The Davis Cup is on its sickbed. The new format has not proved its worth, but there are no easy solutions in sight for the most important team competition in tennis.
25.11.2025, 05:00
25.11.2025, 07:16
SDA
Flavio Cobolli ecstatically kissed the floor of the Super Tennis Arena at the exhibition center in Bologna on Sunday evening. 10,500 Italian fans celebrated the third Davis Cup triumph in a row - the first at home. "I don't even know where I am anymore," stammered the 22-year-old Cobolli, who won the doubles final at the French Open juniors alongside Dominic Stricker in 2020. It was the perfect scenario from the point of view of the International Tennis Federation.
A scenario, however, that can only briefly mask the problems in the 125-year-old traditional competition. In 2018, the member associations of the ITF agreed to a revolution, a complete reorganization of the Davis Cup. Football world champion Gerard Piqué and his investment company Kosmos made an offer that the officials could not refuse. Kosmos offered the prospect of three billion dollars over 25 years.
A pipe burst
The traditional format of the Davis Cup - four rounds spread over the whole year, each lasting three days with four singles and one doubles match in three sets with home advantage for one of the two teams - was no longer considered appropriate. The big stars usually decided not to play several or even all of their matches, and the home associations were often no longer able to cover their costs. The constant change of surface or even continent fitted less and less into the tight schedule of the top professionals.
Kosmos now organized the Davis Cup in a single week - with 18 teams playing for the title at a neutral venue, in this case Malaga. This only rarely created a good atmosphere. The concept turned out to be a disaster, manna did not fall from the sky as hoped. Kosmos wanted to renegotiate the terms, the ITF terminated the contract in 2023 and the two parties only reached a settlement in their legal dispute last March.
Memories of the bullring
However, the construction sites have not been resolved, and a return to the old format is not an option. New variants are being discussed. Since this year, there have been two qualifying rounds (one at the beginning of February, one in mid-September), which are once again played as home matches in one of the two countries, but only over two days and with matches played in two sets. However, the "Final 8" with quarter-finals, semi-finals and final with two singles matches each will still take place at a central venue, currently in Bologna. If Italy makes it to the final, that's good, but Russia against Croatia four years ago or Canada against Australia twelve months later naturally don't create the right atmosphere.
"I played against Nadal in a bullring," says Alexander Zverev, mourning the old days. The German was the only top ten player in Bologna, but he was harshly critical. "It's basically a show tournament called the Davis Cup. The real Davis Cup is the return matches with a home atmosphere."
Only every two or three years
Even the Italian stars Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti canceled, as did the world number one Carlos Alcaraz. After all, Sinner has led Italy to triumphs in the last two years, and Alcaraz also emphasizes that he wants to win the Davis Cup once. The two see the solution in holding the team competition only every two or three years.
Whether this will cure the Davis Cup is highly uncertain. The tennis calendar is long and demanding, and there is also an enormous amount of money available for exhibitions - the real show tournaments - which the top professionals do not want to miss out on, despite the complaints about the large number of matches. The Davis Cup is not a priority.
For the Swiss, by the way, it doesn't matter at the moment. Eleven years ago, they were grandiose champions at the Lille football stadium, but were relegated from the top world group after losing to India in Biel.
