Fifty days until the Next Gen ATP Finals in Reggio Calabria. From 9 to 13 December, PalaCalafiore will host the fast indoor tournament that brings together the eight best Under 20 players on the men’s circuit. The event returns to Italy and arrives in the South for the first time, after the five editions held in Milan between 2017 and 2022, with the interruption in 2020, and those in Jeddah from 2023 to 2025.
The event was presented this morning in the Monsignor Ferro Hall of Palazzo Corrado Alvaro. The press conference was attended by the president of the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation Angelo Binaghi, the president of Sport and Health Marco Mezzaroma, the minister for Sport and Youth Andrea Abodi, the mayor of Reggio Calabria Francesco Cannizzaro, the president of the Region Roberto Occhiuto and the CEO of Sport and Health Diego Nepi Molineris. Reggio Calabria will host the tournament after the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin and the Davis Cup Finals by Generali in Bologna, completing the sequence of international end-of-season events in Italy.
Binaghi: «Introducing young people to great tennis»
The FITP president thanked Abodi for supporting the project, together with Occhiuto and Cannizzaro. «For our Federation, returning to the South with a major international event is a source of particular satisfaction. Southern Italy has made a significant contribution to the growth of Italian tennis and represents an extraordinary hotbed of members, enthusiasts and young talents”, declared Binaghi. The federal president underlined the role of Next Gen as a passage towards international consecration, recalling the path of the protagonists of previous editions who later became champions of the world circuit. «With this event we want to bring young people even closer to great tennis, offer the area an international showcase and leave a legacy that goes beyond the week of the tournament. We are happy to be able to do it in Reggio Calabria, with the belief that the Next Gen ATP Finals represent a great opportunity for the city and for all of Calabria.”
Mezzaroma: «The legacy will be in the boys who take to the field»
Marco Mezzaroma also focused on the consequences of the event. «A great event is also valid for what it leaves behind. For this reason, on mandate from the Government, as Sport and Health we organize major sporting events and take them where they can leave the most impact.” For the president of Sport and Health, the choice of Calabria represents an opportunity to show the territory’s capabilities in hospitality, welcome and organisation. The objective also concerns the spread of sports practice among younger people. «For a young Calabrian to see the best Under 20s in the world just a few meters away will mean understanding that reaching this high is possible. This is the multiplier effect we are looking for. We won’t count the spectators in the stands, but the kids who, once the event is over, will choose to take to the field dreaming of becoming like the champions they supported.”
Abodi: «Rebalancing the presence of major events»
Minister Andrea Abodi recalled that he had supported Reggio Calabria’s candidacy since the first discussions with Binaghi. «I wanted this event in Reggio Calabria, to bring to a fascinating land with enormous unexpressed potential a highly prestigious international event that we have entrusted organizationally to our Sport and Health company». Abodi indicated among the objectives that of geographically rebalancing the presence of the major tennis events, from the Internazionali in Rome to the ATP Finals in Turin, passing through the final phase of the Davis Cup in Bologna and arriving in Reggio Calabria.
«The will and commitment of the Government chaired by Giorgia Meloni to offer equal sporting opportunities to the whole of Italy is confirmed once again», stated the minister. «Sport is not just competition, but also promotion of the territory and its excellence, economic and social growth».
From Sinner to Alcaraz, the champions who have passed through the Next Gen
In the Milanese editions, the tournament featured three players who later became world number one: Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. Among the participants also Lorenzo Musetti, Flavio Cobolli and Matteo Arnaldi, protagonists of the Italian successes in the Davis Cup. From 2023 to 2025 the event was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The winners were Hamad Medjedovic, winner with the lowest ranking in the history of the tournament, João Fonseca, champion at 18 and second youngest in the roll of honour, and Learner Tien, who respected the prediction as first seed.
The precedents in Reggio: from the Fed Cup to the Davis Cup
For Reggio Calabria this is a new appointment with international tennis. On 7 and 8 November 2009, Tc Rocco Polimeni hosted the Fed Cup final between Italy and the United States: Sara Errani, Flavia Pennetta, Francesca Schiavone and Roberta Vinci won the title with a 4-0 success, the second in the Azzurri’s history after that of 2006. The city also hosted three Davis Cup matches: Italy-Austria in 1972, Italy-Ireland in 1983 and Italy-Finland in 2002. The Reggio Calabria Internationals date back even further in time, played from 1959 to 1970, with men’s and women’s tournaments and a roll of honor that includes Giuseppe Merlo, Neale Fraser and Tony Roche.