Why women’s tennis faces a huge problem after Saudi Arabia pull their money out of sport
The sporting world is reeling after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) confirmed the rumours that they are withdrawing their big money from sport are a very brutal reality.
Golf may be the first and obvious big loser, with the breakaway LIV Golf tour faces an uncertain future after PIF confirmed it would not longer offer financial support to a project that has cost billions to put together beyond 2026.
Snooker’s most lucrative tournament has also been cancelled and there are big question marks over what happens next for the Saudi Pro League in soccer, with the nation also facing questions over whether they will proceed with plans to host the 2034 World Cup finals.
The development has also sent shockwaves through tennis, with the WTA Tour facing big questions after it was confirmed their end-of-season WTA Finals will not be staged in Saudi Arabia beyond this year.
The big money on offer from PIF was a big reason why the WTA opted to move their marquee event to Saudi Arabia, even though tennis legends Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert voiced their opposition to the move to a nation that has a contentious history when it comes to women’s rights.
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Their opinion column in The Washington Post back in 2024 headlined: ‘We did not help build women’s tennis for it to be exploited by Saudi Arabia’ and they didn’t hold back in their criticism of the move.
“Not only is this a country where women are not seen as equal, it is a country where the current landscape includes a male guardianship law that essentially makes women the property of men,” they said in a joint statement.
“A country which criminalises the LGBTQ community to the point of possible death sentences. A country whose long-term record on human rights and basic freedoms has been a matter of international concern for decades.”
This debate has now come back to haunt the WTA Tour, as their hopes of an extended relationship with PIF has been cancelled and they are reported to be looking to move the WTA Finals back to America for 2027.
It is another blow for the WTA, after they struggled to find a stable home for the WTA Finals after they lost support from Chinese backers amid the Covid pandemic.
Maintaining the record-breaking prize money that was on offer when the WTA Finals were played in Riyadh may be impossible and there will also be questions over whether PIF will continue their sponsorship deal for both the women’s and men’s rankings lists.
Doubts may also be raised over whether the proposed ATP Masters 1000 tournament that is due to be played in Saudi Arabia from 2028 will go ahead.
The ATP confirmed they were expanding their tournament schedule to include an event in the Arab Kingdom in October last year, but the move to cancel some events PIF will no longer back financially in recent weeks, confirms plans can be ripped up as quickly as they have been announced.
The Six Kings Slam exhibition event that has been won by Jannik Sinner for the last two years should not be affected by the PIF cutbacks, as that is run by a different facet of the Saudi sporting set-up.
But at a time when the world’s finances are in turmoil amid US President Donald Trump’s unfathomable war in Iran, tennis chiefs have to be concerned that what appeared to be one of their long-time financial partners has taken a radical change of direction.
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