The Kingdom will host its first-ever ATP Masters 1000 as early as 2028, PIF’s Surj Sports Investment said in a statement on Thursday. After talks initiated in May, Saudi Arabia will become the tenth host for the 35-year-old tennis tournament, joining existing locations such as Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Rome, Toronto/Montreal, Cincinnati, Shanghai, and Paris.

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What we know: The event is set to be a one-week, non-mandatory tournament featuring a 56-player draw on outdoor hard courts, Reuters reports. Meanwhile, Surj and the ATP are planning to develop “a world-class stadium” expected to be announced within months, Surj Sports CEO Danny Townsend told the newswire, adding that Riyadh is “likely to be the place.”

Timeline expectations: The tournament might be scheduled for the early months of 2028, in the window after the Australian Open and before the Sunshine Double events in March, avoiding the intense Saudi summer. “There is a goal to try to align with the WTA’s events in February,” ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi told Bloomberg, adding that the calendar could be reset to accommodate the Saudi-held event. The ATP will announce the date by the end of 2027.

In pursuit of investors: “We’re working with gigaprojects operators to determine who can invest alongside us in infrastructure,” Townsend told Reuters. Meanwhile, ATP will use the partnership’s funds to optimize the calendar and increase the Masters bonus pool to boost top-player participation.

PIF + ATP go way back: In February 2024, the PIF forged a multi-year strategic partnership with ATP Tour to be the official naming partner of ATP rankings and partner in ATP Tour events, including Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Beijing, and Italy’s Nitto ATP Finals. It also includes the Next Gen ATP Finals, which Jeddah will host until 2027.

ICYMI- The Kingdom is doubling down on its investments in the sport, as Riyadh is set to host the Women Tennis Association’s (WTA) Finals from 1 to 8 November with prizes totaling USD 15.5 mn at King Saud University Indoor Arena. This follows becoming the WTA’s first-ever naming partner of the WTA Rankings under a multi-year partnership in May 2024, just weeks after Riyadh was named host of the WTA tennis finals during 2024-2026 in April.

The story also got ink in the Associated Press.

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