The Saudi Tennis Federation has ended its partnership with the ATP Tour, and the Next Gen Finals will no longer be held in Jeddah.

Foreign media sources report that the Saudi Arabian Tennis Federation has opted to end its five-year collaboration with the ATP Tour, so the Next Gen Finals will no longer be hosted in Jeddah from next year onward.

The Next Gen Finals feature the top eight players globally aged 20 or younger. Champions have included tennis icons such as Sinner and Alcaraz. Last year, Shang Juncheng made history as the first Chinese competitor, and Brazilian newcomer Fonseca won decisively. The tournament joined the ATP Tour calendar in 2017 and was held in Milan, Italy until 2022. In 2023, it moved to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, marking the country’s first professional tennis event. Previously, the Saudi Tennis Federation had a five-year agreement with the ATP Tour to host the event in Jeddah through 2027. This season’s Next Gen Finals, scheduled for December 17-21, will be the last to take place in Saudi Arabia.

Since signing the cooperation agreement for the Next Gen Finals with the ATP Tour, Saudi Arabia has also added the Riyadh WTA Finals to its tennis calendar, and a brand-new ATP 1000 Masters event is planned to debut in Saudi Arabia as early as 2028. The ATP Tour has reportedly opened the bidding process to invite cities interested in hosting the Next Gen Finals, giving them nearly a year to find a new host city for the tournament.

(Written and edited by Dato; images courtesy of Visual China)