SINGAPORE — The likes of men’s tennis World No 1 Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, and newly crowned 2018 champion Alexander Zverev could be competing “live” in Singapore from 2021, if an ambitious bid to host the prestigious US$8.5 million (S$11.7 million) ATP Finals gets the green light.

Sport Singapore (SportSG), the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), and Sports Hub confirmed this week that they have placed a bid for the season-ending showpiece tournament, which has been held in London for the last decade.

Responding to queries from TODAY, SportSG, STB and Sports Hub said in a joint statement: “This is part of our continued efforts to look out for suitable world-class events that can inspire the enjoyment of sport here, and add to our vibrancy and attractiveness as a sport and lifestyle destination.

“The Singapore Sports Hub is a world-class venue and choice for such events.”

The move comes as Singapore bid farewell to the WTA Finals in October after five years as host of the US$7 million tournament.

The women’s tour’s season-ending event is moving to Shenzhen, China, next year with a bigger prize purse of US$14 million.

Tennis fans welcomed Singapore’s ambitious bid for one of the world’s biggest and most-sought-after tennis tournaments.

Ms Yanni Ng, 28, called it “exciting” news for Singapore, as the “ATP Finals is a lot more competitive compared to the WTA Finals”.

The marketing manager, who is a fan of Spanish player Nadal, also pointed out that the men’s event will keep the momentum and interest in the sport going here, because “the WTA Finals increased awareness of tennis, and parents encouraged their kids to take it up”.

Agreeing, former school tennis player Anne Tan, 26, said that the event will “generate a lot of buzz” as there is now no big men’s tour event in Singapore.

“I watched the last four editions of the WTA Finals and I enjoyed the tennis,” said Ms Tan, who also caught the ATP Finals in London in 2009.

“Yes, my whole family will definitely go to the ATP Finals if it comes here. It’ll be a family outing with my dad, my mum, and my three siblings.”
 
AKAN DATANG, SINGAPORE?
 
First held in Tokyo in 1970, the ATP Finals has since travelled to cities such as Paris, Melbourne, New York, and Shanghai before taking root in London’s O2 Arena in 2009. Featuring the top eight men’s singles players and doubles pairs, the London event hosts more than 250,000 fans each year, with global TV audiences hitting an annual average of 95 million.

In August this year, men’s tennis’ governing body ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) announced that it had opened a tender process for hosting the ATP Finals from 2021.

While it did not indicate the length of the contract, media reports have said that it will run from 2021 to 2025.

Interested parties were given till Nov 2 this year to submit their bids, with a shortlist of potential candidate cities to be announced on Dec 14.

A final decision will be made by March next year, said the ATP.

More than 40 cities in Europe, Asia and the Americas have reportedly put in their bids for the tournament, including current host London.

“The tournament’s popularity and stature have reached unprecedented heights in London, which has attracted significant interest from potential future host cities over the years,” said ATP's executive chairman and president Chris Kermode in a statement in August.

“We feel the time is right to undertake this international tender process as we look to secure the event’s future beyond 2020.”

In an interview with TODAY on Tuesday (Nov 28), Sports Hub's chief executive officer Oon Jin Teik said that it is “constantly looking for opportunities” for the 35-hectare facility, which includes the National Stadium, Singapore Indoor Stadium, and OCBC Arena.

Calling Singapore’s proposition “multi-faceted”, Mr Oon, 55, said that its proximity to other South-east Asian countries, and “track record” in hosting world-class events, such as the Youth Olympic Games, International Champions Cup, and Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, are plus points for its ambitions.

“The historical track record of what Singapore has done, and the different tiers of features that we have, the value proposition and what Sports Hub has to offer, collectively we all believe that Sports Hub is the best venue to go after major properties such as this one,” he said.

However, the cost of hosting the ATP Finals — with London said to have forked out some US$13 million a year — could prove a stumbling block for Singapore and other candidate cities.

Fans have also pointed out that the Singapore Indoor Stadium, which hosted the WTA Finals and can seat up to a maximum of 12,000 people, could be too small for an event of such stature.

When asked if the men’s event could be held at the 55,000-capacity National Stadium, Mr Oon did not want to comment, only saying that “there’s an element of competitive bid portion” for the choice of venue.
 
NOT GAME, SET, MATCH
 
While sports marketing experts and analysts welcomed Singapore’s bid for the ATP Finals, they also sounded a cautioning note on the commercial viability of bringing in the tournament.

Mr David Sim, executive director of sports and partnership marketing agency ESG Singapore, said that it would be “really challenging if you look at the profit and loss”. He pointed out that the total event sponsorship would make up about 40 per cent of revenue required, with the rest likely to come from media rights, ticket sales, and merchandising. The Government or local promoter will underwrite the deficit or pocket the profits, added Mr Sim.

However, he noted that indirect revenue from tourism and event hospitality could make up for the costs of hosting the event for five years.

When asked about the cost of hosting the event, Mr Oon said that it was “too early to talk about money”.

Financial figures were not available for the WTA Finals, as SportSG, STB and WTA have previously not revealed the cost of hosting the event or other financial numbers.

Mr R Sasikumar, managing director of sports marketing agency Red Card Global, questioned if Singapore has a large enough fan base to fill the stadium year on year.

“We’ve seen it with the WTA Finals. Over time, the interest kind of whittled down,” said the former national footballer.

“The ATP Finals has more in terms of glamour and the men have a stable of top four or five names. But is Singapore ready for a major tennis event? We’re not tapping on a ready fan base, which WTA showed in a way.”

Unlike the F1 Singapore Grand Prix, which attracted more than 263,000 Singapore and international fans this year, Mr Sasikumar does not believe that the ATP Finals will entice overseas fans to travel here.

“I doubt it will attract the regional crowd here as it’s not on the scale of F1. If you look at the International Premier Tennis League when it was here, you didn’t see that happening even when Roger Federer was in Singapore.”