Matteo Berrettini has become the latest player to take the controversial decision to begin a partnership with the Saudi government.
Saudi Arabia's influence in sports has grown significantly in recent years. A notable recent example was the country securing the rights to the 2034 Football World Cup, which will be the biggest sporting event it has ever held.
The Saudi government also made controversial moves in golf that have caused division and chaos in the sport. Scars from how it suddenly changed the landscape remain and will not diminish anytime soon.
While increased Saudi influence in tennis has occurred, the government seems to have learned from what happened with golf, and it works much more collaboratively with the ATP and WTA Tours, for now, at least.
The massive financial resources in the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the government's sovereign wealth fund, means the ATP and WTA find it challenging to resist working with the Saudis and allowing them to hold significant events.
This year's WTA Finals, the most prestigious WTA tournament outside the four Grand Slams, was held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, despite much criticism surrounding that move from some fans.
Although improvements in women's rights have been made in recent years, Saudi Arabia's human rights record is still poor. Women are not entirely free, and homosexuality remains criminalized in the country.
Coco Gauff, who won the WTA Finals, admitted to having reservations about playing in the Gulf state, but those concerns seemed to have been eased after competing in Saudi Arabia.
The country also hosted the lucrative Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh, featuring Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev, and Holger Rune.
Jannik Sinner secured $6,000,000 for winning the Six Kings Slam, the largest paycheck ever awarded to a tennis player. Afterward, the Italian insisted he did not play in the Six Kings Slam for money, which raised many eyebrows.
Nadal has also been an ambassador for the Saudi Tennis Federation since January of this year. The Spaniard admitted he understood why some were unhappy with him for doing that but insisted his presence does more good than harm.
2021 Wimbledon runner-up Berrettini has now been announced as an ambassador for PIF. In a video confirming the news, the recent Davis Cup champion with Italy claimed to be excited about the move.
"Partnerships are everything in tennis. The team around me is so, so important. You have your coaches, your fitness trainers, your agents, everybody has to go in the same direction. A great partnership is built on shared values and shared goals."
"That's why I am so proud to announce that I am now a PIF tennis ambassador. I feel really proud and honored. I think it's something that goes beyond tennis, not just my tennis career, but to make tennis and other sports bigger and better and more accessible to all the people around the world."
It would be overly cynical to say Berrettini is not genuinely excited about helping the next generation of tennis stars as an ambassador, but he almost certainly would not have taken the role without whatever lucrative sum the Italian is being paid.