Joao Fonseca during the Next Gen Finals at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah last year. Getty Images
Joao Fonseca during the Next Gen Finals at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah last year. Getty Images
Joao Fonseca during the Next Gen Finals at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah last year. Getty Images
Joao Fonseca during the Next Gen Finals at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah last year. Getty Images

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Tennis

Next Gen Finals to move out of Jeddah as Saudi Arabian federation ends deal with ATP Tour

December edition at King Abdullah Sports City will be last staging of tournament on kingdom's shores

Reem Abulleil
Reem Abulleil

November 07, 2025

  • English
  • Arabic

The Next Gen Finals will move away from Jeddah next year, with the Saudi Tennis Federation (STF) opting out of their five-year deal with the ATP Tour.

The Next Gen Finals, which features the top eight players in the world aged 20 and under, was the first professional tennis tournament to be staged in the kingdom when it made its Saudi Arabian debut back in 2023.

It was announced as a five-year agreement between the STF and the ATP and was meant to stay in Jeddah through 2027.

But The National has learnt that this year’s edition, scheduled from December 17 to 21 at King Abdullah Sports City, will be the last staging of the tournament on Saudi Arabian shores.

The ATP is now open to bids from cities willing to host the event, which has proven to be a successful platform for young players looking to step up the ranks and make an early statement in their budding careers.

The Next Gen Finals was introduced to the tour in 2017 and was held in Milan through 2022 before moving to Jeddah.

Besides showcasing the top talent on the men’s tour, the tournament has also been used to test out innovative rules and technology that could be adopted in bigger events.

Stars like Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are among the the Next Gen Finals champions who have gone on to become world No 1 and clinched multiple-time grand slam winners.

Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic won the first Next Gen Finals title in Jeddah in 2023, while Brazilian phenom Joao Fonseca lifted the trophy last year.

The ATP now has just over a year to find a new host city for the tournament.

Since the signing of the Next Gen Finals deal with the ATP, Saudi Arabia has added more tennis events to its calendar, including the ongoing WTA Finals in Riyadh.

Two weeks ago, it was announced that a Masters 1000 tournament will be held in Saudi Arabia as early as 2028, which marks the first-ever expansion of the tournament category in ATP Tour history.

The National has reached out to the STF for comment.

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Updated: November 07, 2025, 2:00 PM
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