After months of speculation, the WTA has officially signed a deal with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).
After months of speculation, the deal was done. The WTA has signed a deal with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, with the PIF becoming a title sponsor for the WTA Rankings.
Despite some tentative pushback from some players, the Fund has been pursuing an investment in tennis for a very long time. Things have been unfolded slowly in the background, but after the ATP was the first to take initiative, and the WTA followed closely after.
The announcement was made on the WTA website with several accompanying statements. The head of WTA Ventures described the organization's feeling as 'delighter' after this deal was signed.
"We are delighted to welcome PIF as a Global Partner of the WTA and our first-ever official naming partner of the WTA Rankings. Together, we look forward to sharing the journey of our talented players across the season, as we continue to grow the sport, creating more fans of tennis and inspiring more young people to take up the game."
The head of the PIF's Corporate Branding Division added that this deal will allow the WTA to further promote women's tennis and women's sports in general. We'll see what this means in practice and how things will go. There were suggestions that some dramatic changes might be coming to the sport.
"Through our partnership with WTA, PIF will continue to be a catalyst for the growth of women’s sport. We look forward to working with the WTA to increase participation and inspire the next generation of talent. Underpinned by PIF’s four strategic sponsorship pillars, this partnership aligns with our ambition to elevate the game and bring positive growth to the sport around the world."
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