On behalf of the International Tennis Federation, I am delighted to welcome you to the Espoo Metro Areena in Finland for the 2022 Davis Cup by Rakuten World Group I tie between Finland and New Zealand.

Davis Cup is the World Cup of Tennis. Founded in 1900, it has grown to become the largest annual team competition in sport.

There are 24 teams taking part in the 2022 World Group I Play-offs in 12 home-and-away ties around the world. The 12 winning nations will advance to the 2023 Davis Cup by Rakuten Qualifiers in February. That means that a winning team from this weekend’s World Group I ties could make it to the 2023 Davis Cup Finals for a chance to compete to become 2023 Davis Cup Champions.

The 12 losing nations will contest the 2023 Davis Cup by Rakuten World Group I Play-offs.

Thank you for attending this Davis Cup tie. Your support is vital to the competition and I hope you have a great experience cheering on your team and contributing to the unique Davis Cup atmosphere.

I would also like to give special thanks to the players, the captains and the National Associations who give so much to making the Davis Cup such a special competition. The revenue that the ITF generates from Davis Cup is reinvested into the development of tennis at the national level. By competing in Davis Cup, the players contribute to delivering tennis for future generations.

Additionally, I would like to pay tribute to the event organisers of all Davis Cup ties in 2022. We could not stage these special events without all of their work.

I wish all of you an enjoyable and successful weekend.

David Haggerty, ITF President