Hologic WTA tour announces 2023 WTA Finals will be held in Cancun, Mexico

FLASHBACK: Caroline Garcia defeated Aryna Sabalenka to win the 2022 WTA Finals in Fort Worth.

The WTA Finals has found a new home for a third straight season: the Hologic WTA tour announced on Thursday that its Top 8 singles players and Top 8 doubles teams will compete in Cancun, Mexico from October 29-November 5.

The news comes after another year of uncertainty as to the location of the Finals, which was held at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, last fall. Rumors abounded throughout the US Open about possible bids from Saudi Arabia and later the Czech Republic.

The possibility of a Saudi-run WTA Finals drew particular ire from former players and fans—including Chris Evert, John McEnroe, and Martina Navratilova—due to the country’s track record of human rights abuses and subjugation of women.

“I would like to extend my appreciation to the Cancun tournament organizers GS Sports Management, for their commitment in hosting the WTA Finals this year,” said WTA Chairman and CEO Steve Simon in a press release. “This edition of the WTA Finals will provide a fantastic experience for players and fans alike, offer a fitting finale for the 2023 Hologic WTA Tour, and enable us to continue building a strong future for women’s tennis.”

GS Sports Management preciously organized the 2021 WTA Finals in Guadalajara, which was the first Finals to be held after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the 2020 edition planned to be in Shenzhen.

Shenzhen was first announced to host the WTA Finals as part of a 10-year deal in 2018, but after its premiere staging in 2019, the tournament has not been back there—or to any tournaments in China—since.

The situation was exacerbated by the disappearance of former WTA doubles No. 1 Peng Shuai, who accused and then later recanted accusations of sexual coercion to a high-ranking member of the Chinese Communist Party. Peng’s disappearance from social media and limited public appearances led to the trending hashtag #WhereIsPengShuai, and drove the WTA tour to initiate a boycott of Chinese tournaments that is ostensibly set to end in 2023.

Though no singles players or doubles teams have been officially announced as having qualified for the WTA Finals, 2022 finalist Aryna Sabalenka currently leads the WTA Race rankings with 6910 points with current WTA world No. 1 Iga Swiatek trailing at No. 2 with 6665 points. Americans Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula, who are also currently ranked in the Top 8 singles rankings, lead the doubles Race rankings with 5255 points, and competed at the WTA Finals in both singles and doubles last year.