Women’s Tennis: WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia
By Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw
The WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Finals are taking place in Riyadh in Saudi Arabia from 2 – 9 November 2024 with record prize money of US$15.25 million (around €14 million).
In fact, the WTA have signed a deal with the Saudi Tennis Federation to host the event in Saudi for the following two years.
The event is the season-ending championship of the WTA tour and features the top eight singles players and the top eight doubles teams based on their results throughout the season.
It is certainly a prestigious event in the women’s tennis annual calendar and the most important women’s sports event held to date in Saudi Arabia.
Once again, the holding of this event has raised claims of ‘sportswashing’ in view of the Kingdom’s human rights record and restrictions placed on Saudi women.
The WTA Chairman and Chief Executive, Steve Simon, has defended the decision to hold the event in Saudi as follows:
“Bringing the WTA Finals to Riyadh is an exciting new opportunity for us and a positive step for the long-term growth of women’s tennis as a global and inclusive sport.”
However, earlier this year, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert, urged the WTA not to hold the event in Saudi Arabia.
It would seem that money, once again, has triumphed over politics!
Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw may be contacted by e-mail at ‘
