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Fed Cup by BNP Paribas
Fed Cup 2009 :
7/8 November - Final: Italy/USA
Circolo del Tennis "Rocco Polimeni", Reggio Calabria, Italy
Watch the final live online (official website)
25/26 April - Semifinals and Play-offs
World Group, 2009 - Semifinal
Italy v Russia (Castellaneta Marina, Italy)
Czech Republic v USA (Brno, Czech Republic)
World Group, Play-off 2009
Spain v Serbia (Lleida, Spain)
France v Slovak Republic (Limoges, France)
Germany v China (Frankfurt, Germany)
Argentina v Ukraine (Mar Del Plata, Argentina)
World Group II, Play-off 2009
Belgium v Canada (Hasselt, Belgium)
Estonia v Israel (Tallinn, Estonia)
Poland v Japan (Gdynia, Poland)
Australia v Switzerland (Mildura Australia)
Official website
7/8 February - First round:The concept of a team competition for women originated as early as 1919 and is credited to Mrs. Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman. When her idea was rejected, she went her own way, presenting a trophy for an annual competition between the United States and Great Britain (the Wightman Cup), who were at that time the two strongest tennis playing nations.
Mrs. Wightman later found an ally for her original idea in Mrs. Nell Hopman, wife of the legendary Australian Davis Cup captain, Harry Hopman. But it was not until 1962 that firm plans for a women's team competition started to take shape when a British resident of the United States, Mary Hardwick Hare, presented a dossier proving that support for such an event was overwhelming. This dossier convinced the ITF that a team competition played over one week in a different venue each year was a good idea.
It was thus in 1963 that the Federation Cup, the premier team competition in women's tennis, was finally launched to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the International Tennis Federation. The competition proved to be a great success and became in the minds of players and fans alike one of the most important events in international tennis.
A crucial part in the success of the event was played by the leading players of the day, Margaret Court and Billie Jean King, who threw their weight behind the argument in favour of the competition. Ironically, the two clashed in the final of the first Federation Cup, played in 1963 at The Queens Club, London, which was won by the United States.
The inaugural event attracted entries from 16 teams. In the early days, before prize money was introduced and when teams had to meet their own expenses to sometimes distant lands, many nations could not afford to compete. The turnaround came with the advent of sponsorship, originally by the Colgate group in 1976 and, from 1981 to 1994 by the Japanese communications and computer giant, NEC. By 1994, the number of competing nations had soared to a record 73. This rise in entries also led to the creation of a regional qualifying competition in 1992 and, more importantly, brought about the changes in format for the Fed Cup from 1995 to the current year.
The format for the Fed Cup in 2005 consists of an eight-nation World Group I and eight-nation World Group II. The competition will be played over three weekends on a home and away knockout format. All other nations compete in Regional Qualifying events. The four nations that lose in the first round of World Group I will face the four nations who have won their first World Group II Match in play-off ties. The losers of World Group II first matches will participate in play-offs against the winners of the Regional Qualifying rounds to determine who will play in the 2006 World Group II.
As the competition has evolved, the Fed Cup has proven to be a resounding success. The competition has been blessed by the participation of the top players, sold out stadiums, worldwide television audiences and intense media interest. The 2005 competition will have 88 nations competing, and each hopes to one day have the opportunity to raise aloft the coveted Fed Cup trophy at the end of the year.
The list of players who have competed in the Fed Cup is impressive to say the least. Many of the game's all time greats, along with the stars of today, have, throughout the years, featured in the competition. Names such as Billie Jean King, Margaret Court, Chris Evert, Virginia Wade, Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf appear alongside many of today's stars such as Anastasia Myskina, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Justine Henin-Hardenne, Kim Clijsters, Amelie Mauresmo and Serena and Venus Williams. As we move further into the new millennium, we begin to witness the emergence of the next generation of young and ultra-talented players all of whom have started to make their mark in the Fed Cup and provide a stiff challenge to some of the competition's more seasoned players. This new and exciting generation of Fed Cup players is proof, if any were needed, that Mrs. Wightman, Mrs. Hopman, Mrs. Hare and their allies were right: women's tennis demands a truly international stage, which is exactly what the Fed Cup provides.
On Wenesday 15, 2005, BNP Paribas has agreed to become title sponsor of Fed Cup by BNP Paribas, the largest annual international team competition in women's sport, and this agreement will commence with the 2005 Final between France and Russia being played this weekend at Roland Garros in Paris. This agreement was signed by Baudouin Prot, Chief Executive Officer of BNP Paribas, and Francesco Ricci Bitti, President of the ITF .
Fed Cup 2008 :
All information about the 2008 edition