Howdy, y’all and Happy Tennis Tuesday! For 2025’s final TT of the year, I wanted to already look ahead since the season kicks off in two weeks. As we look ahead to the 2026 WTA season, the women’s game stands at a potentially transformative moment. Next year promises storylines that extend far beyond on-court results, so here are three questions worth tracking as the season unfolds.
Continue reading with a subscription to The IX
Get unlimited access to our exclusive coverage of a varitety of women’s sports, including our premium newsletter by subscribing today!
Already a member?
Login
(Editor’s note: This is the last Gymnastics Saturday of 2025. The IX Sports is off Dec. 24-31 and will return with Golf Thursday on Jan. 1, 2026.)
Can there be a changing of the guard?
The trio of Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiątek, and Coco Gauff has dominated women’s tennis headlines for the past few years, but 2026 could mark the beginning of a shift. Swiątek and Sabalenka, both in their mid-twenties, remain at their peak, but the relentless grind of the tour and the emergence of hungry challengers might signal change on the horizon. We’re so used to Swiatek and Sabalenka dominating the majority of the season, could it be Gauff’s time to finally overtake the No. 1 singles ranking?
The dynamics within this top three are fascinating in their own right. Sabalenka has established herself as the hard-court queen with back-to-back Australian Open titles, while Swiątek continues her clay-court dominance with multiple French Open crowns. Gauff, still just 21 years old, represents the youngest of the trio and perhaps the most unpredictable variable. Her 2023 U.S. Open victory announced her arrival, but consistency across all surfaces remains a work in progress.
The question isn’t just whether new faces will win majors, but whether they can sustain excellence over entire seasons. Winning one Slam is remarkable; dominating the year-end rankings requires a different level of week-in, week-out performance. Watch for signs of vulnerability in the current top three: Is Swiątek’s movement on hard courts improving enough to match her clay-court supremacy? Can Sabalenka maintain her mental fortitude in tight matches after past struggles? Will Gauff develop the weapons needed to consistently beat these elite opponents? The answers could determine whether 2026 becomes a transition year or a continuation of the current era.
Listen now to The IX Sports Podcast & Women’s Sports Daily
We are excited to announce the launch of TWO new podcasts for all the women’s sports fans out there looking for a daily dose of women’s sports news and analysis.
Stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or anywhere you listen to your podcasts and make sure to subscribe!
The Mercedes-Benz effect
The WTA’s new partnership with Mercedes-Benz represents one of the most significant sponsorship deals in women’s tennis history. Beyond the financial injection, this collaboration with a premium global brand signals growing recognition of the WTA’s marketability and reach in an era where women’s sports are finally receiving the commercial attention they’ve long deserved.
The symbolic value alone is substantial. Mercedes-Benz doesn’t just represent automotive luxury— it’s a statement about quality, prestige, and global appeal. For the WTA to secure a partnership with such a brand suggests that corporate sponsors are beginning to see women’s tennis not as a secondary investment, but as a premier marketing platform capable of reaching affluent, engaged audiences worldwide.
But symbolism only goes so far. The real question is how this translates into tangible benefits for the tour and its players. Will we see increased prize money across tournaments, particularly at the WTA 500 and 250 level events where payouts pale in comparison to the majors? The gap between men’s and women’s tennis earnings remains significant outside the Grand Slams and a major sponsorship like this could help narrow that divide.
Beyond prize money, could this deal improve the player experience? Better travel accommodations, upgraded practice facilities, enhanced medical and training resources—these quality-of-life improvements might seem minor but can significantly impact player performance and longevity. If Mercedes-Benz provides vehicles for player transportation at tournaments, offers travel perks, or funds improved infrastructure, it could elevate the professional experience across the tour.
Perhaps most importantly, this partnership could supercharge the WTA’s marketing and media presence. Mercedes-Benz brings sophisticated marketing expertise and global distribution networks. Joint advertising campaigns, increased broadcast exposure, social media collaborations, and cross-promotional opportunities could introduce tennis to entirely new audiences. The question is whether the WTA has the infrastructure and strategic vision to maximize these opportunities, or whether this becomes simply another logo on the court.
How the WTA leverages this partnership in 2026 could set the template for the tour’s business model moving forward and potentially inspire other premium brands to invest in women’s tennis.
The WTA-ATP Merger. Will it happen?
The idea of merging the WTA and ATP has floated around tennis circles for years, periodically resurfacing during moments of crisis or opportunity. Most recently, the concept gained renewed attention during the COVID-19 pandemic when both tours faced existential financial pressures, and again as discussions about the sport’s future governance intensified. A unified tour could theoretically streamline operations, increase negotiating power with sponsors and broadcasters, and create a more cohesive product for fans who simply love tennis, regardless of gender.
The potential benefits are compelling. Imagine a single tennis organization negotiating television rights, sponsorships, and digital media deals with the combined audience of both tours. The bargaining power would be substantial, potentially leading to more lucrative contracts that benefit all players. Operational efficiencies could reduce administrative overhead, and a unified ranking system and calendar could simplify the sport for casual fans who currently need to navigate two separate structures.
Combined events could become the norm rather than the exception. Beyond the four majors and a handful of joint tournaments, most of the tennis calendar operates on parallel tracks. A merged tour could create more weeks where men and women compete at the same venue, building bigger, more exciting events that attract larger crowds and greater media attention. The success of combined events like Indian Wells and Miami demonstrates the appeal of this model.
Yet significant obstacles remain, and they’re not trivial. Governance structure represents perhaps the biggest challenge—who leads a unified tour, and how is power distributed? The ATP and WTA have different cultures, priorities, and stakeholder interests. ATP players might resist any arrangement that doesn’t clearly benefit them financially, while WTA players rightfully worry about maintaining their hard-won autonomy and ensuring their voices aren’t diluted in a male-dominated structure.
Revenue sharing presents another minefield. Currently, men’s tennis generates higher broadcast revenues and prize money at most events outside the majors. Would a merged tour mean equal prize money across all tournaments? If so, would ATP players accept what they might perceive as subsidizing the women’s game? If not, what’s the point of merging? These questions strike at fundamental issues of equity and fairness that have no easy answers.
There’s also the question of identity. The WTA has built a distinct brand and culture over five decades, fighting for recognition and equal treatment in a sport that didn’t always welcome women’s full participation. Many fear that a merger, however well-intentioned, could result in women’s tennis losing its unique voice and visibility, becoming a secondary consideration within a larger organization where men’s tennis naturally commands more attention due to historical precedent and current market forces.
In 2026, watch for signs of progress (or lack thereof). Are there joint marketing initiatives beyond current efforts? Do we see more combined tournaments added to the calendar? Are concrete merger discussions happening at the leadership level, or is this still aspirational talk without substance? Even incremental steps toward integration could reshape professional tennis for generations.
The question isn’t just whether a merger will happen, but whether it should, and if it does, whether the structure would truly benefit both tours equally or simply replicate existing power imbalances under a unified banner. The answers could define the future of professional tennis for the next half-century.
Now, on to links!
The IX Basketball, a 24/7/365 women’s basketball newsroom
The IX Basketball: A basketball newsroom brought to you by The IX Sports and powered by The Next. 24/7/365 women’s basketball coverage, written, edited and photographed by our young, diverse staff and dedicated to breaking news, analysis, historical deep dives and projections about the game we love.
Readers of The IX Sports now save 50% on their subscription to The IX Basketball, powered by The Next.
This Week in Women’s Tennis
Hendrik Vleeshouwers, coach of Amanda Anisimova, was named WTA Coach of the Year, while Player Service awards were unveiled.
Aryna Sabalenka and Sara Errani/Jasmine Paolini were named the singles and doubles ITF World Champions, respectively. Paolini was also captured in the Tennis Photograph of the Year.
The ITF World Tour released their 2025 numbers and among the figures? 627 women’s events being held that offered $18.56 million in prize money.
Alexandra Eala captured the SEA Games gold medal in women’s singles and left Bangkok as with three medals in total.
Garbine Muguruza opens up about diving back into the tennis world, but as a tournament director of now two events.
18-year-old American tennis player Jessica Eudovic was provisionally suspended after testing positive at a $15,000 ITF World Tour event earlier this year.
Naomi Osaka is leaving Evolve, the agency she co-founded.
Two years ago, Maya Joint was on the University of Texas roster and now she’s the No. 1-ranked Aussie player. She’s one to watch out for this Australian summer swing.
Congratulations to Anna Kournikova, who gave birth to her fourth child with partner Enrique Iglesias:
For Belinda Bencic, she knew she had to embrace the journey of coming back from maternity leave and it paid off with some of her career-best results.
Maddison Inglis has some jokes:
More Australian Open wildcards were announced and one remains open. Potentially two-time finalist Venus Williams is the recipient depending on her Auckland result?
Nearly five years following her breakthrough run, Leylah Fernandez eyes another Grand Slam final.
Want more women’s hockey content? Subscribe to The Ice Garden!
In case you missed it, The Ice Garden is now part of The IX Sports family!
The staff of The Ice Garden has paved the way for women’s hockey coverage from the college ranks to international competitions. Of course, that includes in-depth coverage of the PWHL too.
Tweet of the Week
lol tis the season!
| Mondays: Soccer |
| By: Annie Peterson, @AnnieMPeterson, AP Women’s Soccer |
| Tuesdays: Tennis |
| By: Joey Dillon, @JoeyDillon, Freelance Tennis Writer |
| Wednesdays: Basketball |
| By: Howard Megdal, @HowardMegdal, The IX Sports |
| Thursdays: Golf |
| By: Marin Dremock, @MDremock, The IX Sports |
| Fridays: Hockey |
| By: @TheIceGarden, The Ice Garden |
| Saturdays: Gymnastics |
| By: Lela Moore, @runlelarun, Freelance Writer |
