Victoria Azarenka plays a setback against Iga Swiatek in Poland in her second round match on the third day of the Dubai Duty Free tennis championships, which is part of the WTA Hological Tour at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on February 18, 2025.
Christopher Pike | Getty images
Great changes arrive at the tennis of professional women.
The Women’s Tennis Association and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund launched a new program to provide players with the benefits of family planning for players and children, organizations announced on Thursday. Women’s tennis is one of the last professional sports to offer these advantages, and the players asked.
As part of the program, eligible players will receive up to 12 months of maternity leave paid. Players will also have access to subsidies to cover the design of fertility and egg freezing treatments. The WTA said that the new policy will benefit 320 eligible players.
“This initiative will offer the current and next generation of players support and flexibility to explore family life, in whatever form they choose,” said Portia Archer, CEO of WTA, in a statement.
The Pif WTA maternity fund program is the first and the only maternity program in female sports to be fully funded and supported by an external partner, WTA said. PIF refused to comment on the amount that this contributes to this program, but the organizations have said that players will be compensated.
In May, the SAUDI Public Investment Fund and the WTA agreed with a multi -year partnership while Saudi Arabia seeks to continue its investment in sport. Pif also finances the Liv Golf League.
The partnership has aroused criticism from certain current and former actors due to the history of Saudi Arabia to human rights violations. The new policy could be an attempted PIF to show us the tennis fans that the kingdom changes.
“PIF partnerships are designed to raise all levels of sport and leave an inheritance of transformative impact on a global scale,” said Alanoud Althonayan, responsible for events and sponsorships in a statement.
Although the changes report a positive step for female tennis, sport follows the traces of other professional sports of women, because the benefits of maternity has become a key problem for players in recent years.
“Returning to my experience in 2008 when I had my daughter, there was no support,” said Kim Clijsters, former WTA player N ° 1 and Pif ambassador, in a statement. “I think it will be an opportunity that changes career for many players.”
The latest collective agreement for Women’s National Basketball Association with players guarantees women paying maternity leave. FIFA and the National Women’s Soccer League have also recently expanded their maternity services.
Thursday’s announcement was for a long time to come for the former high -level star Victoria Azarenka. She pleaded for the maternity wages in tennis since he gave birth to his son in 2016. Azarenka sits on the advice of players pleading for increased advantages.
“This marks the beginning of a significant change in the way we support women in tennis, which allows athletes to pursue their careers and their aspirations to start a family,” Azarenka said in a statement. “Ensure that programs like this exist has been a personal mission to me, and I am delighted to see the lasting impact that it will have for future generations.”