SP Open bets on promising tennis players to establish itself in the long term: 'Gigantic market'

Following the success of men's tennis at the Rio Open, it's now the women's turn at the SP Open. Responsible for both professional tournaments, director Luiz Fernando Carvalho aims to replicate in the São Paulo capital what has proven successful in Rio over 11 successful editions. And he projects a similar path, with a long-term trajectory, betting both on São Paulo's "huge potential market" and on the promising women's tennis scene in Brazil.

The inaugural SP Open will be held from September 6th to 14th on the courts of Parque Villa-Lobos, a venue that has hosted tennis tournaments in recent decades. It will be the first WTA-level competition in São Paulo in 25 years. The tournament is a WTA 250 tournament, below the WTA 500, 1000, and Grand Slams in the women's circuit hierarchy.

Despite being at the base of the WTA pyramid, the São Paulo tournament is expected to debut at a high level, thanks to the expertise of IMM, the company responsible for the Rio Open. "The organizing team is practically the same, the processes are so similar that sometimes we forget that this is only the first edition of the tournament," Carvalho said in an interview with Estadão .

The SP Open will be smaller in size and capacity (68,000 versus 35,000 total) than the Rio tournament. On the other hand, it will have a larger temporary structure, one of the organization's challenges. "In practice, we only have the park courts. We need to expand everything else from scratch, including the athletes, services, and containers. But overall, the operation will be simpler," explains Lui, as he is better known.

The organization's biggest challenge will be to give the tournament a long life. In Brazil, the WTA, the world governing body of women's tennis, has had its last attempts unsuccessfully. In the past decade, there have been two failed attempts. The first, in Florianópolis, ran for four editions (2013 to 2016). Meanwhile, the Rio Open itself featured a women's tournament between 2014 and 2016.

With the SP Open, Carvalho envisions a different story. "Everything IMM does is always long-term. So, we understand that whatever happens this year is a grand experiment as we continue to develop the platform. Obviously, we have the advantage of 11 years of experience with the Rio Open."

He also points to two strengths: the São Paulo market and the future of Brazilian tennis. "The São Paulo market has enormous potential. We have brands sponsoring, people buying tickets (almost all sold out), the media promoting it. And we have the players," he says, referring to two promising Brazilian players.

They are Nauhany Silva and Victoria Barros, both 15 years old. These two young tennis players are considered the future of Brazilian women's tennis, the natural successors to Beatriz Haddad Maia. It's no coincidence that they received invitations to debut in the main draw of a WTA 250 tournament, a rare occurrence at their age. The SP Open organizers believe this opportunity could be a turning point in their careers.

"We believe they will develop, they will realize all the dreams we have for them. They can become phenomenal; we hope they enter the Top 100 of the rankings by the age of 18. We know it's difficult to place all the 'business' on them. But it's natural that some expectations are created, especially since we're seeing what's happening with João Fonseca," says Carvalho, referring to the furor Fonseca caused at this year's Rio Open, despite being eliminated in his debut. "I know we're being a little premature here, but we're already looking to the future."

While the duo is still developing, the SP Open turns its attention to Bia Haddad, currently ranked 20th in the world, and Laura Pigossi and Luisa Stefani, Olympic medalists at the 2021 Tokyo Games. Bia and Pigossi will be guaranteed a spot in the singles main draw. Luisa will play doubles, her specialty.

ABSENCE OF MEDALLIONS

The SP Open wasn't fortunate in its initial draw planning. Its star player, Tunisian Ons Jabeur, withdrew from the tournament and temporarily stepped away from the circuit to focus on her mental health. The African, a three-time Grand Slam runner-up, perfectly fit the profile established by the organization, due to her history of achievements and popularity. At the same time, she doesn't have a high ranking – a series of WTA rules prevent smaller tournaments from featuring top-tier players.

"We've put all our chips on Ons," Carvalho admits. "Of course, we respect her decision. We weren't lucky. We've already learned that, for 2026, we'll expand our options. We believe that, for the event's second year, we'll be able to better 'sell' the event to female tennis players."

The SP Open director points to the "positive side" of Jabeur's withdrawal. "Without her, the Brazilians will have the opportunity to go far in the draw. They could have a 'Cinderella run.' If Naná or Victoria win a small match, for example, that could change their careers. They'll gain confidence and visibility."

In the long term, Carvalho believes the tournament could become a "catalyst" for women's tennis in Brazil. "More girls can start playing tennis, more girls can become professionals. In a few years, we can achieve our dream, which is to have the same number of men in the women's game as we have in the Top 200 and Top 300."

MORE INVITATIONS FOR BRAZILIAN WOMEN

On the road to achieving this dream in the future, Carvalho wants to ensure a strong Brazilian presence at the SP Open. He's rooting for seven players in the main draw. Currently, there are only four: Bia, Laura, Naná Silva, and Victoria. However, the organization still has two invitations available.

The tournament director admitted to Estadão that the preference is for local athletes. "We always prioritize Brazilian tennis players. Brazilians like to see Brazilians play." There are also two invitations to the qualifying round, the preliminary round, to be played on the 6th and 7th. The goal is to announce all the names by the end of August.