Tennis Channel, International Tennis Federation extend media rights agreement

LONDON and LOS ANGELES Aug. 4, 2025 – Tennis Channel and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) have extended their long-running partnership with the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge^TM and Davis Cup, the World Cup of Tennis events for women and men, respectively.

Under the new multi-year agreement, Tennis Channel will remain the exclusive U.S. home for both tournaments across its linear channel, app and TennisChannel.com, continuing a relationship that began in 2009. The deal now runs through 2027 for the Billie Jean King Cup and 2028 for the Davis Cup. The extension also marks a significant expansion of Tennis Channel’s international reach, with rights to broadcast in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Additionally, rights for the Billie Jean King Cup have been secured in Spain – a new and important market where interest in women’s tennis continues to see strong growth.

The ITF is the global governing body of tennis and organises the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge and Davis Cup, the two largest annual international team competitions in the sport. Both events are played annually, with nations from across the world competing at a variety of stages throughout the year for the chance to progress to the next level.

Both competitions culminate with finals events that feature the year’s top eight nations competing in a knock-out competition for the right to be crowned world champions.

The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals will take place in Shenzhen, China, September 16-21, while the Davis Cup Final 8 is set for Bologna, Italy, November 18-23.

David Haggerty, ITF President, said “For many years Tennis Channel has helped bring the World Cup of Tennis to millions of people around the world and this extension is great news for both Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup. We look forward to continuing to work alongside Tennis Channel to continue this growth for years to come.”

The United States has won the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge 18 times and the Davis Cup 32 times, both records.

“Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup are iconic events in our sport and pillars of Tennis Channel’s schedule throughout the year,” said Jeff Blackburn, Chairman and CEO, Tennis Channel. “We’ve had a long-running partnership with the ITF and can’t wait for this next chapter with them. Together we want to shine as much light as we can on the history and passion surrounding the cups, and grow awareness and fans in both the U.S. and other countries.”

The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge remains the world’s largest annual international team competition in women’s tennis, with nations competing year-round for a place in the Finals. As the women’s World Cup of Tennis it brings together top players to represent their countries on a global stage, continuing a tradition of national pride and elite-level competition.

“We’re proud to strengthen our partnership with Tennis Channel, particularly in key international markets such as the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and now Spain, where women’s tennis continues to flourish. As the world’s leading platform for women’s national team tennis, the Billie Jean King Cup celebrates national pride, incredible talent and unique spirit on a global stage. This collaboration reflects our long-term commitment to showcasing the power of women’s tennis and expanding its reach to even more fans around the world,” said Kerstin Lutz, CEO of Billie Jean King Cup Limited.

This rights announcement comes on the heels of roster announcements made for the eight countries that have qualified for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in September. Among the stars who will try to help their nations become world champions are Jessica Pegula (USA), Zheng Qinwen (China), Madison Keys (USA), Jasmine Paolini (Italy), Paula Badosa (Spain), Naomi Osaka (Japan), Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan), Emma Raducanu (Great Britain) and Elina Svitolina (Ukraine).

About the ITF

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the world governing body of tennis. Founded in 1913, its purpose is to ensure the long-term growth and sustainability of the sport, delivering tennis for future generations in association with its 213 member National Associations. The ITF oversees the rules and regulations that govern international and national competition. The ITF is responsible for the worldwide development of tennis through its highly regarded global Development Programme, its Science and Technical department which monitors equipment and technology, and its Officiating department which oversees the education and advancement of officials. The ITF organises up to 1850 men’s, women’s, and junior tournaments on the ITF World Tennis Tour, and manages the ITF junior team competitions, ITF Beach Tennis World Tour, UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour and the ITF World Tennis Masters Tour, as well as the men’s and women’s World Cup of Tennis, Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge respectively, the two largest annual international team competitions in tennis. The ITF manages the Olympic Tennis Event on behalf of the IOC and the Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Event on behalf of the IPC and the Qualification Pathways for both events at the Games. For further information please visit www.itftennis.com.

About Billie Jean King Cup Limited

Billie Jean King Cup Limited is a partnership between the International Tennis Federation and TWG Global created to deliver transformative investment and innovation to the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge, the women’s World Cup of Tennis. Bringing together expertise and experience from the tennis, business, and entertainment industries, our core mission is to grow and leverage the world’s most popular annual team competition for women as a platform for positive change.

Tennis Channel (www.tennischannel.com) and its sibling network TennisChannel 2, which are owned by Sinclair, Inc., are the only television-based multiplatform destinations dedicated to both the professional sport and tennis lifestyle. The networks have the most concentrated single-sport coverage in television in one of the world’s most voluminous sports, with multiple men’s and women’s tournaments and singles, doubles and mixed competition throughout the year. Tennis Channel and TennisChannel 2 are the exclusive U.S. homes of all men’s ATP World Tour and women’s WTA Tour competitions, Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup, United Cup, and Laver Cup. The network’s app and website TennisChannel.com house a direct-to-consumer streaming service with the traditional television network and 10,000 hours of live and on-demand matches beside original content. Tennis Channel International brings live competition and network content to markets in Europe and Asia via digital subscription and free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels. Additional platform Tennis.com is the largest digital outlet dedicated to the sport. Tennis Channel is also a co-owner of Pickleballtv, a joint venture with the Professional Pickleball Association.

About Sinclair:

Sinclair, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI) is a diversified media company and a leading provider of local news and sports. The Company owns, operates and/or provides services to 185 television stations in 86 markets affiliated with all the major broadcast networks; and owns Tennis Channel and multicast networks Comet, CHARGE!, TBD/Roar and The Nest. Sinclair’s content is delivered via multiple platforms, including over-the-air, multi-channel video program distributors, and the nation’s largest streaming aggregator of local news content, NewsON. The Company regularly uses its website as a key source of Company information which can be accessed at www.sbgi.net.