Starting from October 1, 2026, Uzbekistan will resume hosting regular international tennis tournaments under the auspices of the ATP, WTA, and ITF. This is stipulated in a presidential decree dated September 21. The decree sets new goals for popularizing tennis, identifying talented athletes, improving the system of preparation for professional sports, creating modern sports infrastructure, and increasing performance at prestigious competitions.
From October 1, 2026, Uzbekistan will resume hosting international tennis tournaments under the ATP, WTA, and ITF. The costs of organizing the tournaments and awarding the winners and prize-winners will be financed from sponsorship donations. It is also planned to regularly organize the Uzbekistan Cup among youth and adults, the Republican Championship among youth, juniors, and adults, the Uzbekistan Open international tournament among adults, and the ATP Challenger international tournament among men.
For reference, Uzbekistan has previously hosted prestigious international tennis tournaments. The ATP tournament in Tashkent was held from 1997 to 2002. The last edition of the tournament, called the “President's Cup,” took place in 2002, after which no ATP Tour-level tournament was held in Tashkent. The WTA Tashkent Open was regularly held since 1999. According to WTA data, the tournament continued until 2019, and its last season took place in Tashkent from September 23 to 28. Since 2020, the WTA Lyon Open was organized instead. In addition, ITF-sanctioned tournaments have been held in Uzbekistan in various years. For example, a W15 tournament was planned to be held in Tashkent in March 2026, but it was canceled.
According to the decree, the goal is to increase the number of people regularly playing tennis in Uzbekistan to 3,000 and the number of coaches to 200 by 2030. Measures are also planned to enter the top 5 Asian countries in tennis and include this sport among promising sports. From January 1, 2027, it is planned to introduce the “Juniors Tennis Initiative” program in general secondary education organizations. As part of the program, initial classes aimed at generating interest in tennis during physical education lessons will be organized for students in grades 1-4. Depending on interest in tennis and existing infrastructure, some schools will be selected. They will establish tennis sports sections equipped with sports equipment, including “tennis wall” installations.
The function of managing the Republican Olympic Reserve Tennis School will be transferred to the Tennis Federation of Uzbekistan. The federation will determine the performance indicators of the school, appoint leadership personnel, and approve its financial and strategic development programs. Within two months, the federation must attract highly qualified foreign experts and coaches to the school and develop modern methods for developing the professional competencies of professional athletes, coaches, and referees. By June 1, 2027, it is planned to strengthen the material and technical base of the school with the involvement of sponsorship funds. From 2027, measures will be taken to hold international tennis tournaments under the ITF at the school's base.
From January 1, 2027, tennis courts with sufficient capacity to provide paid services will be transferred to self-financing. They will be able to independently set the amount of payment for paid services. Revenues will primarily be directed to covering utility costs. At the same time, the salaries of coaches conducting classes in existing tennis groups at such courts will be paid from the State Budget. Tennis courts whose income does not cover expenses and which need reconstruction will be transferred to private investors on the basis of public-private partnership. In this case, the continuation of classes of existing tennis groups on a free basis will be ensured.
The decree also determined the amounts of one-time monetary rewards for winners and prize-winners of the Asian and Para Asian Games and the coaches who prepared them. The gold medalist will receive $25,000, the silver medalist $12,500, and the bronze medalist $6,250. Their coaches will receive $10,000, $5,000, and $2,500, respectively.
Source: www.gazeta.uz