UAE investment company Mubadala has been confirmed as the new title sponsor for the world’s longest-running women’s only tennis tournament.
The Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic will take place at San Jose University from July 30-August 5 this summer. It replaces the Bank of the West Classic, which had been held annually at Stanford University since 1992.
Last year, Madison Keys was crowned singles champion, while Coco Vandeweghe and Abigail Spears won the doubles.
IMG own and operate the rebranded event, and will offer total prize money of $800,000 across a 28-player singles draw and 16-team doubles draw.
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For Mubadala, it is a first foray into women’s tennis, with the company already sponsoring an eponymous exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi each December, as well as the Rio Open, an ATP 500 event held in Brazil each February.
“Mubadala is proud to support this tournament, which has such a tremendous heritage in the Bay Area and women’s tennis,” said Nadine Saleh Hassan, Senior Vice President for Communications at Mubadala.
“Silicon Valley is associated with innovation and great thinking, and we want to play a part in keeping such a championship-level sporting event in this area for fans and players alike.”
IMG Co-President Mark Shapiro added: “IMG has a long-standing global relationship with Mubadala and we’re looking forward to leveraging their expertise in technology and innovation to raise the entertainment value at this event for our fans.
“Mubadala’s commitment to the growth of tennis is inspiring and makes the company an ideal partner.”
The newly opened Spartan Tennis Complex will host the first edition of the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic, with San Jose State University set to build a custom stadium court with temporary seating for 4,000 fans.
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