What insiders are saying about a potential merger between the ATP and WTA

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The ATP and WTA schedules haven’t slowed down following the end of the 2024 Grand Slam season.

Carlos Alcaraz has complained about the ATP schedule, with Iga Swiatek complaining about the WTA calendar.

Following the US Open, both tours headed for the China Open, before the former moved on to the Shanghai Masters and the latter to the Wuhan Open.

And they are, of course, now building up to the year-end finals, with the ATP’s top stars set for Turin and their WTA equivalents set for Riyadh.

But having gone their separate ways more often than not, a commercial merger between the ATP and WTA is now on the cards.

What do the ATP and WTA want from a potential merger?

Discussing the potential merger, The Telegraph has reported that the tours are preparing to vote on an agreement that would involve assets being split 80% towards the men and 20% towards the women.

The newspaper noted that the split reflects commercial reality, adding the seemingly disproportionate figures could work in the WTA’s favour due to the presence of a ‘synergies’ clause.

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The merger aims to bring in extra profit to both the ATP and WTA that they wouldn’t achieve alone, with the synergy windfall then split 50-50.

There would also be potential savings for the WTA with regard to a reduction in duplication of the tours’ marketing and commercial departments.

What are insiders saying about a potential ATP and WTA merger?

The finer details need approval from various stakeholders, such as the ATP board and the ATP Masters 1000 tournaments.

And a crucial side of the women’s game involves private equity firm CVC, which two years ago bought a 20% stake in the WTA’s commercial operations.

The Telegraph has now shared what a view from one insider who believes the merger would benefit the WTA, saying: “The WTA would be saving on agency fees and head counts and there’s a feeling that this could be a win for them.”

However, another source issued caution, saying: “If you’re setting up what is known as a ‘ratchet’ deal in the finance world, where revenues are split in different proportions depending on how big they are, then a lot depends on where you put the threshold.

“If the WTA allow the projected growth figures to be set at a high level, they’ll struggle to reach that 50-50 stage.”