WTA Finals

WTA Finals
2024 WTA Finals
Tournament information
Founded	1972;53 years ago (1972)
Editions	53 (2024)
Location	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (2024–26)
Category	WTA Finals [1]
Surface	Hard - outdoors
Draw	8S / 8D (since 2014)
Prize money	$15.25M [2]
Website	wtafinals.com
Current champions (2024)
Singles	Coco Gauff
Doubles	Gabriela Dabrowski Erin Routliffe

The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships ^[3] or WTA Championships) is the season-ending championship of the WTA Tour. It is the most significant tennis event in the women's annual calendar after the four majors, as it features the top eight singles players and top eight doubles teams based on their results throughout the season. The eighth spot is reserved, if needed, for a player or team who won a major in the current year and is ranked from ninth to twentieth.

The tournament predates the WTA Tour and started in 1972 as the championship tournament of the Tour's predecessor: the Virginia Slims Circuit. Since 2003, the tournament has used a unique format not seen in other WTA Tour events: the players are separated into two groups of four, within which they each play three round-robin matches. The top two players or teams from each group after the round-robin stage move on to a knock-out format in the semifinals and final to determine the champion.

The WTA Finals has the largest prize money and ranking points after the majors. The most successful player in both singles and doubles history is Martina Navratilova, with eight singles and 13 doubles titles.

In the tournament's current format, the champion can earn a maximum of 1,500 ranking points, if they win the event as an undefeated champion in the round-robin stage.

Tournament

History

The championships were held for the first time in October 1972 in Boca Raton, Florida (USA) as a climactic event at the end of a series of tournaments sponsored by Virginia Slims, called the Virginia Slims Circuit. ^[4] From 1972 to 1974, the event was held in October, before switching to March from 1975 until 1986. The WTA then decided to adopt a January–November playing season, and so the event was switched to being held at the end of each year. As a consequence, there were two championships held in 1986.

The event was held in Los Angeles, California from 1974 to 1976 before moving to Madison Square Garden in New York City in 1977. With the exception of a one-year move to Oakland, California in 1978, the Championships remained at MSG until 2000. The event then briefly moved to Munich, Germany in 2001. More recently, it moved back to Los Angeles from 2002 to 2005. The 2006 and 2007 editions were held in Madrid, Spain. Doha, Qatar hosted the 2008–2010 editions before passing the flag to Istanbul, Turkey, which hosted the 2011–2013 editions. ^[5] For the right to host the 2014 edition and beyond, 43 cities expressed an interest before a short list comprising Kazan, Russia; Mexico City, Mexico; Singapore; and Tianjin, China was drawn up in late 2012. ^[6] Kazan and Mexico City were ruled out in early 2013 ^[7] before Singapore was announced in May 2013 as the new host city for five years. ^{[8] [9]} In 2018, the WTA announced the host city from 2019 to 2028 would be Shenzhen, China, ^[10] however due to COVID-19 and later the disappearance of Peng Shuai, the tournament was cancelled in 2020 and had to find alternative hosting sites from 2020–2023. ^{[11] [12]} In April 2024, the WTA announced that the host city from 2024–2026 would be Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. ^[13]

Format

From 1984 to 1998, the final of the championships was a best-of-five-sets match, making it the only tournament on the women's tour to have had a best-of-five match at any round of the competition. ^[14] It was the first time since the 1901 U.S. National Championships that the best-of-five format was used in women's matches. ^[15] In 1999, the final reverted to being a best-of-three-sets match. From the 1974 until the 1982 edition the doubles draw consisted of four teams; then from 1983 to 2002 the draw increased to eight teams; was decreased back to four teams until 2013 and from the 2014 edition onward it has been made up of eight teams. From its first inception in 1973 until 2018 the doubles draw was played in a single elimination format. In 2015 and from 2019 until the present the doubles draw has been played in a round robin format. ^[9]

Qualified players and teams participate in a round-robin format in two groups of four. The winners and runners-up of each group advance to the semifinals. The semifinal winners progress through to the finals where they compete for the title.

Qualification

To qualify for the WTA Finals, players compete throughout the year in WTA events throughout the world, as well as the ITF-sanctioned events, such as the four Grand Slams. Players earn ranking points on the leaderboard, and the top seven singles players and top seven doubles teams on this leaderboard at the conclusion of the WTA season (as of the Monday following the final regular season tournament) earn the right to compete in the WTA Finals. The eighth spot in the WTA Finals is awarded to the highest-ranking Grand Slam winner (and highest-ranking Grand Slam winning team for doubles) ranked 8-20 in the standings. If no player (and/or doubles team) meets this criterion, then the 8th ranked player (and/or doubles team) in the standings qualifies. ^[16]

In singles, point totals are calculated by combining points from up to 18 tournaments. Of these tournaments, a player's point total is calculated based on the following: the four Grand Slam events, best six results of the seven combined WTA 1000 tournaments, best result of the three non-combined WTA 1000 tournaments, and lastly the next best seven results from all non-125 WTA tournaments. In doubles, point totals are calculated by the 12 best results among any of the non-125 WTA tournaments and Grand Slams. ^[17]

Venues

Years	City	Country	Venue	Surface	Capacity
1972–73	Boca Raton	United States	Boca Raton Hotel & Club	Clay
1974–76	Los Angeles	United States	Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena	Carpet	14,800
1977	New York City	United States	Madison Square Garden	Carpet	18,000
1978	Oakland	United States	Oakland Arena	Carpet	13,200
1979–2000	New York City	United States	Madison Square Garden	Carpet	18,000
2001	Munich	Germany	Olympiahalle	Hard (i)	12,000
2002–05	Los Angeles	United States	Staples Center	Hard (i)	17,000
2006–07	Madrid	Spain	Madrid Arena	Hard (i)	10,500
2008–10	Doha	Qatar	Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex	Hard	6,911
2011–13	Istanbul	Turkey	Sinan Erdem Dome	Hard (i)	16,410
2014–18	Singapore	Singapore	Singapore Indoor Stadium	Hard (i)	10,000
2019	Shenzhen	China	Shenzhen Bay Sports Center	Hard (i)	12,000
2021	Guadalajara	Mexico	Panamerican Tennis Center	Hard	6,639
2022	Fort Worth	United States	Dickies Arena	Hard (i)	14,000
2023	Cancún	Mexico	Estadio Paradisus	Hard	4,300
2024–26	Riyadh	Saudi Arabia	King Saud University Indoor Arena	Hard

Prize money and points

The total prize money for the 2024 WTA Finals is US$15,250,000, an increase of 69.44% compared to the 2023 edition. ^[18] The tables below break down the prize money, participation fees are prorated on a per match basis.

Stage	Prize money		Points
	Singles	Doubles [a]
Champion	RR [b] + $2,500,000	RR [b] + $520,000	RR + 900
Runner-up	RR + $1,270,000	RR + $255,000	RR + 400
Round robin win per match	+$350,000	+$70,000	200
Participation Fee	$335,000	$140,000	—
Alternates	$250,000	$106,000	—

1. Prize money for doubles is per team.
2. RR means prize money or points won in the round-robin round.

• An undefeated champion would earn the maximum 1,500 points and $3,885,000 in singles or $870,000 in doubles.
• Participation fees are prorated on a per match basis. Singles: 1 match = $225,000 2 matches = $275,000 and 3 matches = $335,000. Doubles: 1 match = $94,000 2 matches = $116,000 and 3 matches = $140,000.
• Alternate fees are also prorated on a per-match basis. Singles: 0 matches = $140,000, 1 match = $200,000, 2 matches = $250,000. Doubles: 0 matches= $60,000, 1 match = $84,000, 2 matches= $106,000

Since 2014, the singles and doubles winners of the tournament receive the Billie Jean King Trophy ^{[19] [20]} and the Martina Navratilova trophy, ^{[21] [22]} respectively.

List of finals

Singles

‡ From 1984 to 1998, the final match in singles was held in a best-of-five-sets format. ^[9]

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1972	Chris Evert (1/4)	Kerry Melville	7–5, 6–4
1973	Chris Evert (2/4)	Nancy Richey Gunter	6–3, 6–3
1974	Evonne Goolagong (1/2)	Chris Evert	6–3, 6–4
1975	Chris Evert (3/4)	Martina Navratilova	6–4, 6–2
1976	Evonne Goolagong Cawley (2/2)	Chris Evert	6–3, 5–7, 6–3
1977	Chris Evert (4/4)	Sue Barker	2–6, 6–1, 6–1
1978	Martina Navratilova (1/8)	Evonne Goolagong Cawley	7–6(7–2), 6–4
1979	Martina Navratilova (2/8)	Tracy Austin	6–3, 3–6, 6–2
1980	Tracy Austin (1/1)	Martina Navratilova	6–2, 2–6, 6–2
1981	Martina Navratilova (3/8)	Andrea Jaeger	6–3, 7–6(7–3)
1982	Sylvia Hanika (1/1)	Martina Navratilova	1–6, 6–3, 6–4
1983	Martina Navratilova (4/8)	Chris Evert	6–2, 6–0
1984 ‡	Martina Navratilova (5/8)	Chris Evert	6–3, 7–5, 6–1
1985 ‡	Martina Navratilova (6/8)	Helena Suková	6–3, 7–5, 6–4
1986 (Mar.) ‡	Martina Navratilova (7/8)	Hana Mandlíková	6–2, 6–0, 3–6, 6–1
1986 (Nov.) ‡	Martina Navratilova (8/8)	Steffi Graf	7–6(8–6), 6–3, 6–2
1987 ‡	Steffi Graf (1/5)	Gabriela Sabatini	4–6, 6–4, 6–0, 6–4
1988 ‡	Gabriela Sabatini (1/2)	Pam Shriver	7–5, 6–2, 6–2
1989 ‡	Steffi Graf (2/5)	Martina Navratilova	6–4, 7–5, 2–6, 6–2
1990 ‡	Monica Seles (1/3)	Gabriela Sabatini	6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 6–4, 6–2
1991 ‡	Monica Seles (2/3)	Martina Navratilova	6–4, 3–6, 7–5, 6–0
1992 ‡	Monica Seles (3/3)	Martina Navratilova	7–5, 6–3, 6–1
1993 ‡	Steffi Graf (3/5)	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–1, 6–4, 3–6, 6–1
1994 ‡	Gabriela Sabatini (2/2)	Lindsay Davenport	6–3, 6–2, 6–4
1995 ‡	Steffi Graf (4/5)	Anke Huber	6–1, 2–6, 6–1, 4–6, 6–3
1996 ‡	Steffi Graf (5/5)	Martina Hingis	6–3, 4–6, 6–0, 4–6, 6–0
1997 ‡	Jana Novotná (1/1)	Mary Pierce	7–6(7–4), 6–2, 6–3
1998 ‡	Martina Hingis (1/2)	Lindsay Davenport	7–5, 6–4, 4–6, 6–2
1999	Lindsay Davenport (1/1)	Martina Hingis	6–4, 6–2
2000	Martina Hingis (2/2)	Monica Seles	6–7(5–7), 6–4, 6–4
2001	Serena Williams (1/5)	Lindsay Davenport	walkover
2002	Kim Clijsters (1/3)	Serena Williams	7–5, 6–3
2003	Kim Clijsters (2/3)	Amélie Mauresmo	6–2, 6–0
2004	Maria Sharapova (1/1)	Serena Williams	4–6, 6–2, 6–4
2005	Amélie Mauresmo (1/1)	Mary Pierce	5–7, 7–6(7–3), 6–4
2006	Justine Henin (1/2)	Amélie Mauresmo	6–4, 6–3
2007	Justine Henin (2/2)	Maria Sharapova	5–7, 7–5, 6–3
2008	Venus Williams (1/1)	Vera Zvonareva	6–7(5–7), 6–0, 6–2
2009	Serena Williams (2/5)	Venus Williams	6–2, 7–6(7–4)
2010	Kim Clijsters (3/3)	Caroline Wozniacki	6–3, 5–7, 6–3
2011	Petra Kvitová (1/1)	Victoria Azarenka	7–5, 4–6, 6–3
2012	Serena Williams (3/5)	Maria Sharapova	6–4, 6–3
2013	Serena Williams (4/5)	Li Na	2–6, 6–3, 6–0
2014	Serena Williams (5/5)	Simona Halep	6–3, 6–0
2015	Agnieszka Radwańska (1/1)	Petra Kvitová	6–2, 4–6, 6–3
2016	Dominika Cibulková (1/1)	Angelique Kerber	6–3, 6–4
2017	Caroline Wozniacki (1/1)	Venus Williams	6–4, 6–4
2018	Elina Svitolina (1/1)	Sloane Stephens	3–6, 6–2, 6–2
2019	Ashleigh Barty (1/1)	Elina Svitolina	6–4, 6–3
2020	No competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021	Garbiñe Muguruza (1/1)	Anett Kontaveit	6–3, 7–5
2022	Caroline Garcia (1/1)	Aryna Sabalenka [a]	7–6(7–4), 6–4
2023	Iga Świątek (1/1)	Jessica Pegula	6–1, 6–0
2024	Coco Gauff (1/1)	Zheng Qinwen	3–6, 6–4, 7–6(7–2)

Doubles

Year	Champions	Runners-up	Score
1972	No Doubles Played
1973	Rosemary Casals (1/2) Margaret Court (1/2)	Françoise Dürr Betty Stöve	6–2, 6–4
1974	Rosemary Casals (2/2) Billie Jean King (1/4)	Françoise Dürr Betty Stöve	6–1, 6–7(2–7), 7–5
1975	Margaret Court (2/2) Virginia Wade (1/1)	Rosemary Casals Billie Jean King	6–7(2–7), 7–6(7–2), 6–2
1976	Billie Jean King (2/4) Betty Stöve (1/3)	Mona Guerrant Ann Kiyomura	6–3, 6–2
1977	Martina Navratilova (1/13) Betty Stöve (2/3)	Françoise Dürr Virginia Wade	7–5, 6–3
1978	Billie Jean King (3/4) Martina Navratilova (2/13)	Françoise Dürr Virginia Wade	6–4, 6–4
1979	Françoise Dürr (1/1) Betty Stöve (3/3)	Sue Barker Ann Kiyomura	7–6(7–1), 7–6(7–3)
1980	Billie Jean King (4/4) Martina Navratilova (3/13)	Rosemary Casals Wendy Turnbull	6–3, 4–6, 6–3
1981	Martina Navratilova (4/13) Pam Shriver (1/10)	Barbara Potter Sharon Walsh	6–0, 7–6(8–6)
1982	Martina Navratilova (5/13) Pam Shriver (2/10)	Kathy Jordan Anne Smith	6–4, 6–3
1983	Martina Navratilova (6/13) Pam Shriver (3/10)	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Eva Pfaff	7–5, 6–2
1984	Martina Navratilova (7/13) Pam Shriver (4/10)	Jo Durie Ann Kiyomura	6–3, 6–1
1985	Martina Navratilova (8/13) Pam Shriver (5/10)	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	6–7(4–7), 6–4, 7–6(7–5)
1986 (Mar.)	Hana Mandlíková (1/1) Wendy Turnbull (1/1)	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	6–4, 6–7(4–7), 6–3
1986 (Nov.)	Martina Navratilova (9/13) Pam Shriver (6/10)	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	7–6(7–1), 6–3
1987	Martina Navratilova (10/13) Pam Shriver (7/10)	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	6–1, 6–1
1988	Martina Navratilova (11/13) Pam Shriver (8/10)	Larisa Savchenko Natalia Zvereva	6–3, 6–4
1989	Martina Navratilova (12/13) Pam Shriver (9/10)	Larisa Savchenko Natalia Zvereva	6–3, 6–2
1990	Kathy Jordan (1/1) Elizabeth Smylie (1/1)	Mercedes Paz Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	7–6(7–4), 6–4
1991	Martina Navratilova (13/13) Pam Shriver (10/10)	Gigi Fernández Jana Novotná	4–6, 7–5, 6–4
1992	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario (1/2) Helena Suková (1/1)	Jana Novotná Larisa Savchenko Neiland	7–6(7–4), 6–1
1993	Gigi Fernández (1/2) Natalia Zvereva (1/3)	Jana Novotná Larisa Neiland	6–3, 7–5
1994	Gigi Fernández (2/2) Natasha Zvereva (2/3)	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–3, 6–7(4–7), 6–3
1995	Jana Novotná (1/2) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario (2/2)	Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva	6–2, 6–1
1996	Lindsay Davenport (1/3) Mary Joe Fernández (1/1)	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–3, 6–2
1997	Lindsay Davenport (2/3) Jana Novotná (2/2)	Alexandra Fusai Nathalie Tauziat	6–7(5–7), 6–3, 6–2
1998	Lindsay Davenport (3/3) Natasha Zvereva (3/3)	Alexandra Fusai Nathalie Tauziat	6–7(6–8), 7–5, 6–3
1999	Martina Hingis (1/3) Anna Kournikova (1/2)	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario Larisa Neiland	6–4, 6–4
2000	Martina Hingis (2/3) Anna Kournikova (2/2)	Nicole Arendt Manon Bollegraf	6–2, 6–3
2001	Lisa Raymond (1/4) Rennae Stubbs (1/1)	Cara Black Elena Likhovtseva	7–5, 3–6, 6–3
2002	Elena Dementieva (1/1) Janette Husárová (1/1)	Cara Black Elena Likhovtseva	4–6, 6–4, 6–3
2003	Virginia Ruano Pascual (1/1) Paola Suárez (1/1)	Kim Clijsters Ai Sugiyama	6–4, 3–6, 6–3
2004	Nadia Petrova (1/2) Meghann Shaughnessy (1/1)	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs	7–5, 6–2
2005	Lisa Raymond (2/4) Samantha Stosur (1/2)	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs	6–7(5–7), 7–5, 6–4
2006	Lisa Raymond (3/4) Samantha Stosur (2/2)	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs	3–6, 6–3, 6–3
2007	Cara Black (1/3) Liezel Huber (1/3)	Katarina Srebotnik Ai Sugiyama	5–7, 6–3, [10–8]
2008	Cara Black (2/3) Liezel Huber (2/3)	Květa Peschke Rennae Stubbs	6–1, 7–5
2009	Nuria Llagostera Vives (1/1) María José Martínez Sánchez (1/1)	Cara Black Liezel Huber	7–6(7–0), 5–7, [10–7]
2010	Gisela Dulko (1/1) Flavia Pennetta (1/1)	Květa Peschke Katarina Srebotnik	7–5, 6–4
2011	Liezel Huber (3/3) Lisa Raymond (4/4)	Květa Peschke Katarina Srebotnik	6–4, 6–4
2012	Maria Kirilenko (1/1) Nadia Petrova (2/2)	Andrea Hlaváčková Lucie Hradecká	6–1, 6–4
2013	Hsieh Su-wei (1/1) Peng Shuai (1/1)	Ekaterina Makarova Elena Vesnina	6–4, 7–5
2014	Cara Black (3/3) Sania Mirza (1/2)	Hsieh Su-wei Peng Shuai	6–1, 6–0
2015	Martina Hingis (3/3) Sania Mirza (2/2)	Garbiñe Muguruza Carla Suárez Navarro	6–0, 6–3
2016	Ekaterina Makarova (1/1) Elena Vesnina (1/1)	Bethanie Mattek-Sands Lucie Šafářová	7–6(7–5), 6–3
2017	Tímea Babos (1/3) Andrea Hlaváčková (1/1)	Kiki Bertens Johanna Larsson	4–6, 6–4, [10–5]
2018	Tímea Babos (2/3) Kristina Mladenovic (1/2)	Barbora Krejčíková Kateřina Siniaková	6–4, 7–5
2019	Tímea Babos (3/3) Kristina Mladenovic (2/2)	Hsieh Su-wei Barbora Strýcová	6–1, 6–3
2020	No competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021	Barbora Krejčíková (1/1) Kateřina Siniaková (1/1)	Hsieh Su-wei Elise Mertens	6–3, 6–4
2022	Veronika Kudermetova [b] (1/1) Elise Mertens (1/1)	Barbora Krejčíková Kateřina Siniaková	6–2, 4–6, [11–9]
2023	Laura Siegemund (1/1) Vera Zvonareva [b] (1/1)	Nicole Melichar-Martinez Ellen Perez	6–4, 6–4
2024	Gabriela Dabrowski (1/1) Erin Routliffe (1/1)	Kateřina Siniaková Taylor Townsend	7–5, 6–3

1. On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Belarus will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Belarus following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Aryna Sabalenka thus competed as neutral player since then. ^[23]
2. On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list. ^[24]

List of champions

• Current through 2024 WTA Finals (active players in bold).

Singles Titles Player Years 8 Martina Navratilova 1978–79, 81, 83–86(Nov.) [a] [b] 5 Steffi Graf 1987, 89, 93, 95–96 Serena Williams 2001, 09, 12–14 4 Chris Evert 1972–73, 75, 77 3 / Monica Seles 1990–92 Kim Clijsters 2002–03, 10 2 Evonne Goolagong Cawley 1974, 76 Gabriela Sabatini 1988, 94 Martina Hingis 1998, 2000 Justine Henin 2006–07 1 Tracy Austin 1980 Sylvia Hanika 1982 Jana Novotná 1997 Lindsay Davenport 1999 Maria Sharapova 2004 Amélie Mauresmo 2005 Venus Williams 2008 Petra Kvitová 2011 Agnieszka Radwańska 2015 Dominika Cibulková 2016 Caroline Wozniacki 2017 Elina Svitolina 2018 Ashleigh Barty 2019 Garbiñe Muguruza 2021 Caroline Garcia 2022 Iga Świątek 2023 Coco Gauff 2024

Doubles Titles Player Years 13 Martina Navratilova 1977–78, 80–86(Nov.), [b] 87–89, 91 10 Pam Shriver 1981–86(Nov.), [b] 87–89, 91 4 Billie Jean King 1974, 76, 78, 80 Lisa Raymond 2001, 05–06, 11 3 Betty Stöve 1976–77, 79 / Natasha Zvereva 1993–94, 98 Lindsay Davenport 1996–98 Liezel Huber 2007–08, 11 Cara Black 2007–08, 14 Martina Hingis 1999–00, 2015 Tímea Babos 2017–19 2 Rosemary Casals 1973–74 Margaret Court 1973, 75 Gigi Fernández 1993–94 Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 1992, 95 Jana Novotná 1995, 97 Anna Kournikova 1999–00 Samantha Stosur 2005–06 Nadia Petrova 2004, 12 Sania Mirza 2014–15 Kristina Mladenovic 2018–19 1 Virginia Wade 1975 Françoise Dürr 1979 Wendy Turnbull Hana Mandlíková 1986(Mar.) [a] Kathy Jordan Elizabeth Smylie 1990 Helena Suková 1992 Mary Joe Fernández 1996 Rennae Stubbs 2001 Elena Dementieva Janette Husárová 2002 Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 2003 Meghann Shaughnessy 2004 Nuria Llagostera Vives María José Martínez Sánchez 2009 Gisela Dulko Flavia Pennetta 2010 Maria Kirilenko 2012 Hsieh Su-wei Peng Shuai 2013 Ekaterina Makarova Elena Vesnina 2016 Andrea Hlaváčková 2017 Barbora Krejčiková Kateřina Siniaková 2021 Veronika Kudermetova [c] Elise Mertens 2022 Laura Siegemund Vera Zvonareva [c] 2023 Gabriela Dabrowski Erin Routliffe 2024

1. In 1986 the WTA adopted a January–November playing season, thereby the event switched to being held at the end of each year. Consequently, there were two championships held in 1986. First edition was played in March. ^[26]
2. Second edition was played in November.
3. On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list. ^[25]

Records and statistics

Note: Active players indicated in bold.

Singles

# Titles 8 Martina Navratilova 5 Steffi Graf Serena Williams 4 Chris Evert 3 / Monica Seles Kim Clijsters

# Finals 14 / Martina Navratilova 8 Chris Evert 7 Serena Williams 6 Steffi Graf 4 Gabriela Sabatini / / Monica Seles Martina Hingis Lindsay Davenport

# Matches won 60 / Martina Navratilova 34 Chris Evert 31 Steffi Graf 29 Serena Williams 21 Gabriela Sabatini

# Editions played 21 / Martina Navratilova 13 Chris Evert Steffi Graf Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 12 Zina Garrison Conchita Martínez

Youngest & oldest champions

Singles [27]	Youngest	Monica Seles	16 years, 11 months	1990
	Oldest	Serena Williams	33 years, 1 month	2014
Doubles	Youngest	Anna Kournikova	18 years, 5 months	1999
	Oldest	Vera Zvonareva [a]	39 years, 1 month	2023

1. On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list. ^[28]

Longest and shortest matches

Singles

Best-of-five-sets system:

Longest match by time played
1990 final, 3 hours and 47 minutes [29] [30]
Monica Seles	6	5	3	6	6
Gabriela Sabatini	4	7	6	4	2

Best-of-three-sets system:

Longest match by time played [31] 2012 round robin, 3 hours and 29 minutes Agnieszka Radwańska 66 7 6 Sara Errani 78 5 4 Longest match by games won [31] 2017 round robin, 37 games Venus Williams 7 63 7 Jeļena Ostapenko 5 77 5

Shortest match by games won 2007 round robin, 12 games Justine Henin 6 6 Marion Bartoli 0 0

Doubles

Longest match by games won 1985 final, 36 games Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 64 6 77 Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková 77 4 65

Shortest match by games won 2014 final, 13 games Cara Black Sania Mirza 6 6 Hsieh Su-wei Peng Shuai 1 0

Year-end championships double & triple

Winning three or two out of the four Year-ending championships since its inception in 1972: WTA Championships/Finals, Series-Ending Championships, Grand Slam Cup, WTA Tournament of Champions/Elite Trophy indicated in bold.

Double crown

Winning the Year-end championships in both singles and doubles in the same year.

No.	Player	Years won
5	Martina Navratilova	1978, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986(Nov) [a]
1	Jana Novotná	1997
	Martina Hingis	2000

1. In 1986 the event was held twice because of a change of schedule by the WTA. First edition was played in March, the second in November. Navratilova would go on to win the second edition in both singles and doubles that year. ^[26]

Year-end championships triple

No.	Player	WTA Championships/Finals	Grand Slam Cup	WTA Elite Trophy
1	Venus Williams	2008	1998	2015

WTA Championships – Series-Ending Championships Double

No.	Player	WTA Championships/Finals	Series-Ending Championships
1	Chris Evert	1972	1977
2	Martina Navratilova	1978	1979
3	Tracy Austin	1980	1980

WTA Championships – Grand Slam Cup Double

No.	Player	WTA Championships/Finals	Grand Slam Cup
1	Serena Williams	2001	1999
2	Venus Williams [a]	2008	1998

1. she later completed a YEC Triple.

WTA Championships – WTA Elite Trophy Double

No.	Player	WTA Championships/Finals	WTA Elite Trophy
1	Venus Williams [a]	2008	2015
2	Petra Kvitová	2011	2016
3	Ashleigh Barty	2019	2018

1. with the 2015 WTA Elite Trophy she also completed a YEC Triple.

Grand Slam Cup – WTA Elite Trophy Double

No.	Player	Grand Slam Cup	WTA Elite Trophy
1	Venus Williams [a]	1998	2015

1. with the 2015 WTA Elite Trophy she also completed a YEC Triple.

Titles by country

Singles

21	United States (7 players)

6	West Germany / Germany (2 players)

5	Belgium (2 players)

3	Australia (2 players),   Yugoslavia /   Yugoslavia (1 player)

2	Argentina (1 player),   Czech Republic (2 players),   France (2 players),   Poland (2 players),    Switzerland (1 player)

1	Denmark ,   Russia ,   Slovakia ,   Spain ,   Ukraine

Doubles

Note: Titles, won by a team of players from same country, count as one title, not two.

29	United States (11 players)

7	Australia (5 players)

6	Czechoslovakia / Czech Republic (6 players),   Russia (6 players) [a]

4	Spain (4 players)

3	Belarus (1 player),   France (2 players),   Hungary (1 player),   Netherlands (1 player),    Switzerland (1 player),   Zimbabwe (1 player)

2	Argentina (2 players),   India (1 player)

1	Belgium ,   Canada ,   China ,   Chinese Taipei ,   Germany ,   Great Britain ,   Italy ,   New Zealand ,   Slovakia

Note

1. On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list. ^[32]

Sponsors

The event has a more than 40-year history of corporate sponsorship with the finals named after the sponsoring company. ^[4]

Years	Sponsor	Name	Refs
1972–1978	Virginia Slims	Virginia Slims Championships
1979–1982	Avon	Avon Championships
1983–1994	Virginia Slims	Virginia Slims Championships
1995	None	WTA Tour Championships
1996–2000	Chase	Chase Championships
2001	Sanex	Sanex Championships
2002	The Home Depot	Home Depot Championships
2003	Bank of America	Bank of America WTA Tour Championships
2004	None	WTA Tour Championships
2005–2010	Sony Ericsson	Sony Ericsson Championships
2011–2013	BNP Paribas and Türk Ekonomi Bankası	TEB–BNP Paribas WTA Championships Istanbul
2014–2018	BNP Paribas and SC Global	BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global	[33]
2019	Shiseido	Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen	[34]
2021	Akron	Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara	[35]
2022	Hologic	Hologic WTA Finals Fort Worth	[36]
2023	GNP Seguros	GNP Seguros WTA Finals Cancun	[37]

See also

• Toyota Championships
• WTA Finals appearances
• WTA Elite Trophy
• ATP Finals

References

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3. "WTA re-launches year-end Championships as WTA Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. May 27, 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 6, 2014.
4. "TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup" (PDF). WTA Tour. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2014.
5. "2011 Calendar Announced". WTA Tour. 2 July 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
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7. "Three cities still in running to host WTA Championships". www.wtatennis.com. WTA.
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13. @WTA (April 4, 2024). "Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, will host the next three editions of the WTA Finals from 2024-2026. The 2024 season-ending Finals will take place November 2-9, featuring the top 8 singles players and doubles teams in the Race to the #WTAFinals" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
14. "40 Love History: Five Set Finals". Women's Tennis Association (WTA). 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
15. "It's the Way It's (Almost) Always Been". New York Times. 3 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
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21. Merrell, Chloe (7 November 2021). "WTA Tour Finals 2021 preview: everything you need to know". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
22. "Evert, Navratilova to serve as WTA Finals legend ambassadors". Women's Tennis Association. 4 November 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
23. "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
24. "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
25. "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
26. "About WTA Finals". Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara. Archived from the original on 2021-11-11.
27. "WTA Finals 2021: By the Numbers - Tennis Now". www.tennisnow.com. 9 November 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
28. "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
29. "November 18, 1990: Seles and Sabatini go five". www.tennismajors.com. 18 November 2020. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
30. "Return Winners: A look back at the 1990 WTA Finals". www.tennis.com. 29 October 2016. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
31. "Venus outlasts Ostapenko in marathon Singapore epic". www.wtatennis.com. 24 October 2017. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
32. "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
33. "Tennis-BNP Paribas extends WTA Championship sponsorship". Reuters. Singapore. 11 March 2014. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
34. "Shiseido signs on as title sponsor of WTA Finals Shenzhen". wtatennis.com. Shenzhen. 23 July 2019.
35. "WTA Finals: Making Guadalajara Before the World". smallcapnews.co.uk. Guadalajara. 21 September 2021.
36. "Hologic partners with WTA Tour in landmark title sponsorship". wtatennis.com. Fort Worth. 3 March 2022.
37. "GNP Seguros WTA Finals Cancun 2023". boletomovil.com. Cancun. 15 October 2023.

External links

• Official website