International Tennis Federation extend sponsorship deal with BNP Paribas

The ITF has extended its sponsorship deal with BNP Paribas for a further five years ©BNP Paribas

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has announced it has extended its sponsorship deal with French bank BNP Paribas for a further five years.

The agreement between the two organisations will begin in 2017 and run through to 2021 and will see the banking company continue to be the title sponsor of the Davis Cup and the Fed Cup.

They will also partner the junior versions of the men’s and women’s team competitions as well as the ITF’s wheelchair tennis events and the biennial Worldwide Coaches Conference.

“With BNP Paribas, we will celebrate our 15th year of partnership in 2016,” newly-elected ITF President David Haggerty said.

“Their long running love affair with tennis, which started in 1973 with Roland Garros, has benefited our sport in countless ways.

“BNP Paribas is an excellent strategic partner and, with this renewal of our contract, we will take Davis Cup by BNP Paribas and Fed Cup by BNP Paribas and our other properties to new levels of global popularity and success.”

BNP Paribas, founded in 2000 in Paris and is now one of the largest banks in the world, have a longstanding relationship with tennis as they are also a major sponsor of the French Open, one of the four Grand Slams which take place each calendar year.

The announcement came ahead of the start of the Davis Cup final between Britain and Belgium ©Getty Images

“BNP Paribas is proud to have been the title sponsor, for more than a decade, of the Davis Cup and Fed Cup by BNP Paribas, which are among the most prestigious tennis competitions in the world,” BNP Paribas chief executive Jean-Laurent Bonnafé said.

“Over three days of competition, the tournament incites great emotions among tennis fans.

"For BNP Paribas, this partnership is a fantastic support for the visibility of our brand and the relationship with our clients.

“We are delighted to renew our strategic partnership with the ITF and to support the continued development of these great competitions to ensure they attract more players and more fans than ever before.”

The announcement was made ahead of the start of the Davis Cup final between hosts Belgium and Britain at the Flanders Expo in Ghent, which gets underway today.

The event will go ahead as planned despite the increased terror alert in Brussels, just 56 kilometres from where the tie will be held, in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris on November 13, where 130 people were killed.