NCAA tennis championships come to Tennis Channel with 3-year agreement

On May 16, the 2019 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis National Championships will commence at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla. And the only place to watch them—along with the 2020 and 2021 editions—will be on Tennis Channel.

“Tennis Channel is the perfect home for the best players and teams in college tennis,” said John MacDonald, Tennis Channel’s senior vice president, content programming. “We’re excited to bring these young stars to fans around the country.”

In each year of the three-year partnership, announced on Tuesday, Tennis Channel will show more than 50 hours of live matches, with live coverage every day of the 10-day annual competition. With college players increasingly making an impact in the pros—James Blake and John Isner have given way to Danielle Collins, Mackenzie McDonald, Steve Johnson, Kevin Anderson and a host of others—it's a way to consider the sport's future, while also watching a dramatic present unfold.

The agreement expands the network’s coverage of college tennis at the USTA National Campus. Since 2018, Tennis Channel has televised the USTA’s College MatchDay series of head-to-head competitions, featuring some of the country’s top schools.

“We are incredibly excited that the Tennis Channel is committing to this level of coverage of the NCAA Tennis Championships, showcasing college tennis at its highest level and elevating the sport like never before,” said Lew Sherr, chief revenue officer, USTA. “College tennis is an important part of the development of the next generation of tennis players and the exposure generated by this partnership will only further our mission of growing the game of tennis across the country.”

Emerging from respective fields of 64 schools, eight men’s and eight women’s teams will compete in the NCAA DI Men’s and Women’s Tennis National Championships at the USTA National Campus.  The men’s and women’s individual singles tournaments in Orlando will each feature 64 players, with 32 doubles pairs comprising both the men’s and women’s doubles tournaments.