United Cup 2025 Preview: Everything you need to know about the first event of the season
The United Cup is set to kick-off the 2025 tennis season, with the mixed team competition providing more innovations than ever.
And we, at Tennishead, have everything you need to know about the exciting tournament kicking off the upcoming season:
What is the United Cup?
The United Cup is a team event that includes both ATP and WTA players, featuring 18 different nations in six round-robin groups of three.
These three groups are split into two Australian locations, with the winner of each group advancing to the quarter-finals, leaving two spots for the best runner-up teams from each area.
The competition will then be decided in a knockout format from the quarter-final stage, with eight teams battling it out to crown an eventual champion.
Each tie will be played as three rubbers, with one ATP and one WTA singles match, followed by a mixed doubles contest.
Nations qualify for the United Cup in three different ways, with six countries qualifying based on the ranking of their No.1 ATP singles player, six countries based on the ranking of their No.1 WTA singles player and the final six being decided based on the combined ranking of their No.1 ATP and No.1 WTA singles players.
There are new innovations added to the United Cup this year, with the option of a timeout button in mixed doubles matches.
Each team will be able to have one 60 second timeout per mixed doubles match, as they look to talk tactics to get the all-important win.
When is the 2025 United Cup?
The United Cup gets underway on Friday 27th December, with the round-robin stage continuing until Wednesday 1st January.
Quarter-finals will take place between 1st January to Friday 3rd January, with semi-finals all in one location on Saturday 4th January.
The grand final will be held the following day on Sunday 5th January, beginning at 5:30pm local time (11:30am GMT).
Where is the 2025 United Cup held?
As previously mentioned, the United Cup is held across two locations in Australia, Sydney and Perth.
Both Sydney and Perth will host three round-robin groups each, as well as the two quarter-final ties from their respective locations.
The two quarter-final ties in Perth will be held on Wednesday 1st January, allowing winning teams time to rest and travel to Sydney for the semi-finals.
Sydney will host both the semi-finals and the final at the Ken Rosewall Arena, that can hold a total of 10,500 spectators, while the RAC Arena in Perth can seat 15,500 people.
Who is playing at the 2025 United Cup?
The 2025 United Cup features a stacked lineup of players once again, including eight top 10 ranked singles players.
This includes five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek, last year’s United Cup champion Alexander Zverev, WTA Finals champion Coco Gauff and US Open finalist Taylor Fritz.
Team USA touch down in Perth 🦅🇺🇸#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/fBH1fAfbgG
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) December 24, 2024
Olympic champion and Chinese No.1 Qinwen Zheng was also set to feature, but announced last week that she would be withdrawing from the tournament, citing that she needed a few extra weeks of rest ahead of the Australian Open.
While Group F features both Great Britain and Australia, with newly engaged couple Katie Boulter and Alex de Minaur set to go head-to-head for a second consecutive year.
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Here is the full list of nations, including their selected players and team captains:
Group A (Perth)
United States of America (1)
| No.1 ATP | Taylor Fritz (No.4) |
| No.1 WTA | Coco Gauff (No.3) |
| No.2 ATP | Denis Kudla (No.267) |
| No.2 WTA | Danielle Collins (No.11) |
| Doubles ATP | Robert Galloway (No.34) |
| Doubles WTA | Desirae Krawczyk (No.11) |
| Team Captain | Michael Russell |
Canada (7)
| No.1 ATP | Felix Auger-Aliassime (No.29) |
| No.1 WTA | Leylah Fernandez (No.31) |
| No.2 ATP | Liam Draxl (No.247) |
| No.2 WTA | Stacey Fung (No.253) |
| Doubles ATP | Benjamin Sigouin (No.201) |
| Doubles WTA | Ariana Arseneault (No.146) |
| Team Captain | Felix Auger-Aliassime |
Croatia (18)
| No.1 ATP | Borna Coric (No.90) |
| No.1 WTA | Donna Vekic (No.19) |
| No.2 ATP | Luka Mikrut (No.380) |
| No.2 WTA | Lucia Ciric Bagaric (No.216) |
| Doubles ATP | Ivan Dodig (No.26) |
| Doubles WTA | Petra Marcinko (Acting as third singles player – No.258) |
| Team Captain | Iva Majoli |
Group B (Sydney)
Poland (2)
| No.1 ATP | Hubert Hurkacz (No.16) |
| No.1 WTA | Iga Swiatek (No.2) |
| No.2 ATP | Kamil Majchrzak (No.120) |
| No.2 WTA | Maja Chwalinska (No.128) |
| Doubles ATP | Jan Zielinski (No.25) |
| Doubles WTA | Alicja Rosolska (No.417) |
| Team Captain | Mateusz Terczynski |
Czechia (8)
| No.1 ATP | Tomas Machac (No.25) |
| No.1 WTA | Karolina Muchova (No.22 – Using Protected Ranking of No.9) |
| No.2 ATP | Marek Gengel (No.268) |
| No.2 WTA | Gabriela Knutson (No.234) |
| Doubles ATP | Patrik Rikl (No.75) |
| Doubles WTA | Vendula Valdmannova (Acting as third singles player – No.848) |
| Team Captain | Daniel Vacek |
Norway (15)
| No.1 ATP | Casper Ruud (No.6) |
| No.1 WTA | Malene Helgo (No.404) |
| No.2 ATP | Viktor Durasovic (No.417) |
| No.2 WTA | Ulrikke Eikeri (Singles – No.1031, Doubles – No.38) |
| Doubles ATP | – |
| Doubles WTA | – |
| Team Captain | Christian Ruud |
Group C (Perth)
Greece (3)
| No.1 ATP | Stefanos Tsitsipas (No.11) |
| No.1 WTA | Maria Sakkari (No.32) |
| No.2 ATP | Stefanos Sakellaridis (No.484) |
| No.2 WTA | Despina Papamichail (No.281) |
| Doubles ATP | Petros Tsitsipas (No.105) |
| Doubles WTA | Valentini Grammatikopoulou (No.167) |
| Team Captain | Theodoros Angelinos |
Kazakhstan (9)
| No.1 ATP | Alexander Shevchenko (No.78) |
| No.1 WTA | Elena Rybakina (No.6) |
| No.2 ATP | Dmitry Popko (No.176) |
| No.2 WTA | Zhibek Kulambayeva (No.314) |
| Doubles ATP | Aleksandr Nedovyesov (No.59) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
| Team Captain | Aleksandr Nedovyesov |
Spain (14)
| No.1 ATP | Pablo Carreno Busta (No.196 – Using Protected Ranking of No.18) |
| No.1 WTA | Jessica Bouzas Maneiro (No.54) |
| No.2 ATP | Carlos Taberner (No.195) |
| No.2 WTA | Marina Bassols Taberner (No.213) |
| Doubles ATP | Sergio Martos Gornes (No.113) |
| Doubles WTA | Yvonne Cavalle Reimers (No.89) |
| Team Captain | Jose Antonio Sanchez de Luna |
Group D (Sydney)
Italy (4)
| No.1 ATP | Flavio Cobolli (No.32) |
| No.1 WTA | Jasmine Paolini (No.4) |
| No.2 ATP | Matteo Gigante (No.141) |
| No.2 WTA | Sara Errani (Singles – No.105, Doubles – No.9) |
| Doubles ATP | Andrea Vavassori (No.10) |
| Doubles WTA | Angelica Moratelli (No.74) |
| Team Captain | Renzo Furlan |
France (10)
| No.1 ATP | Ugo Humbert (No.14) |
| No.1 WTA | Chloe Paquet (No.123) |
| No.2 ATP | Corentin Moutet (No.70) |
| No.2 WTA | Leolia Jeanjean (No.149) |
| Doubles ATP | Edouard Roger-Vasselin (No.40) |
| Doubles WTA | Elixane Lechemia (No.105) |
| Team Captain | Fabrice Martin |
Switzerland (16)
| No.1 ATP | Dominic Stricker (No.300 – Using Protected Ranking of No.96) |
| No.1 WTA | Belinda Bencic (No.487 – Using Protected Ranking of No.15) |
| No.2 ATP | Remy Bertola (No.282) |
| No.2 WTA | Celine Naef (No.153) |
| Doubles ATP | Jakub Paul (No.138) |
| Doubles WTA | Conny Perrin (No.157) |
| Team Captain | Sandra Naef |
Group E (Perth)
China (5)
| No.1 ATP | Zhizhen Zhang (No.45) |
| No.1 WTA | Xinyu Gao (No.175) |
| No.2 ATP | Yan Bai (No.255) |
| No.2 WTA | Shuai Zhang (Singles – No.206, Doubles – No.27) |
| Doubles ATP | Fajing Sun (No.207) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
| Team Captain | Di Wu |
Germany (11)
| No.1 ATP | Alexander Zverev (No.2) |
| No.1 WTA | Laura Siegemund (No.80) |
| No.2 ATP | Daniel Masur (No.254) |
| No.2 WTA | Lena Papadakis (Singles – No.541, Doubles – No.125) |
| Doubles ATP | Tim Puetz (No.9) |
| Doubles WTA | Vivian Heisen (No.1641) |
| Team Captain | Alexander Zverev Sr. |
Brazil (13)
| No.1 ATP | Thiago Monteiro (No.109) |
| No.1 WTA | Beatriz Haddad Maia (No.17) |
| No.2 ATP | Gustavo Heide (No.172) |
| No.2 WTA | Carolina Alves (No.301) |
| Doubles ATP | Rafael Matos (No.36) |
| Doubles WTA | Luisa Stefani (No.28) |
| Team Captain | Rafael Paciaroni |
Group F (Sydney)
Great Britain (6)
| No.1 ATP | Billy Harris (No.125) |
| No.1 WTA | Katie Boulter (No.24) |
| No.2 ATP | Jan Choinski (No.173) |
| No.2 WTA | Lily Miyazaki (No.182) |
| Doubles ATP | Charles Broom (No.156) |
| Doubles WTA | Olivia Nicholls (No.39) |
| Team Captain | Alexander Ward |
Australia (12)
| No.1 ATP | Alex de Minaur (No.9) |
| No.1 WTA | Olivia Gadecki (No.97) |
| No.2 ATP | Omar Jasika (No.179) |
| No.2 WTA | Destanee Aiava (No.166) |
| Doubles ATP | Matthew Ebden (No.13) |
| Doubles WTA | Ellen Perez (No.13) |
| Team Captain | Lleyton Hewitt |
Argentina (17)
| No.1 ATP | Tomas Martin Etcheverry (No.39) |
| No.1 WTA | Nadia Podoroska (No.100) |
| No.2 ATP | Thiago Agustin Tirante (No.117) |
| No.2 WTA | Maria Lourdes Carle (No.94) |
| Doubles ATP | Guido Andreozzi (No.55) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
| Team Captain | Horacio de la Pena |
How many ranking points are on offer at the 2025 United Cup?
Singles players competing at the United Cup are offered ranking points for victories based on the ranking of opponents that they have beaten, with a maximum of 500 points available if a player that obtains five top 10 wins. No ranking points are available for mixed doubles.
Here is a full breakdown of the ranking points available at the United Cup:
| Round | Points per win vs. opponent ranked | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1–10 | No. 11–20 | No. 21–30 | No. 31–50 | No. 51–100 | No. 101–250 | No. 251+ | |
| Final | 180 | 140 | 120 | 90 | 60 | 40 | 35 |
| Semifinals | 130 | 105 | 90 | 60 | 40 | 35 | 25 |
| Quarterfinals | 80 | 65 | 55 | 40 | 35 | 25 | 20 |
| Group stage | 55 | 45 | 40 | 35 | 25 | 20 | 15 |
What is the prize money for the 2025 United Cup?
The prize money for the United Cup is awarded in three different ways, with participation fees, individual match wins and wins for the nation itself.
Here is a breakdown of how the $10,250,000 is divided out:
Participation Fees
| Singles ranking | Number 1 player | Number 2 player | Number 3 player |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1–10 | $200,000 | $200,000 | $30,000 |
| No. 11–20 | $100,000 | $100,000 | |
| No. 21–30 | $60,000 | $50,000 | |
| No. 31–50 | $40,000 | $30,000 | $15,000 |
| No. 51–100 | $30,000 | $20,000 | |
| No. 101–250 | $25,000 | $15,000 | $7,500 |
| No. 251+ | $20,000 | $10,000 | $6,000 |
Match Wins
| Round | Number 1 player | Mixed doubles |
|---|---|---|
| Final | $251,000 | $47,255 |
| Semifinals | $132,000 | $24,750 |
| Quarterfinals | $69,500 | $13,000 |
| Group stage | $38,325 | $7,200 |
Team Wins
| Round | $ per player |
|---|---|
| Final | $23,155 |
| Semifinals | $13,650 |
| Quarterfinals | $8,025 |
| Group stage | $5,000 |
Previous winners of the United Cup
Last year saw Germany win the United Cup for the first time, after coming back from a rubber down against Poland to win the tie in a dramatic mixed doubles contest.
As a result, they joined the USA as one of two previous United Cup winners, after winning the tournament back in 2023 in its previous best-of-five rubber format.
| Year | Champion | Runner-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | United States | Italy | 4–0 |
| 2024 | Germany | Poland | 2–1 |
How can you watch the 2025 United Cup?
You can watch the United Cup on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom and Ireland, or on Tennis Channel International across the world.
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