Three years after its first edition, the Laver Cup has been added to the ATP calendar for the first time in its history.
A deal has been struck between the organisers of the team event and the governing body of men’s tennis. Under the agreement, the Laver Cup will now be able to access ATP services, including marketing and social media, as well as personnel such as officials and physios. In an press release issued, there was no mention about either ranking points or prize money being on offer.
“The Laver Cup has struck a chord with fans worldwide in a very short time,” ATP CEO Chris Kermode said. “It’s been great to see the passionate participation of the players and the response from the fans at the sold-out events in Prague and Chicago. This event has great potential to reach new fans around the world, and all of us at the ATP are excited to include the Laver Cup as an official part of the ATP Tour calendar and have it featured alongside other tournaments on all our platforms.”
Named after multiple grand slam champion Rod Laver, the Laver Cup was founded by Roger Federer’s Team 8 management company, Tennis Australia and Brazilian businessman Jorge Paulo Lemann. The tournament features players from Europe taking on the rest of the world. A similar concept to that of Golf’s Ryder Cup.
The event alternates between being hosted on Europe and the rest of the world each year. In 2017 Prague was chosen as the host city of the inaugural tournament, followed by Chicago last year. Both of those events attracted high attendance. In 2018 93,584 people attended the three-day event.
“The Laver Cup team is incredibly excited about this partnership with the ATP. It has always been our hope to build the Laver Cup in partnership with the tennis world, and certification by the ATP after only two editions is an overwhelming validation of our vision,” said Tony Godsick, Chairman of the Laver Cup.
It will be the second team event to be on the ATP Calendar from 2020. In January the revived ATP Cup will take place across Australia in January with 750 ranking points and a prize money pool of $15 million on offer.
In light of the move, questions will now be asked about where this will leave the Davis Cup. This year will be the first time the ITF-backed event will take place over one week under a new format. However, some players said it takes place too late in the year and eats into their off-season. The Davis Cup Finals, which will feature 18 teams, take place in November a week after the ATP Finals in London.
World No.2 Federer, who has been instrumental in the creation and development of the Laver Cup, has hailed the new development.
“As I come closer to the end of my playing career, it’s wonderful to know that the Laver Cup will be part of the tour that I’ve dedicated more than 20 years of my life to,” he said.
This year’s Laver Cup will take place in Geneva between September 20-22.
