Next Gen ATP Finals 2026 in Reggio Calabria

PalaCalafiore · Reggio di Calabria, Costa Viola, Calabria

9 December 2026 – 13 December 2026

From 9 to 13 December 2026 the PalaCalafiore in Reggio Calabria hosts the Next Gen ATP Finals, the season-ending event for the eight best Under-20 players in the Next Gen ATP Race, held in southern Italy for the first time. As of 23 October Spain's Rafael Jodar leads the standings, Italy's Federico Cinà is fourth and Brazil's João Fonseca has ended his season through injury. In Italy the matches will be shown live and free-to-air on SuperTennis. Tickets are sold only on the official site tickets.nextgenatpfinals.com: eight sessions on the Centre Court, from €15 to €113 plus booking fees, with passes from €131 to €324 and discounts for FITP members and people with disabilities. Total prize money is US$2 million.

Next Gen ATP Finals 2026 in Reggio Calabria: what it is and why it matters

From 9 to 13 December 2026 the PalaCalafiore in Reggio Calabria hosts the Next Gen ATP Finals, the season-ending event for the best young players on the men's tour: the eight highest-placed Under-20s in the Next Gen ATP Race, the season-long ranking reserved for them. No ranking points are at stake, but there is a US$2 million prize pool and a clear track record: Jannik Sinner (champion in 2019) and Carlos Alcaraz (champion in 2021) both came through here before becoming world No. 1.

It is the first time the tournament has been played in southern Italy. All previous Italian editions were held in Milan, from 2017 to 2022; from 2023 to 2025 the event moved to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The ATP has awarded Reggio the 2026 edition and will announce the host for later years in due course.

The tournament closes an all-Italian end of season: after the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin and the Davis Cup Finals in Bologna, Reggio Calabria completes what Angelo Binaghi, president of the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation (FITP), called the first year in which Italy hosts all three season finales of top-level tennis. Five days, eight sessions on the Centre Court and an arena of around 8,000 seats in tennis configuration.

Photo: the Centre Court at Milan's Allianz Cloud during the 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals (photo by Saggittarius A, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

Who plays in Reggio Calabria: the Race on 23 October

Nobody enters by registration: the eight Under-20s with the most points in the Next Gen ATP Race, which adds up a season of results at ATP, Challenger and ITF events, qualify. As of 23 October 2026 the official standings show no qualified players yet and the closing date of the Race has not been announced; in 2024 the ATP confirmed the names between 25 and 27 November.

Spain's Rafael Jodar leads with 3,159 points after reaching the Shanghai Masters 1000 final in October. Second is Brazil's João Fonseca, the 2024 champion, who has ended his season through injury: the ATP lists him as out for the rest of 2026, so he will not be in Reggio and his place passes to the next in line. Third is Spain's Martin Landaluce (822). Several outlets also consider Jodar's participation uncertain, as he is in the race for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin and faces a busy end of year.

Fourth, with 401 points, is Federico Cinà from Palermo, aged 19 and ranked No. 135 in the ATP rankings, just ahead of Japan's Rei Sakamoto (395). Behind them the pack is tight: Darwin Blanch (USA), Joel Schwaerzler (Austria), Felix Balshaw and Moïse Kouamé (France), Nicolai Budkov Kjaer (Norway), Diego Dedura (Germany) and Jan Kumstát (Czech Republic) are separated by fewer than 50 points, so the standings can still change in the coming weeks.

On 9 September Binaghi mentioned the possibility of a wild card for a second Italian, as in the Milan editions; as of 23 October the ATP has not confirmed it. The only Italian to have won the title is Sinner, in 2019, who entered on a wild card.

Photo: Jannik Sinner lifts the Next Gen ATP Finals trophy in Milan on 9 November 2019 (photo by Thekingross, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

Schedule, session times and the group draw

The tournament is played on a single court, the PalaCalafiore Centre Court, across eight sessions. From Wednesday 9 to Friday 11 December there is a day session at 2pm and an evening session at 7.30pm each day, with two group matches in each. On Saturday 12 the two semi-finals start at 7pm (the second not before 8.30pm), and the final is on Sunday 13, not before 5pm. Times are indicative: who plays in each session is known only from the order of play, published the evening before on the official tournament website. The arena is cleared after the day session, including for evening ticket holders.

The eight qualifiers are split into two groups of four. Under the draw rules published on the official site, the No. 1 seed goes into Group A and the No. 2 seed into Group B; the others are drawn in pairs (3-4, 5-6, 7-8), with the first name drawn from each pair going into Group A. In the semi-finals the Group A winner meets the Group B runner-up and vice versa. Ties are decided, in order, by matches played, head-to-head, percentage of sets won, percentage of games won and ranking.

As of 23 October the date and venue of the draw ceremony have not been announced. At the first edition, in Milan in 2017, the draw caused a stir: players picked models who revealed the group letter, and the ATP and its sponsor publicly apologised, calling the ceremony tasteless and unacceptable.

Tickets: prices, passes, discounts and how to buy

Tickets have been on sale since 25 September 2026, online only, on the official ticketing website run with the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation. You can choose a single-session ticket or a pass for all eight sessions: each buyer can purchase one ticket per session for up to two sessions, or one pass. There are no age-based reductions; only children under one enter free.

There are four sectors: Parterre North/South, Parterre West/East, Tribuna West/East and Distinti. Group sessions range from €15 (Distinti, day sessions) to €48 (Parterre N/S, Friday evening); semi-finals cost €30 to €84 and the final €40 to €113. The pass costs €131 in Distinti, €231 in Tribuna, €287 in Parterre W/E and €324 in Parterre N/S. A 10% booking fee and a service charge, stated as between €1.50 and 7% of the price, are added, and prices may change. As of 23 October no session is sold out and no hospitality packages have been published; FITP Gift Cards are available.

FITP members holding Atleta or Gold cards get 20% off tickets and 3% off passes (30% and 6% with a SportPay account), eSports members 5% (10% with SportPay): the membership card must be linked to your ticketing profile and may be checked at the entrance (member details). People with a disability rating above 74% or a certified severe disability get around 50% off, with the ticket necessarily paired with a companion's, while reserved seats last (accessibility instructions).

Tickets are not personalised, not refundable and there is no official resale channel, so be wary of secondary ticketing sites and private listings. Payment is by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal or MyBank transfer, and tickets arrive by email as print-at-home PDFs.

How to watch the Next Gen ATP Finals on TV and streaming

In Italy the tournament will be shown live and free-to-air on SuperTennis, the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation's channel: president Angelo Binaghi announced it at the presentation on 20 October, adding that pictures from Reggio Calabria will be broadcast in more than 160 countries. As of 23 October no other Italian broadcaster has been announced; the Jeddah editions were shown on Sky Sport and NOW. Outside Italy the tournament is on the calendar of Tennis TV, the ATP's streaming service.

SuperTennis has already launched «Focus Next Gen», a series of profiles of the players in contention. The live Race standings are on the home page of the official tournament website, which also publishes each day's order of play during the event; the format and rules are explained on the rules and innovations page.

From the New York announcement to the presentation in Reggio

Reggio Calabria was announced as host on 9 September 2026 in New York, during the US Open, by ATP Chief Tour Officer Andre Silva, FITP president Angelo Binaghi and Calabria Region president Roberto Occhiuto, with Italy's Minister for Sport and Youth Andrea Abodi joining remotely and mayor Francesco Cannizzaro linked up from Palazzo Alvaro in Reggio. After the early end of the Jeddah agreement, the ATP had reopened the bidding for 2026. Binaghi later said the idea of Reggio came from Minister Abodi.

On 20 October the tournament was officially presented at Palazzo Corrado Alvaro, seat of the Metropolitan City, with Abodi, Binaghi, Occhiuto, Cannizzaro and the leadership of Sport e Salute, chairman Marco Mezzaroma and CEO Diego Nepi Molineris: it is the state-owned sports company to which the government has entrusted the organisation. «We won't count the spectators in the stands, but the kids who, once the event is over, decide to take up the sport», Mezzaroma said. For Cannizzaro, «international tennis is introducing itself to Reggio, but it is Reggio Calabria that is introducing itself to the world».

Occhiuto put the economic impact for Calabria at €45 million. The city and Sport e Salute announced a memorandum of understanding to support local sports clubs, and both Abodi and Binaghi said they hope the event will continue beyond 2026, though the ATP has not awarded any later edition so far.

In the video (in Italian), SuperTennis interviews Angelo Binaghi on the day of the announcement.

The PalaCalafiore and the works for the tournament

Matches are played at the PalaCalafiore, in Parco Pentimele in the northern part of Reggio. Opened in the early 1990s as the PalaPentimele, it was named in August 2004 after Francesco Calafiore, a journalist and former coach of Viola, the city's basketball team, whose historic home it is. With more than 8,000 seats it is among the largest indoor arenas in southern Italy, and in 2010 it hosted a stage of the men's Volleyball World Championship. It has seen tennis before: in 1999 Italy's Fed Cup team beat defending champions Spain 3-2 here on indoor carpet, with two points from Silvia Farina.

For the Next Gen ATP Finals the Calabria Region has allocated €653,000 for works inside and outside the arena, which will stay with the city for sport and concerts. The stated goal is an indoor arena for about 8,000 spectators with a fast hard court. A technical inspection by Sport e Salute, FITP, the city, the Region and the Polimeni tennis club took place on 2 October, and on 20 October the mayor confirmed that work is under way. Practice is planned in the retractable-roof volleyball facility next to the arena, while the Circolo Tennis Rocco Polimeni, in the same park, will be the logistics base for players, staff and media.

Photo: inside the PalaCalafiore during a basketball warm-up in 2003 (photo by Salvatore Migliari, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

The format and the experimental rules

The Next Gen ATP Finals are not played like any other tournament. The eight qualifiers are divided into two round-robin groups of four; the top two in each group reach the semi-finals, followed by the final. Matches are best of five sets, but each set is played to four games with a tie-break at 3-3, and at deuce a single deciding point is played, with no advantage.

The event was created in 2017 as an ATP laboratory and has tried something new almost every year. At the first edition it was the first ATP event without line judges, replaced by Hawk-Eye Live; then came video review (2018), coaching from the bench (2021), a 15-second clock after an ace, a double fault or a missed return (2022) and an 8-second limit between first and second serve (2023). Under the 2025 rules the set break lasts 90 seconds instead of 120, there is no changeover after the first game, spectators are free to move around the stands and the umpire's chair is lower. The no-let rule, where a serve that clips the net stays in play, has been tried several times but does not appear in the 2025 rules. The rules for the 2026 edition have not yet been published.

Photo: Lorenzo Musetti and Dominic Stricker at a changeover, 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan (photo by Saggittarius A, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

History, past winners and stories: from Chung to Sinner

The tournament began in 2017 at Fiera Milano in Rho, where it was also held in 2018; from 2019 to 2022 it moved to the Allianz Cloud, the former PalaLido, with the 2020 edition cancelled because of the pandemic. From 2023 to 2025 it was played in Jeddah. Past winners: Chung Hyeon (2017), Stefanos Tsitsipas (2018), Jannik Sinner (2019), Carlos Alcaraz (2021), Brandon Nakashima (2022), Hamad Medjedovic (2023), João Fonseca (2024) and Learner Tien (2025). Three former participants have become world No. 1: Daniil Medvedev, third in 2017, Sinner and Alcaraz.

The 2019 final is the tournament's most Italian moment. Sinner arrived in Milan on a federation wild card, ranked No. 95 and the youngest player in the top 100; in the final he beat top seed Alex de Minaur 4-2 4-1 4-2, saving all nine break points he faced. The US$372,000 winner's cheque earned him more in a week than in his whole career up to then, and he remains the youngest champion in the event's history.

More stories: South Korea's Chung, nicknamed «the Professor» for his glasses, won the first edition unbeaten, sealing the final on a deciding point at deuce. Medjedovic won the first five-set final in 2023 and hit 69 aces in one week, a tournament record. Fonseca won in 2024 as the lowest seed in the field, with Rafael Nadal watching from the stands. Italy has had nine appearances: Gianluigi Quinzi, Liam Caruana, Sinner, Lorenzo Musetti (twice), Francesco Passaro, Matteo Arnaldi, Flavio Cobolli and Luca Nardi.

In the video, highlights of the 2019 Milan final between Sinner and de Minaur.

The latest champion and the prize money

The latest champion is Learner Tien of the United States, who beat Belgium's Alexander Blockx 4-3 4-2 4-1 in the Jeddah final in December 2025, a year after losing the final to Fonseca. His week had started with a defeat against Rafael Jodar, now top of the 2026 Race; in his corner was Michael Chang, a former world No. 2.

The 2026 prize pool totals US$2 million. The breakdown has not yet been published: in 2025 participation alone was worth US$154,000, each alternate received US$15,000 and an unbeaten champion could earn up to US$539,750; Tien took home US$502,250. The Next Gen ATP Finals award no ATP ranking points, and the age limit has dropped from 21 in the early editions to 20, in force since 2024. For a 20-year-old, what counts is the international stage and the head-to-head test against the strongest players of the same age.

In the video (Italian commentary by Sky Sport), highlights of the 2025 final between Tien and Blockx.

Reggio Calabria and tennis: from the Davis Cup to a Fed Cup final

International tennis in Reggio has a long history, almost all of it tied to the Circolo Tennis Rocco Polimeni. Founded in 1945 and named after a local player killed in the war, from 1959 to 1970 the club staged the Reggio Calabria International, which drew, among others, Nicola Pietrangeli, Roy Emerson, Tony Roche, John Newcombe, Margaret Smith and Lea Pericoli. Since 1978 the club has been based in Parco Pentimele, a few hundred metres from the PalaCalafiore, with a 2,000-seat centre court.

Three Davis Cup ties have been played on the Polimeni clay: Italy-Austria 5-0 in 1972, Italy-Ireland 3-2 in 1983 and Finland-Italy 4-1 in 2002. On 7 and 8 November 2009 the club hosted the Fed Cup final: Corrado Barazzutti's Italy beat the United States 4-0 with Flavia Pennetta, Francesca Schiavone and the Errani-Vinci doubles pair, winning the country's second title. «There was a bit too much clay on the court, but that's what we asked for», Pennetta said afterwards. For the Next Gen ATP Finals the Polimeni is back in the spotlight as the logistics base for players, staff and media.

Photo: the Polimeni centre court during the 2009 Fed Cup final (photo by Salvatore Migliari, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

Getting there, where to stay and what to do in Reggio Calabria

The PalaCalafiore is on Via Pentimele, north of the city centre. Directions from the official ticketing site: by car, leave the A2 motorway at Reggio Calabria Nord; by train, get off at Pentimele station, a short walk from the arena, while high-speed and Intercity passengers alight at Reggio Calabria Centrale and continue by train or on ATAM buses (lines 102, 103, 110 and 119). From the Aeroporto dello Stretto it takes 15-20 minutes by taxi; from Sicily, fast passenger boats cross the Strait between Messina and Reggio.

For accommodation, the portal lists holiday rentals; for food, see the guide to where to eat in Reggio Calabria. Between sessions there is time for the National Archaeological Museum of Magna Graecia, home of the Riace Bronzes, and for the Lungomare Falcomatà seafront, traditionally said to have been called «the most beautiful kilometre in Italy» by Gabriele D'Annunzio; on clear December days you can see a snow-capped Etna from the Arena dello Stretto.

The city calendar is busy around the tournament: Gigi D'Alessio at the PalaCalafiore on 4 December, Fire of Georgia at Teatro Cilea on the 7th, La sorpresa di matrimonio at the Cilea on the 11th and the musical Buon Natale Signor Scrugio at the Odeon on the 13th. All dates are in the events section.

Photos: the Lungomare Falcomatà on the Strait and at night (Benjamin Smith / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, photo 1, photo 2) and snow-capped Etna from the Arena dello Stretto (photo by Peku65, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

When and where are the 2026 Next Gen ATP Finals?

From 9 to 13 December 2026 at the PalaCalafiore in Reggio Calabria, on Via Pentimele. It is the first time the tournament is held in southern Italy, after the Milan (2017-2022) and Jeddah (2023-2025) editions.

Who has qualified for the 2026 Next Gen ATP Finals?

As of 23 October 2026 no player has officially qualified: the eight Under-20s with the most points in the Next Gen ATP Race get in. Spain's Rafael Jodar leads, while Brazil's João Fonseca, second, has ended his season through injury and will not play.

Will an Italian play at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Reggio Calabria?

Federico Cinà from Palermo is fourth in the Race as of 23 October, inside the qualifying places. The FITP has also mentioned a possible wild card for a second Italian, which the ATP has not yet confirmed.

Where can I watch the 2026 Next Gen ATP Finals on TV?

In Italy live and free-to-air on SuperTennis, as FITP president Angelo Binaghi announced on 20 October 2026. Abroad the tournament will be broadcast in more than 160 countries and is on the Tennis TV calendar.

How much do tickets for the 2026 Next Gen ATP Finals cost?

Group sessions range from €15 (Distinti, day sessions) to €48 (Parterre N/S, Friday evening); semi-finals €30 to €84 and the final €40 to €113. A pass for all sessions costs €131 to €324, plus a 10% booking fee and a service charge.

Where can I buy tickets? Can they be resold?

Online only on the official site tickets.nextgenatpfinals.com: one ticket per session for up to two sessions, or one pass. Tickets are not personalised or refundable and there is no official resale channel, so avoid secondary ticketing.

What time are the matches?

From 9 to 11 December there is a day session at 2pm and an evening session at 7.30pm, with two matches each; on Saturday 12 the semi-finals start at 7pm (the second not before 8.30pm) and on Sunday 13 the final is not before 5pm. The order of play is released the evening before.

When is the group draw?

As of 23 October 2026 the date and venue of the draw have not been announced. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeds go into Groups A and B, and the rest are drawn in pairs.

How does the tournament work?

Two groups of four players, then crossover semi-finals and a final. Best-of-five sets played to four games, a tie-break at 3-3, a deciding point at deuce and Hawk-Eye Live instead of line judges.

Who won the previous editions?

Chung Hyeon (2017), Stefanos Tsitsipas (2018), Jannik Sinner (2019), Carlos Alcaraz (2021), Brandon Nakashima (2022), Hamad Medjedovic (2023), João Fonseca (2024) and Learner Tien (2025); the 2020 edition was cancelled. Sinner and Alcaraz later became world No. 1.

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