Saudi Arabia Enters ATP Tennis Calendar; Set To Host New Masters Event From 2028

Last Updated:October 23, 2025, 20:32 IST

ATP announces a new Masters 1000 tournament in Saudi Arabia, starting as early as 2028, expanding the series to ten events and reflecting Saudi Arabia’s growing sports investments.

(Credit: ATP Media/X)

The ATP revealed on Thursday that a brand-new Masters 1000 tournament will be held annually in Saudi Arabia, potentially starting as early as 2028. The announcement marks the first expansion of the top-tier category in men’s tennis since its creation in 1990.

Details of the New Tournament

The Saudi event will be contested on hard courts and scheduled “at the start of the season" for a duration of one week, ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi said at a press conference in Paris.

The host city has yet to be finalized.

The tournament will join the nine existing Masters 1000 events (namely Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Rome, Toronto/Montreal, Cincinnati, Shanghai, and Paris), expanding the series to ten.

Unlike most Masters events, the Saudi tournament will not be mandatory, providing players with flexibility amid concerns over the demanding tennis calendar, which runs from January to November.

Saudi Arabia’s Growing Presence in Tennis

The new tournament is part of a deal with SURJ Sports Investments, linked to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).

While financial details were not disclosed, the deal continues the kingdom’s growing involvement in global tennis and sport as a whole.

Saudi Arabia has hosted the WTA Finals in Riyadh since 2024, and the Next Gen ATP Finals, featuring the top eight players aged 20 and under, have been held in the kingdom since 2023.

The PIF has also partnered with several existing Masters 1000 events, including Indian Wells, Miami, and Madrid, and even has its name attached to the ATP rankings.

Why Exactly Is Saudi Arabia So Invested In Sport?

Saudi Arabia’s extensive investment in sports is widely labeled as “sportswashing," a practice of using high-profile sports events and sponsorships to improve its international reputation and distract from its human rights record.

This includes hosting major events, buying prominent teams like Newcastle United, and attracting top athletes with lucrative contracts to boost its global image and economic diversification under its Vision 2030 initiative. All of it done as a way of ‘washing over’ their sins, one may say.

(with agency inputs)

Siddarth Sriram

After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term...Read More

After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term...

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