NEW YORK (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s move into tennis will now include a multiyear deal to sponsor the WTA women’s rankings. The WTA released word of its partnership agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) on Monday, a move that follows last month’s news that the kingdom will host the tour’s season-ending championships in Riyadh starting this year and February’s announcement that it will sponsor the ATP men’s rankings. Both tours’ rankings deals are for five years. The PIF is the first naming-rights partner for the WTA rankings and the new arrangement also includes plans to promote tennis at lower levels of the sport. Tennis has been consumed lately by the debate over whether the sport should follow golf and others in making deals with Saudi Arabia, where rights groups say women continue to face discrimination in most aspects of family life and homosexuality is a major taboo, as it is in much of the rest of the Middle East. |
Rays and Brewers get into wild brawl, with Uribe and Siri in the middle of itBlake Lively is seen in firstMassey hits 2Trump's comparison of student protests to Jan. 6 is part of effort to downplay Capitol attackWho is Eugenio Franceschini? Meet Lily Collins' handsome new coHow major US stock indexes fared Tuesday, 4/30/2024Jelly Roll's exWhat to stream this week: Dua Lipa, Seinfeld’s ‘Unfrosted’ and ‘Welcome to Wrexham’Trump's comparison of student protests to Jan. 6 is part of effort to downplay Capitol attackBlake Lively is seen in first