LTA fears it faces ‘existential threat’ if ban on Russian players continues

The Lawn Tennis Association believes it faces an “existential threat” if the ban on Russian and Belarussian players continues this summer and it is stripped of its prestigious pre-Wimbledon events such as Queen’s Club and Edgbaston.

While talks with the government and tennis authorities remain ongoing – with a decision expected by early April – the LTA believes the threat from the ATP and WTA to suspend it from staging events if the ban remains is serious and could cause major damage to British tennis.

An LTA insider told the Guardian that “the organisation faces an existential threat if the grass court events aren’t staged” before pointing to the harm it would cause to the sport’s finances, visibility, efforts to grow the game, and popularity.

As the funding body for British tennis, the LTA provides substantial support for the grassroots as well as funding for elite players, such as Emma Raducanu, as they progress from talented teenagers to the top of the sport.

However, losing the rights to stage tournaments like Queen’s Club and Edgbaston, which are watched by 180,000 fans every year, would leave it facing a £20m black hole in its finances – and major decisions about what services to cut.

During 2019, the last year before the pandemic, the LTA made £14.6m from ticket sales and over £6m in commercial revenue. That amounted to nearly 30% of its income, most of which it pumped back into the sport.

But the issue is not just financial as there are also concerns that fewer grass courts tournaments will inevitably reduce tennis’s visibility in the UK to just Wimbledon – which is run by the All-England Club not the LTA.

As a knock-on effect it will also limit opportunities for British players to get wild cards to help their