Dunlop today announce extensions to their partnerships as the official ball sponsor at four ATP and WTA tournaments.
These revised partnerships will see Dunlop provide the new Dunlop ATP Official Ball for key European tournaments including ATP Masters 1000 – Rolex Monte Carlo Masters, ATP Masters 1000 & WTA Premier Mandatory – Mutua Madrid Open, ATP Masters 1000 & WTA Premier 5 – Internazionali BNL d’Italia and ATP 500 – Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.
The contract extensions follow Dunlop’s long-standing partnerships with these tournaments for over 10 years. They reinforce Dunlop’s position as the number one choice of ball on the ATP Tour, with Dunlop supplying balls to more ATP Tour tournaments in 2019 than any other brand.
SRI’s Head of Tennis Business, Masahiro Asahino, commented: “We are delighted to extend our partnerships with major ATP and WTA tournaments throughout Europe. Dunlop is dedicated to supplying elite tournaments across the world with outstanding quality products which deliver the very best tennis for both players on the courts and the fans watching.”
“As a member of the ATP Tour Masters 1000 clay court season’s tournaments, we are delighted to extend our contract with Dunlop for three more years to 2022,” said Zeljko Franulovic, Tournament Director for Rolex Monte Carlo Masters. “Dunlop balls, known for their excellent quality and high performance on all surfaces, have played a significant part in the history of our sport. We look forward to continuing building a successful partnership with this prestigious sports brand over the next three years.”
Xavier Pujol, Executive Tournament Director for Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell said: “We are very pleased with the announcement of the renovation with Dunlop until 2022. We have been working for weeks now on the next edition of the tournament and it means a lot to us that the first agreement that has been sealed is with an historic tennis brand, with which we have been collaborating since 1999.”
Oriol Granell, Vice President & Managing Director for IMG Spain, highlighted: “Dunlop has been an official ball for more than 20 years, which shows that the tournament and the brand are a good combination. For us, it is very important to be able to offer players the chance to play the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell with the best ball of the circuit and at the same time the official ATP ball. Undoubtedly, this fact contributes to Barcelona being one of the unmissable dates of the circuit’s clay court season, not only for the fans but also for the players.”
Gerard Tsobanian, President and CEO of Mutua Madrid Open, expressed his satisfaction with the renewal of the agreement until 2022: “Several years ago we found in Dunlop a fantastic travel companion. The ball is a key part in the development of the game and, with Dunlop, players have the quality guarantee and technology that distinguishes the brand. Therefore, the extension of Dunlop as official ball of the Mutua Madrid Open for three more seasons is great news. I’m sure that together we will live great emotions.”
Sergio Palmieri said “As Tournament Director of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, I am very satisfied and happy renewing the Dunlop sponsorship agreement until at least 2022.I consider Dunlop to have the best quality Tennis ball in the world and it is also the preferred choice of the players on tour due to the ball’s technical qualities. This partnership confirms the amazing results achieved by both parties in the recent years and we look forward to a successful and positive future together.”
