Women’s tennis’ WTA Tour has expanded its coverage in China after securing a live broadcast deal with digital giant Tencent for the 2025 season.
The deal, struck by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) governing body’s commercial wing, WTA Ventures, will see Tencent’s digital platforms offer coverage from all WTA tournaments, except those staged in mainland China.
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The package includes all WTA 250, 500, and 1000 tournaments through to the season-ending WTA Finals in November, which will be shown on all Tencent digital platforms, including Tencent Video, Tencent Sport, Tencent News, and WeChat.
The deal covers live and delayed matches and match clips for audiences in China, excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.
The partnership comes as women’s tennis enjoys increased popularity in China, with five Chinese singles players in the top 100 of the WTA rankings, including number eight Zheng Qinwen, who won two WTA titles in 2024 and reached the WTA Finals that year.
Jeff Han, vice president of Tencent Online Video, said: “By leveraging the strengths of Tencent's multi-platforms, we will provide tennis fans in China with more extensive channels and an enhanced viewing experience.
“And through creative online interactions and compelling storytelling of Chinese tennis players, we aim to increase audience engagement and generate social buzz around the events.
“We firmly believe that this partnership will significantly impact WTA events and contribute to the development of tennis in the Chinese market.”
Marina Storti, chief executive of WTA Ventures, added: “Tennis is booming in China with a new generation of WTA players climbing the rankings and winning millions of fans.
“We are delighted that Chinese audiences will have more ways than ever to follow the drama of the 2025 WTA season on Tencent’s digital platforms, and we look forward to working with Tencent to grow the WTA’s impact in this important market.”
The rights deal with Tencent is the latest in a series in China as the WTA looks to draw a line in the sand amid its contentious relationship with the country. In November 2021, the tour suspended all events in China after Peng Shuai, a prominent Chinese tennis player throughout the 2010s, disappeared following allegations of rape she made against a senior government member.
After her disappearance and suspension of events, online streaming service iQiyi ended its 10-year rights deal with the WTA, which first began in 2017.
However, the WTA’s boycott ended in April 2023, with chief executive Steve Simon admitting a “different approach” was needed.
Last year, streaming platform Youku struck a three-year agreement with both the WTA and men’s ATP Tours to show more than 80 tournaments per year from both tours between 2024 and 2026 across the country.
WTA Ventures also struck a deal with China Media Group to show last year’s season-ending 2024 WTA Finals on Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, marking the first time the tournament had received linear TV coverage in the country since the 2020 edition.
WTA Ventures, meanwhile, announced in December that it expects to report record commercial revenue for the organization during 2024 on the back of the deals.
The arm was formed as part of a strategic partnership between the WTA and the CVC Capital Partners fund in March 2023, and WTA Ventures now oversees the commercial and media rights operations of the women's tennis tour.
WTA Ventures said the revenue increase puts the vehicle on track to “achieve its long-term goal of tripling commercial revenue over the six years between 2023 and 2029.”
In terms of commercial planning for 2025, WTA Ventures has said it plans to introduce a new sponsorship tier, premier partner, offering brands “unparalleled access to a growing sport and fanbase.”
