Women’s tennis has a major problem – and no one has a solution to solve it

Kevin Palmer
Pictured: WTA star Iga Swiatek and former world No 4 Tim Henman.
WTA star Iga Swiatek and former world No 4 Tim Henman.

Women’s tennis has a major problem and finding an answer is proving to be elusive.

As the debate goes on over the relocation of the WTA Tour Finals to Saudi Arabia, a familiar story has been played out over the last few days.

The world’s best female players are all in Riyadh and the money they are collecting after their impressive seasons highlights their value, yet a familiar issue has hit what should be the showpiece event of the women’s season once again.

As was the case in the 2022 WTA Finals in Texas, sparse crowds have attended this year’s showpiece tournament after the contentious decision was made to move the event to Saudi.

Small crowds at the ATP Next Gen Finals in Saudi Arabia over the last couple of years may have been a warning of what to expect, but it was not a good look for a relatively small venue to have what some have suggested was as few as 100 fans present for some of the group stage matches.

While organisers dimmed the lights on the seats to disguise the limited number of fans present, the lack of cheers and the echo coming out of the broadcast confirmed this event was not a big favourite with the local fans.

“There’s been plenty of debate over whether sporting events should be coming to Saudi Arabia, but if we move past that and just look at this WTA Finals as an event, it’s extremely disappointing when you’ve got the world’s best players – Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff – performing in front of a crowd like that today,” said former British No 1 Tim Henman on Sky Sports.

“The organisers here are in a privileged position where they’re not trying to necessarily make money out of the gate receipts.

“So they should get out into the communities and into the schools because we need spectators here to witness the best players and create that atmosphere.”

“I think it’s just been disappointing. The way the event has been hosted, you look at the stadium courts, it’s absolutely fantastic, all the facilities, practice courts, restaurants, they’ve laid it all on.

“So, it’s just a little bit frustrating, and I think disappointing for the top eight players in the world that we haven’t had a better atmosphere.

“The first day was OK, which was part of the Saudi weekend, but yesterday, to have 300-400 in the crowd when you’ve got a 5,000 seater stadium, it just doesn’t create the atmosphere that these great players deserve.”

Praise has been forthcoming for the organisation and facilities being provided for the players and that is a step forward from the disastrous WTA Finals in Cancun last year, where a woeful court was prepared and high winds caused chaos in an event that was hastily arranged after a late decision over the location.

Yet while we all accept the primary reason why the WTA took their end-of-season event in Saudi Arabia was due to money, there is a harsh reality here that many will not want to discuss.

While men’s tennis events draw huge crowds around the world, the same is not true for women’s matches and that explains why we don’t see high-profile exhibition events featuring female players.

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The all-male Laver Cup team event is a huge commercial success every year, but the idea of trying to replicate that with a women’s event may not be commercially viable.

It will also be fascinating to see the crowds in attendance for the new WTA 500 event at the Queen’s Club in London next summer, as they will inevitably be compared to the ATP 500 event at the venue that sells out every year.
Whether this is an issue of marketing or the hard reality that male players serve up a game more people want to watch, this is a problem that will not go away.

There have been reports in recent weeks that a potential merger between the ATP and WTA is being discussed on the basis that the women’s game will get just a 20 per-cent split of revenues if they pool commercial revenues and that highlights the chasm in the wealth divide between the men’s and women’s game.

Players like Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff are big names in the tennis world, but they simply haven’t reached out to an audience like male greats Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in recent years.

Changing that brutal reality will not be easy and for now, the WTA are insisting they are happy way the way their Tour Finals are progressing in Riyadh, where bigger crowds are in attendance for the semi-finals and final.

“We’re pleased with the strong attendance at the opening day of the WTA Finals with thousands watching from the stands,” the WTA said in a statement earlier this week.

“We always anticipated lower attendance with the start of the Saudi working week on Sunday but anticipate that numbers will build as we approach the weekend. There is a great atmosphere and support from the fans.

“It’s important to remember that this is the first time a WTA event has been held in Saudi Arabia, so we’re bringing tennis to a new audience and that takes time to build.

“Our aim is to grow the WTA Finals and build attendance over the term of the three-year partnership.

“What we are sure of is that everyone who comes will enjoy exciting tennis and a great experience.”

Finding a way to put the sexes on an equal stage is a dilemma that has been discussed since Billie Jean King secured women’s tennis a place at the top table of tennis.

More than 50 years have passed since he blazed her way through some strong barriers, but there is little evidence that her end goal will ever be achieved.

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