The WTA Finals will be held in Indian Wells in California this year rather than in Saudi Arabia.
November’s tournament, where the best women’s tennis players from the season compete, was due to be played in Riyadh at the end of a three-year contract.
Several former top names in women’s tennis have criticized Saudi Arabia for its human rights record, while the kingdom has also been pulling back from sports investments away from football.
“Following two impactful years of the WTA Finals in Riyadh, the WTA requested to move the 2026 WTA Finals to a new host location,” read a joint statement from the WTA and the Saudi Tennis Federation on Wednesday.
