The International Tennis Federation has officially rebranded as World Tennis, marking a new chapter for the governing body that has overseen global tennis since 1913.
Alongside the rebrand, World Tennis unveiled a long-term growth strategy aimed at increasing global tennis participation by 30% over the next decade, with a target of reaching 140 million players worldwide by 2035. The organization estimates that around 106 million people currently play tennis.
In a joint letter, World Tennis President David Haggerty and CEO Ross Hutchins pledged to reinvest at least 85% of the organization’s annual revenue back into tennis over the next ten years. The initiative is designed to strengthen its network of 214 national tennis associations and support the sport’s long-term development.
Hutchins described the participation target as ambitious but achievable, stressing that collaboration across the tennis ecosystem will be essential to achieving it.
World Tennis has identified five strategic priorities: increasing grassroots participation, developing future stars, strengthening its competitions, engaging younger generations through digital platforms, and attracting new investment into the sport.
The governing body also plans to further develop key events including the Davis Cup, the Billie Jean King Cup and the World Team Cup.
The announcement comes amid broader discussions about tennis’ commercial potential. Earlier this year, Andrea Gaudenzi, chairman of the Association of Tennis Professionals, suggested that the professional tennis ecosystem’s annual revenue of approximately $3.5 billion could potentially double or even triple if the sport’s governing bodies aligned their commercial operations more closely.
According to Hutchins, World Tennis is not actively seeking external investment but is focused on diversifying revenue streams and making the sport more accessible to sponsors, governments and commercial partners.
The strategy aims to create new growth opportunities across the entire tennis pyramid, from elite events and professional stakeholders to competitive players and grassroots participants, helping secure the sport’s long-term commercial sustainability.