London will paint it black in 2022.
The O2 arena in London will host Laver Cup September 23-25, 2022 bringing the tournament's iconic charcoal-colored court to the arena that has hosted the ATP Finals for more than a decade.
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London will host the fifth edition of the competition, following Laver Cup 2021 which will be held next September at TD Garden in Boston.
“London has always held a special place in my heart and it’s going to be incredible to bring the Laver Cup to one of my favorite cities in the world,” said 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer whose TEAM8 Management owns and operates the competition.
The Coronavirus pandemic pushed the 2020 Laver Cup to 2021. Laver Cup 2021 will be staged at Boston's TD Garden, September 24-26th, 2021.
Following the event's tradition of alternating between European and rest of the world cities, the Laver Cup lands in London in 2022.
“We’re so excited to be bringing the Laver Cup to London, a city steeped in tennis heritage,” Laver Cup Chairman and CEO of TEAM8 Tony Godsick said. “The British fans love their tennis and the Laver Cup is like nothing they have seen before.”
“Over one amazing weekend we bring together today’s greatest players as teammates, alongside legends and rivals from previous generations to create a truly unique spectacle that has thrilled fans around the globe.”
Named in honor of Australian tennis legend Rod Laver, the Laver Cup is played on a dramatic black court that will be constructed within The O2, a 20,000 seat arena.
The three-day team competition pits six of the best players from Europe against six of their counterparts from the rest of the World.
Since its debut in Prague in 2017, the Laver Cup has been staged in Chicago in 2018, and Geneva last year. 2022 will mark the third time Team Europe has held the ‘home advantage’.
Team World captain John McEnroe has seen his squad fall to reigning champion Team Europe and captain Bjorn Borg in all three prior editions of the Laver Cup.
The former world No. 1 in singles and doubles is hoping to flip the script in Boston for the 2021 Laver Cup.
"I can't wait to bring the Laver Cup event and tennis, which there hasn't been a lot of tennis in this area for quite a while, to this new beautiful stadum the old Boston Garden," McEnroe said. "I mean this has got so much history it's going to be exciting. I've watched thousands of times when there's events played here over the years and I mostly had to watch from the losing end.
"But now it would be nice to be part of a winning team here... I think there's gonna be unbelievable energy, which I think is gonna propel us hopefully and give us the extra gear we need to win this once and for all. We've been so close if we get the type of support that I hope we can get, I think that can put us over the top—at least that's my plan right now."
Photo credit: Christopher Levy