’s eight best under-21 players, looks set to move to Jeddah.
ATP Tour chair Andrea Gaudenzi said he held ‘positive’ discussions with PIF over potential investment in tennis. It was only a few weeks ago that golf’s PGA Tour finally relented in their civil war with breakaway Saudi-backed LIV.
Gaudenzi warned any investors must ‘stick to respecting the history of the sport and the product, working with the current stakeholder rather than against’.
ATP Tour chair Andrea Gaudenzi (pictured) has revealed he has held ‘positive’ talks with PIF over potential investment in tennis
Saudi Arabia have made a real splash in the sporting world over the past six months, with global superstar Cristiano Ronaldo now playing football in the country’s top division
‘You have to preserve something which is almost sacred, the rules of the game,’ Gaudenzi told the Financial Times. ‘This is not a video game. If you’re a golf fan you want to see the top players against each other. You want one ranking and one simple story.’
The supremo of the men’s tennis tour has revealed they are looking to strengthen links with Saudi Arabia, but in reality it is a process that has been underway for some time.
Last December the ground was laid with an array of the world’s top men playing in the Diriyah Cup, an exhibition tournament. Sources in the game believe that the biggest move may well come in the shape of the ATP Finals also moving to the Kingdom.
With so many sports having gone to Saudi Arabia, it is possibly considered less toxic now than was originally the case. It should be pointed out that the ATP, led by Gaudenzi, do not control the four Grand Slams. And while the disunity of tennis’s governance makes it ripe for the taking, the logistical issues of staging a tennis event make it more complex than golf.
As seen elsewhere, however, there is a lot that can be achieved with seemingly limitless funds.
Meanwhile, Nick Kyrgios is running out of time to be fit for Wimbledon after he withdrew from a second straight tournament without hitting a ball.
Last year’s men’s singles runner-up has played only once since undergoing knee surgery earlier this year. He withdrew from last week’s grass court event in Halle, but was then expected to compete in the Mallorca Championships in a final bid to prove his fitness.
He made it to Spain for light practice, but last night withdrew, casting further doubt about making it to SW19. He said: ‘I am super disappointed I won’t be able to compete in Mallorca. I’ve still got a lot going on with my body. Wimbledon is around the corner so hopefully I will be able to get healthy for that. So sorry.’
Nick Kyrgios is running out of time to prove his fitness ahead of next month’s Wimbledon
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