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The WTA and Hologic have jointly announced a landmark partnership introducing Hologic as the global title sponsor of the WTA Tour, bringing an end to the 12-year drought since its last title sponsor in 2010.
As a professional athlete who relies on my health to perform at the highest level, I’m excited that Hologic has partnered with the WTA. Hologic’s initiative to invest in women’s tennis shows its commitment to women’s health and women’s sport. I look forward to playing on the Hologic WTA Tour and the impact this partnership will generate for women globally. Ash Barty
After more than a decade without a title sponsor, the WTA has confirmed that it has agreed to a multi-year deal with Hologic, a leading global medical device and diagnostics company focused on women’s health in what is the largest global sponsorship in WTA history and Hologic’s first worldwide sponsorship, which aims to achieve significant progress through a shared vision of greater wellness and equality for women.
The arrangement comes at a crucial moment for the WTA, which has suspended all of its tournaments in China and faced significant financial shortfalls during the coronavirus pandemic because of tournament cancellations, and reduced attendance and revenue at many events.
The boycott of events in China because of the Peng Shuai crisis late last year resulted in the loss of significant income from the most lucrative swing on the WTA Tour but has, in the end, proven to be of huge long-term gain for the organisation that is viewed to have moral integrity.
The ground-breaking partnership allows both organisations to rally around their collective mission to champion women while modernising their respective industries of healthcare and sports.
World No 1 Ash Barty is excited that Hologic has partnered with the WTA
As one of the world’s top medical technology innovators, Hologic focuses primarily on improving women’s health and well-being.
That includes industry-leading products in every category of its business: diagnostics, imaging systems and surgical devices.
Hologic’s areas of emphasis include state-of-the-art preventive care, reducing disparities in healthcare access and education, and unique research that helps countries worldwide better prioritise women’s health.
“Hologic and the WTA come together with a collective purpose as pioneering advocates for women,” said Hologic Chairman, President and CEO Steve MacMillan. “We are proud to stand with the WTA in its commitment to the highest integrity and values.
“Ultimately, our partnership allows us to jointly raise the profile of women even higher and to share the importance of early detection and treatment with women across the world.”
Hologic’s sponsorship also affirms the continued growth of women’s tennis and the strong brand values the WTA embodies.
“From the start, we knew Hologic was the right partner,” said WTA President Micky Lawler. “As we embark on a new era of women breaking barriers and understanding how imperative our health is to reach our full potential, Hologic joins the WTA family at a pivotal time.
“Reflecting on the passion we both share for women’s equality around the world, I look forward to the meaningful change this partnership will spark for our athletes, sport, and fans.”
World No 1 Ash Barty said: “As a professional athlete who relies on my health to perform at the highest level, I’m excited that Hologic has partnered with the WTA.
“Hologic’s initiative to invest in women’s tennis shows its commitment to women’s health and women’s sport.
“I look forward to playing on the Hologic WTA Tour and the impact this partnership will generate for women globally.”
Hologic will be integrated into the WTA across all platforms, including net signage at all WTA tournaments and virtual advertising at WTA 1000 and 500 events.
As the official health partner of the WTA, Hologic becomes the founding partner of Hologic WTA Labs, a WTA initiative focused on health innovation and research-based projects specific to female athletes.
Hologic and the WTA plan to announce more joint activities in the coming months.
The new partners also will emphasise the importance of preventive care through the annual Well Woman medical visit.
To learn more about the Well Woman exam, visit ScreeningsForHer.com .
While the precise terms of the deal have not been published, it is thought to be significantly larger on an annual basis than the WTA Tour’s previous title sponsorship with the cellphone manufacturer Sony Ericsson, which ended in 2010 after a 6-year agreement, signed in 2005, for $88 million that averaged $14.7 million annually.
The Hologic deal is a major win for the WTA, who renewed efforts to find a new global title sponsor two years ago with the appointment of CSM Sports & Entertainment as the WTA’s sponsorship sales agency of record.
“The focus for CSM will be to shine a massive spotlight on the opportunities that this well-established women’s league can offer brands, especially those looking for meaningful engagement with consumers,” CSM Executive Vice-President Ross Meltzer told SportBusiness in 2020.
At the time, the WTA had 4 Global Partners: Dubai Duty Free, an airport retailer; iQiyi, a Netflix-style Chinese online video platform; Porsche, a luxury car manufacturer and SAP, a software and cloud-computing giant.
Since the end of 2021, however, iQiyi requested for its logo to be removed from the WTA’s website amid the tour’s ongoing suspension of Chinese tournaments, although the Wall Street Journal reported that the partnership, valued at $120 million over 10 years, remains in place until 2027.
Driven by its partnership with CSM, the WTA has rapidly accelerated its sponsorship growth within the last year and, in August, the tour brought on FanDuel as its first official betting and fantasy sports partner, while in November, it inked a multi-year Global Partner deal with wearable technology innovators WHOOP.