translated from Spanish: Davis Cup is adapted to the new times with the format”Pique”

of the Davis Cup competition abandoned its traditional format of competition of quarter or weekends will play in a single, with one seat and 18 teams, as it had proposed the business group “Kosmos”, Gerard Pique Barcelona FC player presides and which was approved on Thursday by the general Assembly of the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
The changes were approved with a 71,43%, more than the two-thirds required of the 140 Nations that they were present at the meeting held in Orlando, Florida.
The voting system was divided into six categories of importance of countries members of the ITF led with the four who organise Grand Slams more Germany. Each had 12 votes. The second category, which was Spain and Argentina, had 9 votes and were favorable to the new format.
Then there were other four categories with 7, 5, 3 and 1 votes for their countries, respectively.
As expected the opposition to the new format became part of Australia, which considered that the legendary competition of the Davis Cup, with the new format, has been converted into a mere “economic operation”, which has no guarantees that will meet the objectives or involving the great figures.
With the new approved format, from 2019, 24 Nations will compete in a local qualifying round or round in February. The 12 winners will advance to the final tournament. They will be joined by the four semi-finalists of the previous year, along with two wildcard teams.
During that week, 18, participants will be divided into six zones of three teams each, with a Round Robin system, i.e., all against all.
The winners of each group and the two best second will play the quarterfinals and then you will be deleting. In addition, there will be less parties: each series will have two singles (four are up to this edition) and a double, to the best of three sets.
The new format, which replaces the established in 1900, comes into force in the next year and was presented by ITF together with the investment group Kosmos, which is committed to an investment of $ 3,000 million over a period of 25 years Hiroshi Mikitani, director of Rakuten, the Japanese company’s e-commerce that sponsors of FC Barcelona shirt back.
The first championship will take place from 18 to 24 November 2019 in Madrid and Lille, France.
Madrid, through the community and the City Council, would contribute 10 million euros to produce the first edition of the Copa Davis 2019 under the new format and if you granted the organization estimated that the economic impact of this is 250 million euros.
While with the investment of the company Kosmos, the Nations will receive each year an average of 25 million dollars for its development of the CopaDavis tennis and participating players will be $ 20 million in prize money.
The President of the ITF, the American David Haggerty, maximum defender of the new format said they felt “delighted” with the outcome of the vote and reiterated that the future of Davis Cup was secured.
“By voting in favour of these reforms, we can work with Kosmos to develop to the fullest the potential which has Davis Cup both at the level of competition and profitability”, said Haggerty. “This new event will create a true festival of tennis and entertainment which will be more attractive to the players, fans, sponsors and television.”
Haggerty insisted that new income that leaves the competition they will have a transformative effect on the development of the sport of tennis in all Nations.
“Our mission is to ensure that this historic decision benefits to new generations of players for decades,” said Haggerty, who also thanked the Board of Directors of the ITF for their commitment and support, just as it did with Kosmos by its involvement in the project.
While Pique, President and founder of Kosmos, defined the adoption of the new format of the Davis Cup as “a historic day” and said he was convinced that the agreement ratified by the Nations guaranteed the future of the Davis Cup and the tennis development in all levels.
Pique also congratulated those who supported the new project of change because with its decision, they saw the transcendence that was in their hands.
For its part, the powerful Association of tennis United States (USTA), which support early on the new project, through a statement underlined that the approval would allow the Davis Cup project it into the 21st century and raise the competition level is deserves.

Original source in Spanish

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