After nineteen years, Mallorca will once again host the world-class men’s tennis ATP tournament, following 2020’s cancellation due to covid-19.
The tennis tournament will be held in Calvia from 19 to 26 June 2021, one week before Wimbledon and will place the island at the forefront of world sport. The renovated grass courts of the Mallorca Lawn Tennis & Country Club will host the new ATP Mallorca Championships 2021.
The announcement was made at a press conference on Wednesday 28 April 2021 called by the Mallorca Tourism Foundation (FMT) and attended by local dignitaries Catalina Cladera, President of the Consell de Mallorca; Xisco Mateu, Director of the AETIB; Alfonso Rodríguez, Mayor of Calvià; Toni Nadal, Director of the ATP Mallorca Championships; as well as Edwin Weindorfer, CEO and founder of the E|motion Group; and Félix Torralba, Managing Director of E|motion Sports España
“We are pleased to be able to host this event and put Mallorca on the world map for tennis,” said the President of the Consell de Mallorca, Catalina Cladera, during the press conference.
Mallorca is committed to the deseasonalisation of tourism, as a “365 days of the year” tourism destination. “This type of product deseasonalises our tourism and reactivates our economy, as with other sports such as golf and cycling, and now with tennis,” added Cladera.
Xisco Mateu, Director of the Balearic Islands Tourism Strategy Agency (AETIB), spoke along the same lines, stressing the commitment to sustainable and safe tourism as assets for deseasonalisation. “Safe tourism, with very specific health measures, and sustainable tourism will protect the great future of our islands”.
The Major of Calvià, Alfonso Rodríguez, the international tournament host commented, “We are convinced about the positive direct and indirect impact the tournament will have on our town as a destination, committed to sport as a fundamental part of the revitalisation of the tourist industry during the mid and low seasons”.
First grass-court tournament in Spain
Included in the 2021 grass-court tour, the Mallorca ATP 250 will welcome some of the best players on the circuit, such as Australia’s Nick Kyrgios and Spanish players Feliciano López and Fernando Verdasco.
The renovated courts of the Mallorca Lawn Tennis & Country Club, located in Santa Ponsa (Calvià), will host a total of 28 players in the singles draw and 16 doubles pairs. In addition, the tournament will be the first grass court tennis competition to be held in Spain and the first of its kind to be held at night. It will also be the prelude to Wimbledon.
The six outdoor courts, exactly the same as those in Wimbledon, “can serve as preparation” for the Grand Slam, as the tournament director Toni Nadal has commented. He also announced that, as of today, 1,500 people are expected to attend the tournament, “always pending the health status of the island”.
In its commitment to sustainability, there will be no plastic during the tournament and there will be park-and-ride car parks to facilitate access to the grounds.
