International Tennis Federation facts for kids

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International Tennis Federation
International Tennis Federation Headquarters
Type	Federation of national associations
Headquarters	London, England, UK
Membership	211 national associations
Official language	English
President	David Haggerty

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the main organization that runs world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It started in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation. Back then, it had twelve national tennis groups. As of 2016, the ITF has 211 national and six regional groups as members.

The ITF is in charge of many things. It makes sure the rules of tennis are followed. It also organizes big international team events and helps grow the sport. The ITF works hard to keep tennis fair and clean by having programs against cheating and doping. It also works with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) to manage professional tennis.

The ITF organizes yearly team events for men (Davis Cup), women (Billie Jean King Cup), and mixed teams (Hopman Cup). It also runs tennis and wheelchair tennis events at the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. The ITF also oversees different tennis tours for players of all ages, from juniors to professional men and women, and seniors. It also manages tours for wheelchair tennis and beach tennis. Plus, the ITF keeps track of rankings for juniors, seniors, wheelchair, and beach tennis players.

History of the ITF

International Tennis Federation founding members, 1913.

The idea for the International Tennis Federation came from Duane Williams, an American living in Switzerland. Sadly, he died when the RMS Titanic sank. The organization was first called the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF). Its first meeting was in Paris, France, on March 1, 1913. Twelve national tennis groups attended, and three more wanted to join.

The 15 founding countries included Australia and New Zealand (together as Australasia), Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. Canada, Norway, and the United States were invited but did not join at first. Countries had different numbers of votes based on how important they were thought to be in tennis. Great Britain's Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) had the most votes, with six.

The LTA was given the right to always organize the World Grass Championships. This made the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) not want to join the ILTF. They thought the Davis Cup should have that title. France was allowed to host the World Hard Court Championships until 1916, and a World Covered Court Championships was also started.

The USLTA finally joined in 1923 after two agreements were made. First, the title 'World Championships' would be removed. Second, the official rules would always be in English. The World Championships were replaced by new "Official Championships" for the main tournaments in Australia, France, England, and the United States. These are now known as the four Majors or Grand Slam events. In 1924, the ILTF officially became the group in charge of lawn tennis worldwide, with its own official rules.

By 1939, the ILTF had 59 member countries. During World War II, its money was moved to London, England. Since then, the ITF has been run from London. It was based in Wimbledon until 1987, then moved to Barons Court, next to Queen's Club. In 1998, it moved again to the Bank of England Sports Ground in Roehampton, where it is now. In 1977, the word 'Lawn' was removed from the organization's name. This was because most tennis games were no longer played on grass.

Because of the events in Ukraine in 2022, the ITF stopped all events in Russia. The ITF also prevented Russia from playing in international team events like the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup. However, the ATP and WTA decided not to ban individual Russian players. These players can still compete, but they do not play under the Russian flag.

How the ITF is Organized

Map of the world showing countries whose national tennis associations are ITF members. Colors indicate the six regional associations.

National and Regional Tennis Groups

Map of the world de facto (since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine) showing countries whose national tennis associations are ITF members. Colors indicate the six regional associations.

As of 2017, the ITF has 211 national tennis groups connected to it. Of these, 148 can vote, and 63 are associate members. The number of votes a member gets (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, or 12) depends on things like how well they do in ITF team events, the rankings of their players, how often they host international tournaments, and how much they help the ITF. For example, France has 12 votes, Canada has 9, and Botswana has 1 vote.

Regional groups were created in July 1975 to help connect the ILTF with national groups. These groups are:

Asian Tennis Federation (ATF) – 44 members
Central American & Caribbean Tennis Confederation (COTECC) – 33 members
Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) – 52 members
Oceania Tennis Federation (OTF) – 20 members
South America Tennis Confederation (COSAT) – 10 members
Tennis Europe (TE) – 50 members (Because of the events in Ukraine in 2022, Tennis Europe suspended the Russian and Belarus Tennis Federations.)
ITF members with no regional group (Canada and the United States)

Board of Directors

The ITF President and Board of Directors are chosen every four years by the national groups. People who want to be on the board are suggested by the national groups. They can serve for up to twelve years.

Board of Directors (2019–2023)
Role	Board Member	National Association
President	David Haggerty	United States
Vice President & Treasurer	Rene Stammbach	Switzerland
Vice President	Katrina Adams	United States
	Bernard Giudicelli	France
	Bulat Utemuratov	Kazakhstan
Board Members	Carlos Bravo	Costa Rica
	Martin Corrie	Great Britain
	Jack Graham	Canada
	Nao Kawatei	Japan
	Anil Khanna	India
	Ulrich Klaus	Germany
	Salma Mouelhi Guizani	Tunisia
	Camilo Pérez López Moreira	Paraguay
	Aleksey Selivanenko	Russia
	Stefan Tzvetkov	Bulgaria
Athlete Board Members	Mary Pierce	France
Athlete Board Members	Mark Woodforde	Australia

List of Presidents

Here are the people who have been president of the ITF:

#	President	Start	End	Country
1	Pierre Gillou	1938	1939	France
2	Charles Barde	1939	1946	Switzerland
3	Paul de Borman	1946	1947	Belgium
4	Pierre Gillou (2)	1947	1948	France
5	James Eaton Griffith	1948	1949	United Kingdom
6	Barclay Kingman	1949	1950	United States
7	Roy Youdale	1950	1951	Australia
8	David Croll	1951	1952	Netherlands
9	Charles Barde (2)	1952	1953	Switzerland
10	James Eaton Griffith (2)	1953	1954	United Kingdom
11	Barclay Kingman (2)	1954	1955	United States
12	Giorgio de Stefani	1955	1956	Italy
13	Roy Youdale (2)	1956	1957	Australia
14	Robert N. Watt	1957	1958	Canada
15	Charles Barde (3)	1958	1959	Switzerland
16	James Eaton Griffith (3)	1959	1960	United Kingdom
17	Jean Borotra	1960	1961	France
18	Roy Youdale (3)	1961	1962	Australia
19	Giorgio de Stefani (2)	1962	1963	Italy
20	James Eaton Griffith (4)	1963	1965	United Kingdom
21	Paulo da Silva Costa	1965	1967	Brazil
22	Giorgio de Stefani (3)	1967	1969	Italy
23	Ben Barnett	1969	1971	Australia
24	Allan Heyman	1971	1974	Denmark
25	Walter Elcock	1974	1975	United States
26	Derek Hartwick	1975	1977	United Kingdom
27	Philippe Chatrier	1977	1991	France
28	Brian Tobin	1991	1999	Australia
29	Francesco Ricci Bitti	1999	2015	Italy
30	David Haggerty	2015	current	United States

How the ITF Governs Tennis

The ITF is the main organization for tennis around the world. Its job is to:

Create, change, and make sure the Rules of Tennis are followed.
Manage international team competitions.
Help tennis grow.
Keep the sport fair and honest.

The ITF's rules say that the official Rules of Tennis must always be in English. A special group within the ITF regularly suggests changes to the rules. These rules cover how to play and score, coaching during games, and the exact details for equipment like balls, rackets, nets, and courts. They also cover rules for wheelchair tennis and beach tennis.

The ITF also runs the Tennis Anti-Doping Program. This program makes sure that tennis players do not use banned substances. It follows the rules from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). All national tennis groups must follow these rules. They also have to report any rule breaking and how many tests they do each year. This program started in 1993 and applies to all players in ITF events, as well as ATP and WTA tours.

The Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) was a group started by the ITF and other tennis organizations in 2008. Its job was to protect tennis from cheating related to betting. National groups are also responsible for making sure players follow a code of conduct and report any rule breaking. In 2021, the TIU became part of a new, independent group called the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).

Tennis Competitions

Team Competitions

The ITF organizes two big yearly international team events: the Davis Cup for men and the Billie Jean King Cup for women. It also supports the Hopman Cup, which is a mixed-gender team tournament. Every four years, the ITF also organizes tennis and wheelchair tennis events for the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Davis Cup

Vincent Richards, Bill Tilden and Bill Johnston at the 1922 Davis Cup

The Davis Cup is a yearly team event for men's tennis. It is named after its founder, Dwight F. Davis. Teams from different countries play against each other in a knock-out style. The first Davis Cup was held in 1900, even before the ITF was formed. Since 2019, the tournament ends with the Davis Cup Finals. This event brings together 18 teams (soon to be 16) in one place. Teams are put into groups and play each other. Eight teams then move on to the quarterfinals, and the rest of the tournament is a knockout. The Davis Cup is held four times a year. In 2020, 142 countries took part, making it the biggest yearly international team competition in sports.

Billie Jean King Cup

Petra Kvitová, a member of the winning Czech Republic Fed Cup Team in 2011

The Billie Jean King Cup is a yearly team event for women's tennis. It is similar to the Davis Cup. It started in 1963 as the Federation Cup to celebrate the ITF's 50th birthday. It was renamed the Fed Cup in 1995 and then again in 2020 to honor the great tennis player Billie Jean King. The current format, started in 2020, is like the Davis Cup. Nations are divided into groups, and the top 12 teams play in the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. The Finals also have group play followed by knockout rounds. The winner and runner-up of the Finals automatically qualify for the next year's Finals. In 2020, 116 countries participated, making it the biggest yearly international team competition in women's sports.

Hopman Cup

The Hopman Cup is a yearly team event where mixed-gender national teams compete. The first tournament was in 1989, and the ITF has supported it since 1997. It is held for one week at the start of the tennis season (late December or early January) in Australia. Each year, eight nations are chosen to compete, with one female and one male player invited from each. Teams play in two groups, and the top team from each group goes to the final.

Olympics and Paralympics

Victoria Azarenka, Serena Williams, and Maria Sharapova at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Tennis was part of the Summer Olympic Games from the very first one in 1896. However, it was removed after the 1924 Summer Olympics. This happened because the ITF and the International Olympic Committee disagreed about whether amateur players could compete. After being a demonstration sport in 1968 and 1984, tennis returned as a full medal sport at the 1988 Summer Olympics. It has been played at every Olympic Games since then.

Wheelchair tennis first appeared at the Summer Paralympic Games as a demonstration sport in 1988. It became an official medal sport in 1992 and has been played at every Summer Paralympics since then.

Individual Competitions

The ITF supports the Grand Slam tennis tournaments. It also oversees tours for different age groups (junior, professional, and seniors) and types of tennis (wheelchair tennis; beach tennis). The ITF also keeps rankings for juniors, seniors, wheelchair, and beach tennis players.

Grand Slam Tournaments

The ITF organizes and supports the 'Official Tennis Championships of the International Tennis Federation'. These are better known as the Grand Slam events: the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open.

Professional Circuit

The ITF organizes beginner-level professional tours for both men and women. These tours help players move from junior tournaments to the bigger tours run by the ATP and WTA. Professional circuit tournaments are open to all tennis players aged 14 and older. They offer prize money and points for world rankings.

The ITF took over these circuits in 1990. As of 2016, there were over 600 ITF Futures tournaments for men in 77 countries. These tournaments offer prize money from US$10,000 to US$25,000. For women, the ITF Women's Circuit includes over 500 tournaments in 65 countries. These offer prize money from US$10,000 to US$100,000. These ITF circuits are the third level of professional tennis, below the ATP Challenger Tour and ATP World Tour for men, and the WTA 125 tournaments and WTA Tour for women.

Junior Circuit

Filip Peliwo, ITF Junior World Champion 2012, during the 2012 Junior US Open

Since 1977, the ITF has organized international tennis tournaments for junior players. These tournaments have different levels, from Grade A (the highest, including junior Grand Slams) down to Grade 5 (the lowest). Players earn points for the ITF Junior World Rankings based on the tournament level. In 2004, the ITF started using combined junior rankings to encourage players to play doubles. As of 2015, the junior circuit has 400 tournaments in 121 countries. Players must be between 13 and 19 years old to play.

To help top junior girls move to the professional circuit, the ITF started the Girls Junior Exempt Project in 1997. Girls ranked in the top 10 at the end of the year get direct entry into three professional ITF events the next year. This project was also started for boys in 2006.

Seniors Circuit

The ITF World Tennis Masters Tour was renamed in August 2022 (it used to be the ITF Seniors Tour). This tour offers team and individual events for players in five-year age groups, from 30+ to 90+.

The ITF World Tennis Masters Tour Circuit has over 380 tournaments in more than 72 countries. There are six levels of tournaments. The lowest level is MT100, then MT200, MT400, MT700, MT1000, and World Championships. MT700, MT1000, and World Championships are top tournaments that attract some of the best tennis players, including former ATP players.

Wheelchair Circuit

Aniek van Koot at the 2015 US Open

The first tour for wheelchair tennis started in 1980 with ten tournaments. In 1992, the Wheelchair Tennis Tour began with eleven events. The International Wheelchair Tennis Federation (IWTF) organized it and later joined with the ITF. As of 2016, the wheelchair tennis circuit has over 160 events in more than 40 countries. These include tournaments from the lowest level (Futures) up to the Grand Slams.

Beach Tennis Circuit

Beach tennis match

In 2008, the ITF took charge of developing beach tennis and started the Beach Tennis Tour (BTT). This tour began with 14 tournaments and grew to almost 300 by 2015. The most important events are the ITF Beach Tennis World Team Championship, ITF Beach Tennis World Championships, European Beach Tennis Championships, and the ITF Pan American Championships. The ITF also keeps rankings for beach tennis players.

Awards and Rankings

2009 ITF World Champion trophies awarded to Roger Federer and Serena Williams

World Champions

Each year, the ITF names a World Champion in different tennis areas. This is based on how well players did throughout the year, especially in the Grand Slam tournaments and team events like the Davis Cup and Fed Cup. The first singles champions were named in 1978. Later, World Champion awards were added for doubles, juniors, and wheelchair players.

Sometimes, the ITF's World Champions are different from the year-end ATP and WTA rankings. For example, Jennifer Capriati was named World Champion in 2001. She won the Australian Open and French Open, even though she finished the year ranked number two. Lindsay Davenport was ranked number one, but her best results at major tournaments were reaching the semifinals.

Philippe Chatrier Award

The Philippe Chatrier Award is a special yearly award from the ITF. It honors people or groups who have done amazing things for tennis around the world, both on and off the court. The award started in 1996 and is the ITF's highest honor. It is named after Philippe Chatrier, a former French tennis player who was the ITF President from 1977 to 1991.

National Rankings

The ITF keeps track of how countries rank in women's and men's tennis. These rankings are based only on how well they have done recently in the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup. These rankings help decide which teams get a better starting position each year.

The women's and men's rankings are figured out in a similar way. A country's points are a total of points earned over the past four years. Countries earn points by winning, depending on the group they are in, the round they play, and the ranking of the team they beat. For the men's ranking, extra points are given for winning on an opponent's home court. Points earned in the last 12 months count for 100%. Points from two years ago count for 75%, three years ago for 50%, and four years ago for 25%.

Player Rating and Registration

International Tennis Number (ITN)

The International Tennis Number (ITN) is a worldwide rating system for tennis players. It gives players a number that shows their general skill level. Players are rated from ITN 1 (like a professional ATP or WTA player) to 10 (for new players).

There are charts that connect the ITN to other rating systems in different countries. The goal is for every tennis player in the world to have an ITN rating.

Below ITN 10, there are three more levels for players using slower balls:

10.1 for players using green balls on a full-size court.
10.2 for players using orange balls on an 18-meter court.
10.3 for players using red balls on an 11-meter court.

Once players can serve, rally, and score, they should get a rating. This helps them find other players of a similar skill level to play with.

International Player Identification Number (IPIN)

In late 2004, the ITF started a new IPIN (International Player Identification Number) program. This program requires all players who play in ITF Pro Circuit tournaments to sign up online. IPIN is now also used for the ITF Junior, Seniors, and Wheelchair Circuits. A player's IPIN is a mix of 3 letters and 7 numbers. It is given when a player registers and stays the same throughout their career. Once registered, players can use the IPIN website to sign up for or withdraw from ITF tournaments. They can also get tournament information and see details about any rule violations. There is a yearly fee for IPIN registration, which depends on the ITF circuit the player chooses.

Integrity in Tennis

The ITF manages the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP). This program works to prevent doping in tennis, following the rules of the WADA. The ITF also used to manage the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP) through its Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU). In 2021, the TIU moved out of the ITF and became part of the new International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). The TADP is also planned to move to the ITIA from 2022.

ITF Decisions and Fines

Fine of the Tunisian Tennis Federation

In October 2013, Tunisian player Malek Jaziri and Israeli player Amir Weintraub were supposed to play each other. However, Jaziri pulled out of the match. According to Jaziri's brother, Jaziri was told to withdraw.

The Association of Tennis Professionals looked into it and found that Jaziri had done nothing wrong. They found that the Tunisian Tennis Federation had interfered with the game. This was against the ITF's rules. Because of this, Tunisia was suspended from the 2014 Davis Cup competition. ITF president Francesco Ricci Bitti said, "There is no room for prejudice of any kind in sport or in society. The ITF Board decided to send a strong message to the Tunisian Tennis Federation that this kind of action will not be tolerated."

Fine of the Israel Tennis Association

A Davis Cup game between the Israeli national tennis team and the Belgian national tennis team was planned for September 14, 2013, in Antwerp. Because the match was scheduled on Yom Kippur, a holy day, the Israeli team asked to move the match to the next day. The Belgian team did not want to change the date.

The International Tennis Federation stepped in and moved the match by one day. It also fined the Israel Tennis Association over $13,000 for the trouble of rescheduling.