The reason why the WTA Finals moved from Saudi Arabia to Charlotte has now been revealed

The WTA Finals will move to Charlotte, North Carolina, from 2027.

In 2027, the WTA Finals will be held in Indian Wells, California, instead of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, before moving to a permanent home in Charlotte the next year.

But why was Charlotte selected as the new host for the year-end championships? Appearing as a guest on Andy Roddick’s ‘Served‘ podcast, WTA chair Valerie Camillo answered that very question.

WTA chair Valerie Camillo says Charlotte ‘rallied together’ to host the WTA Finals

“The first thing to understand with how we came to Charlotte is that we changed the ambition for how we wanted to host the finals. The way that the Finals has been operated for a few decades now is that we have licensed the Finals to third-party operators, who have held the event for us and largely shaped the event; yes, the WTA have a role in it,” she said.

“But our ambition here was to say, we’re coming out of this moment; our deal in Saudi Arabia was wrapping up; could we rethink how we are approaching our championships? To raise the profile of it, to make it bigger, to make it matter more, which benefits the entire tour. It benefits the players to have a championship that is world-class.

“So, the first step of that was to get it in markets that are going to have rabid fans that are going to be passionate about what we are bringing. How do we get creative about our broadcast reach, and all these different elements that go into making the biggest events in sports what they are?”

Camillo continued, revealing who called to set the move to Charlotte in motion.

“My first call came from Max Eisenbud at IMG. He called and said, ‘Hey, I know you guys are thinking about this; have you thought about Charlotte?’ and that began the journey. Max has a connection into Charlotte Sports Foundation, and that was a really unique organisation that I wasn’t familiar with. The first meeting I took with them, I said this is the path,” she said.

“We needed a journey to go from something where we’re relying on third parties to doing it ourselves; we’ve got to go through a little bit of the middle, someone who can help us bridge. That’s what we found with Charlotte Sports Foundation, what we found with the business community there, the state, the local city and county government.

“How everyone rallied together to get us. It was so nice to be pursued; they really pursued us, and that makes your desire to partner together and the belief of what you can build; it gives you great confidence.”

Camillo wants the WTA Finals to become one of the biggest events in the sporting calendar and believes hosting the tournament themselves will make that happen. Charlotte will become the seventh American city to host the year-end championships in 2027.

WTA Finals hosts

• Boca Raton, USA (1972-1973)
• Los Angeles, USA (1974-1976, 2002-2005)
• New York City, USA (1977, 1979-2000)
• Oakland, USA (1978)
• Munich, Germany (2001)
• Madrid, Spain (2006-2007)
• Doha, Qatar (2008-2010)
• Istanbul, Turkey (2011-2013)
• Singapore, Singapore (2014-2018)
• Shenzhen, China (2019)
• Guadalajara, Mexico (2021)
• Fort Worth, USA (2022)
• Cancun, Mexico (2023)
• Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (2024-2025)
• Indian Wells, USA (2026)
• Charlotte, USA (2027-)

But there is another tournament to be played before the stars of women’s tennis head to North Carolina. The 2026 WTA Finals in Indian Wells is right around the corner…

Who will play the 2026 WTA Finals in Indian Wells?

Elena Rybakina, Aryna Sabalenka, Mirra Andreeva, Jessica Pegula, Coco Gauff, Elina Svitolina, and Linda Noskova have already qualified for the 2026 WTA Finals. The final qualification spot will go to either Karolina Muchova, Iga Swiatek, or Marta Kostyuk.

Live WTA Race

Muchova currently occupies the final qualification spot, leading Swiatek by 721 points and Kostyuk by 815 points. Muchova and Kostyuk are both out of the Wuhan Open, but Swiatek is safely through to the quarter-finals. If the Pole wins the title she will jump ahead of Muchova in the ‘WTA Race’.

The 2026 WTA Finals will begin on Saturday, November 6.