Installed since its creation at the Accor Arena in Paris, the Masters 1000 tournament could move to Nanterre in 2025.
The 38th edition of the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000, won on Sunday November 5 by Novak Djokovic, once again enjoyed real popular success. 170,000 tickets were sold, an attendance record. But paradoxically, there is serious question that the tournament will be organized from 2025 in Nanterre, at the Paris La Défense Arena, where the Racing 92 rugby club plays. Nothing is official, but this move is on track. This relocation would in any case be a small event, since the tournament has been organized at the Accor Arena, formerly POPB (Paris-Bercy sports center), since the creation of the tournament in 1986.
Why this move? Quite simply because the enclosure is outdated and no longer meets the specifications imposed by the ATP, the association which manages the professional circuit. Because the ATP is becoming more and more demanding for the organization of tournaments and the comfort of players, on and off the court. However, Bercy is no longer adapted to this level. The tournament has become too old and too cramped, like the annex courts and relocated training grounds.
The risk of seeing Saudi Arabia regain the tournament
“Obviously, court 1, as we know, is a court which is not at the level of a Masters 1000”, recognizes Cédric Pioline, the tournament director. “So yes, it reassures us in the idea that we did the right thing to begin this reflection which should be completed soon, to know what will happen in the future.” We must therefore act as quickly as possible, hence the idea of moving to Nanterre.
The file is managed by Gilles Moretton, the president of the French Tennis Federation (FFT). “The quality standards demanded by the ATP rise from year to year, with requirements that can result in penalties”explains the president of the FFT. “So our duty is to study all possibilities to both secure and perpetuate this asset and, above all, not lose it.” Because the danger of seeing the tournament leave France really exists. Saudi Arabia is capable of putting a lot of money on the table to at worst recover the tournament, at best to create a 10th Masters 1000.