Latest Saudi Arabia bid as Billie Jean King Cup targeted despite LGBTQ+ campaigning from tennis icon behind tournament

Saudi Arabia remains interested in hosting the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in 2025 as part of its ongoing efforts to establish itself as a tennis destination in the Middle East. The country previously sought to host the WTA Finals last year, but the city of Cancun, Mexico, ultimately secured the hosting rights.

Despite Billie Jean King's iconic status as an advocate for LGBT+ rights, Saudi Arabia sees potential in hosting the women's team competition. The 80-year-old American, who was the first professional athlete to publicly come out as gay, continues to be a prominent figure in activism following her retirement.

Several tennis players, including Grand Slam champions Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, as well as Daria Kasatkina, who came out as gay in 2022, have voiced their opposition. Saudi Arabia has consistently faced criticism for its concerning human rights landscape, marked by the lack of women's rights, criminalization of homosexuality, restrictions on freedom of expression, and the prevalence of capital punishment.

Given these abuses, particularly against women, it would be controversial for one of the most significant women's circuit tournaments to take place there, and many players, both active and former Grand Slam winners, have expressed their concerns about it.

In the 2023 US Open, which marked 50 years since equal pay in the WTA, Billie Jean King was honored for her pioneering efforts since the beginning of the Open Era. During the tournament, King expressed her concerns in an interview with Good Morning America:

“We're now at a tipping point where people are investing in us and believing in us because they think we're going to make money. We have to keep working harder and harder because we have a long way to go," she said.

"I remember just believing in myself enough to win and [knowing] that this was more about social change and everybody else in the world, not just about me - I usually do better when it's bigger than myself," King added. "I remember thinking that if I could just win, maybe this will help things get better for everybody and more about equality for everyone."