United Cup 2024 Preview: When is it, who is playing and what is the prize money?
The 2024 season is almost upon us and that means that the United Cup is back, with Novak Djokovic set to make his debut at the tournament.
And we, at Tennishead, have everything you need to know about the exciting mixed team competition:
What is the United Cup?
The United Cup hosted its inaugural edition last year, featuring 18 different nations in six round-robin groups of three.
Split into two Australian locations, the winner of each group will advance 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 to crown an eventual champion.
There is a slight change to the format in 2024, with ties being reduced to one ATP singles match, one WTA singles match and a mixed doubles contest.
Oh, it’s ONNNNN!!!#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/35J3DaJ1gI
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) November 30, 2023
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 WTA singles players.
Australia are reserved a spot as one of the combined teams, however this year they secured qualification through their No.1 ATP singles player.
When is the 2024 United Cup?
The 2024 United Cup begins on Friday 29th December, with the morning session tie between Spain and Brazil beginning at 10am local time (2am GMT).
These group stage matches will continue until Wednesday 3rd January, concluding with the contest between Greece and Canada at 5:30pm (6:30am GMT).
WHO’S READY?#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/5YIROtN0bT
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) December 27, 2023
Quarter-finals will take place between Wednesday 3rd January-Friday 5th January, with the semi-finals following on Saturday 6th January. The grand final will be conducted on Sunday 7th January at 5:30pm local time (6:30am GMT).
For the full United Cup schedule, click here to visit the official website.
Where is the 2024 United Cup?
The United Cup has reduced to having only two locations this year, with Brisbane being removed as a host.
In 2024, Sydney and Perth will host three groups and two quarter-final ties each, before Sydney takes the reigns completely with both of the semi-finals and the final.
Touchdown in Sydney 🛬 👀 🎾#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/cy1ZBVLKFw
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) December 27, 2023
Both venues are outdoor hard court arenas, with Sydney having the Ken Rosewall Arena (10,500 seats) and Perth the RAC Arena (15,500 seats).
Who is playing at the 2024 United Cup?
The United Cup will see both the ATP and WTA singles No.1’s competing, with Iga Swiatek headlining top seeds Poland’s team and Novak Djokovic making his debut at the tournament with Serbia.
IDEMO 🇷🇸
Look who’s coming to Perth 👀#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/vUjHq1YwpR
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) November 5, 2023
As well as singles No.1’s, the top female doubles player Storm Hunter will be part of home favourites Australia’s squad in Group C.
Defending champions USA return with a similar lineup to 2023, with Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula leading once again.
Other top stars include Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev, Hubert Hurkacz, Casper Ruud, Alex de Minaur, Marketa Vondrousova, Maria Sakkari and Beatriz Haddad Maia.
There will also be a returning three-time Grand Slam champion in former No.1 Angelique Kerber, who is gearing up to play her first tournament after giving birth to a daughter earlier this year.
In terms of British interest, No.1 players Cameron Norrie and Katie Boulter will lead the line, with Dan Evans and top 10 doubles player Neal Skupski also featuring.
Here is the full lineup of all 18 teams:
Group A (Perth)
Poland (1)
Captain: Tomasz Wiktorowski
| No.1 ATP | Hubert Hurkacz (No.9) |
| No.1 WTA | Iga Świątek (No.1) |
| No.2 ATP | Daniel Michalski (No.275) |
| No.2 WTA | Katarzyna Kawa (No.197) |
| Doubles ATP | Jan Zieliński (No.20) |
| Doubles WTA | Katarzyna Piter (No.67) |
Spain (11)
Captain: Jorge Aguirre
| No.1 ATP | Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (No.26) |
| No.1 WTA | Sara Sorribes Tormo (No.48) |
| No.2 ATP | Roberto Carballes Baena (No.63) |
| No.2 WTA | Marina Bassols Ribera (No.109) |
| Doubles ATP | David Vega Hernandez (No.121) |
| Doubles WTA | Rosa Vicens Mas (Using singles ranking of No.297) |
Brazil (17)
Captain: Rafael Paciaroni
| No.1 ATP | Thiago Seyboth Wild (No.79) |
| No.1 WTA | Beatriz Haddad Maia (No.11) |
| No.2 ATP | Felipe Meligeni Alves (No.148) |
| No.2 WTA | Carolina Alves (No.304) |
| Doubles ATP | Marcelo Melo (No.47) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
Group B (Sydney)
Greece (2)
Captain: Petros Tsitsipas
| No.1 ATP | Stefanos Tsitsipas (No.6) |
| No.1 WTA | Maria Sakkari (No.9) |
| No.2 ATP | Stefanos Sakellaridis (No.413) |
| No.2 WTA | Despina Papamichail (No.223) |
| Doubles ATP | Petros Tsitsipas (No.97) |
| Doubles WTA | Valentini Grammatikopoulou (No.115) |
Canada (7)
Captain: Adil Shamasdin
| No.1 ATP | Felix Auger-Aliassime (No.29) |
| No.1 WTA | Leylah Fernandez (No.35) |
| No.2 ATP | Alexis Galarneau (No.202) |
| No.2 WTA | Stacey Fung (No.238) |
| Doubles ATP | Adil Shamasdin (Unranked) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
Chile (18)
Captain: Jaime Fillol
| No.1 ATP | Nicolas Jarry (No.19) |
| No.1 WTA | Daniela Seguel (No.668) |
| No.2 ATP | Tomas Barrios Vera (No.103) |
| No.2 WTA | Fernanda Labrana (No.793) |
| Doubles ATP | Gonzalo Lama (Using singles ranking of No.518) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
Group C (Perth)
USA (3)
Captain: David Witt
| No.1 ATP | Taylor Fritz (No.10) |
| No.1 WTA | Jessica Pegula (No.5) |
| No.2 ATP | Denis Kudla (No.163) |
| No.2 WTA | Alycia Parks (No.85) |
| Doubles ATP | Rajeev Ram (No.6) |
| Doubles WTA | Desirae Krawczyk (No.16) |
Great Britain (8)
Captain: Colin Beecher
| No.1 ATP | Cameron Norrie (No.18) |
| No.1 WTA | Katie Boulter (No.56) |
| No.2 ATP | Dan Evans (No.38) |
| No.2 WTA | Francesca Jones (No.297) |
| Doubles ATP | Neal Skupski (No.9) |
| Doubles WTA | Maia Lumsden (No.73) |
Australia (15)
Captain: Lleyton Hewitt
| No.1 ATP | Alex de Minaur (No.12) |
| No.1 WTA | Ajla Tomljanovic (No.291, using protected ranking of No.33) |
| No.2 ATP | John Millman (No.483) |
| No.2 WTA | Storm Hunter (No.172) |
| Doubles ATP | Matthew Ebden (No.4) |
| Doubles WTA | Ellen Perez (No.17) |
Group D (Sydney)
France (4)
Captain: Edouard Roger-Vasselin
| No.1 ATP | Adrian Mannarino (No.22) |
| No.1 WTA | Caroline Garcia (No.20) |
| No.2 ATP | Antoine Escoffier (No.159) |
| No.2 WTA | Amandine Hesse (No.313) |
| Doubles ATP | Edouard Roger-Vasselin (No.11) |
| Doubles WTA | Elixane Lechemia (No.99) |
Italy (12)
Captain: Renzo Furlan
| No.1 ATP | Lorenzo Sonego (No.46) |
| No.1 WTA | Jasmine Paolini (No.30) |
| No.2 ATP | Flavio Cobolli (No.101) |
| No.2 WTA | Nuria Brancaccio (No.209) |
| Doubles ATP | Andrea Pellegrino (No.82) |
| Doubles WTA | Angelica Moratelli (No.558) |
Germany (16)
Captain: Torben Beltz
| No.1 ATP | Alexander Zverev (No.7) |
| No.1 WTA | Angelique Kerber (Unranked, using protected ranking of No.31) |
| No.2 ATP | Maximilian Marterer (No.91) |
| No.2 WTA | Tatjana Maria (No.54) |
| Doubles ATP | Kai Wehnelt (No.150) |
| Doubles WTA | Laura Siegemund (No.5) |
Group E (Perth)
Czech Republic (5)
Captain: David Škoch
| No.1 ATP | Jiri Lehecka (No.31) |
| No.1 WTA | Marketa Vondrousova (No.7) |
| No.2 ATP | Vit Kopriva (No.132) |
| No.2 WTA | Sara Bejlek (No.129) |
| Doubles ATP | Petr Nouza (No.101) |
| Doubles WTA | Miriam Kolodziejova (No.58) |
China (9)
Captain: Di Wu
| No.1 ATP | Zhizhen Zhang (No.58) |
| No.1 WTA | Qinwen Zheng (No.15) |
| No.2 ATP | Yunchaokete Bu (No.172) |
| No.2 WTA | Xiaodi You (No.227) |
| Doubles ATP | Fajing Sun (No.206) |
| Doubles WTA | – |
Serbia (13)
Captain: Viktor Troicki
| No.1 ATP | Novak Djokovic (No.1) |
| No.1 WTA | Olga Danilovic (No.119) |
| No.2 ATP | Hamad Medjedovic (No.113) |
| No.2 WTA | Natalija Stevanovic (No.181) |
| Doubles ATP | Nikola Cacic (No.70) |
| Doubles WTA | Dejana Radanovic (Using singles ranking of No.256) |
Group F (Sydney)
Croatia (6)
Captain: Iva Majoli
| No.1 ATP | Borna Coric (No.37) |
| No.1 WTA | Donna Vekic (No.23) |
| No.2 ATP | Nino Serdarusic (No.318) |
| No.2 WTA | Petra Marcinko (No.174) |
| Doubles ATP | Ivan Dodig (No.2) |
| Doubles WTA | Tena Lukas (Using singles ranking of No.228) |
Netherlands (10)
Captain: Wesley Koolhof
| No.1 ATP | Tallon Griekspoor (No.23) |
| No.1 WTA | Arantxa Rus (No.51) |
| No.2 ATP | Thiemo de Bakker (No.688) |
| No.2 WTA | Arianne Hartono (No.152) |
| Doubles ATP | Wesley Koolhof (No.8) |
| Doubles WTA | Demi Schuurs (No.19) |
Norway (14)
Captain: Christian Ruud
| No.1 ATP | Casper Ruud (No.11) |
| No.1 WTA | Malene Helgo (No.542) |
| No.2 ATP | Andreja Petrovic (No.1672) |
| No.2 WTA | Ulrikke Eikeri (No.602) |
| Doubles ATP | – |
| Doubles WTA | – |
READ MORE: Angelique Kerber reveals Olympic ‘dream’ ahead of return
How many ranking points are on offer at the 2024 United Cup?
While it is a team tournament, players will also be competing for individual ranking points and could earn upto 500 points depending on the ranking of the opponents they compete against.
Here is the full breakdown of ranking points at the 2024 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 2024 United Cup?
All players competing at the 2024 United Cup will receive a participation fee depending on their position in the team and can compete for further prize money based on their individual and team performances:
Participation Fee
| Singles Ranking | No.1 Player Fee | No.2 Player Fee |
| 1-10 | $200,000 | $200,000 |
| 11-20 | $100,000 | $100,000 |
| 21-30 | $60,000 | $50,000 |
| 31-50 | $40,000 | $30,000 |
| 51-100 | $30,000 | $20,000 |
| 101-250 | $25,000 | $15,000 |
| 251+ | $20,000 | $10,000 |
| No. 3 Player | |
| Singles or Doubles Ranking | Fee |
| 1-30 | $30,000 |
| 31-100 | $15,000 |
| 101-250 | $7,500 |
| 251+ | $6,000 |
Prize Money
| Round | Singles Win | Mixed Doubles Win | Team Wins |
| Final | $251,000 | $47,255 | $23,155 |
| SF | $132,000 | $24,750 | $13,650 |
| QF | $69,500 | $13,000 | $8,025 |
| Group | $38,325 | $7,200 | $5,000 |
Who won the United Cup last year?
The inaugural United Cup was won in dominant fashion by the United States of America, who lost one single rubber throughout the entire tournament.
In the final the USA beat Italy, 4-0, with Taylor Fritz’s victory over Matteo Berrettini confirming that the American’s would be taking the title stateside.
How can you watch the 2024 United Cup?
You can watch the United Cup on Tennis Channel/Tennis Channel International in the United States of America/United Kingdom or Ireland.
For more information on how to watch the mixed team event in your location, click here.
READ NEXT: Novak Djokovic equals Roger Federer after being named European Sportsperson of the Year
Join >> Receive $700/£600 of tennis gear from the Tennishead CLUB
Social >> Facebook, Twitter & YouTube
Read >> World’s best tennis magazine
Shop >> Lowest price tennis gear from our trusted partner
