Could Federer’s Laver Cup be heading for London?

LONDON will lose the ATP Tour Finals after the 2020 edition, but it could yet become the venue the following year for the Roger Federer-inspired Laver Cup. The possibility was given credence last night by Federer’s manager Tony Godsick in the wake of confirmation that the annual year-end championships will move to Turin. Godsick runs Team8, the agency behind the annual Europe v The World match that alternates between the US and this side of the Atlantic. ‘We’ve been contacted by several great European cities that are interested in hosting in 2021 and beyond,’ Godsick told Sportsmail. ‘With the move of the ATP Finals to Turin we would certainly want to consider London among the European destinations once we begin the selection process.’ Moves are already afoot to try to beef up the programme of events staged in the UK to help fill the large hole that will be left by the departure of the November extravaganza at the o2 Arena. The Lawn Tennis Association are actively assessing whether they can add to the domestic calendar, especially in the post-Wimbledon period. one thing the ATP Finals showed, over a run that will last 12 years until 2020, is that the right tournaments attract very good crowds in this country. ‘The LTA believes events play an important role in increasing the visibility of our sport and inspiring people to pick up a racket,’ said a spokesperson. ‘Alongside our successful series of grass court tournaments, we will continue to look for opportunities to stage events at other times of year.’ There have actually been two of these already in 2019 in the shape of Fed Cup events — resulting in promotion to the World Group level — in Bath and London. Both ties attracted large crowds but the television viewing figures for last week’s match at the Copper Box in London left much to be desired. The average audience for the tie’s climax on Sunday was just over 6,000, with a peak of 35,300. Former Fed Cup captain Judy Murray has previously made an impassioned plea for Great Britain’s next Fed Cup ties to be on free-to-air television. The ATP Finals now move to Turin’s 15,000-capacity Pala Alpitour. The Italian government has helped guarantee a prizemoney increase to £11.2million, which — unlikely a coincidence — is just above the £10.8m Shenzhen in China is paying the women for their equivalent.