British tennis given a boost as the LTA agrees a new partnership with Dunlop

Tennis News
Andy Murray and Jamie Murray

Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association are reaching the end of one of their more challenging years on a high after confirming Dunlop will become its Official Tennis & Padel Equipment Partner from January 2021.

LTA chiefs confirmed the black hole in the finances for this year earlier this month, with the organisation’s incoming dropping by 40% in a year that saw the cancellation of Wimbledon for the first time since the World War II.

The LTA’s finances were severely hit by the cancellation of the entire summer of tennis, with the lucrative ATP Tour event at Queen’s Club among the casualties of a summer that saw all grass-court tournaments in England cancelled.

Now they are looking to the future and the deal with Dunlop will see the British sports equipment brand become the official stringing service for players at the LTA’s programme of summer major events.

As Official Tennis & Padel Equipment Partner, Dunlop will be granted branding rights at the tournaments as well as at the LTA’s National Tennis Centre in Roehampton. The brand will also host retail and fan experience activity at the summer events and Padel tournaments.

Other terms of the deal include rights to design, produce and sell tennis hardware products bearing the LTA and Partner mark. Dunlop will replace existing Official Tennis Equipment Partner, Babolat.

The news follows the LTA’s announcement earlier this month of a five-year partnership with AMC, the brand created by Andy Murray and Castore, which will become its Official Performance Apparel Partner from 1 January 2021.

Both deals form part of the LTA’s commercial strategy to create value across every aspect of tennis, through development of strategic partnerships with high profile brands.

LTA chief executive Scott Lloyd

“This is another exciting partnership and we’re looking forward to working with Dunlop – an organisation that shares our vision to open up tennis – over the next three years,” said LTA CEO Scott Lloyd.

“Following the long-term AMC apparel deal we announced earlier this month, this is another example of British tennis’ appeal to high profile brands that produce quality products, and demonstrates how we are further enhancing our commercial programme to support tennis and padel in Britain.”

Jamie Murray has played with Dunlop rackets throughout his Grand Slam winning career and he welcomed the tie-in with the LTA as he stated: “Having top-quality equipment is vital for any professional tennis player and Dunlop rackets have always served me well throughout my career.

“This looks like a great partnership and I’m sure Dunlop will provide a great service to the LTA and Tennis in Britain over the next three years.”

A new range of Dunlop rackets will be available early in 2021, so check out Tennis365 for all the latest news when they hit the shops.

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Jamie Murray

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