When Australia was knocked out of the Davis Cup last month, the Australian side suggested there was a home-ground advantage.
Despite playing Italy in neutral territory, the crowd was clearly on one side.
"I felt like I was playing an away tie," Thanasi Kokkinakis said. "We were playing Spain, but I thought we were in Italy."
Captain Lleyton Hewitt echoed his sentiments, saying: "Once again we’re a long way from Australia aren’t we?"
The Davis Cup Finals have been held in Spain since 2019 with Italy about to take over hosting rights until 2030. Since 2020, the Billie Jean King Cup has also had its finals in Europe each year.
Clearly, European teams have an advantage in this respect.
However, it’s not just at the team level that Europe sees a bias, it’s throughout most aspects of professional tennis.
Does it just reflect the game or is it unfair and stunting the growth of the sport?
ATP Tour:
The greatest bias towards Europe can be seen on the ATP Tour where over 50 per cent of tournaments are held there. An incredible stint from April 7 to July 13 in 2025 will not see a single ATP tournament played outside the continent.
Compare this to the next longest of the North American swing up to the US Open which lasts just over a month.
In addition, 90 per cent of the tournaments are in Western Europe with only Romania, Croatia and Serbia representing the East.
There are swings in South America and East Asia, but both compete with other tournaments at the same time. South America, which drops down from four tournaments to three in 2025, faces the influence of money from the Middle East.
Argentine tennis great Diego Schwartzman weighed in on the decision to reduce tournaments in the region.
"From four tournaments to only three... to get tournaments and possibilities to all of South America, I don't see it being a great decision. A shame," he tweeted.
While China faces competition from the Laver Cup for big names, the associated jet lag and poor performances from those players will carry through next year if 2024 is anything to go by.
Isn't this just representative?
Well, yes and no.
61 per cent of male players in the top-100 are from Europe, more than the percentage of tournaments they have.
However, South America has 11 per cent of players with a long history at the top of the game, particularly in recent decades. They have just five per cent of tournaments and none above 500 level.
Andy Murray said the continent deserves better.
"South America should have its own dedicated swing on the tennis tour with its own Masters series," he said. "The way the fans support the tournaments there is incredible. Amazing atmospheres and tennis is clearly part of their sporting culture. Vamos ATP Tour."
Australia alone has nine per cent of players and five per cent of tournaments (excluding the ATP Cup). Though with a dedicated Grand Slam, perhaps we have less to complain about.
What about the WTA tour?
The 2025 tour is far more representative than their male counterparts.
Europe has just one-third of tournaments despite having 65 per cent of players from the continent. North America has a quarter, and Asia is represented with approximately 20 per cent of tournaments.
What also stands out is dedicated swings for different regions. Tournaments in Asia have over a month without competition from other continents. Europe doesn’t have a single WTA-level tournament after July 21, which is actually quite remarkable.
Many of Europe’s indoor tournaments have been removed to even up the calendar. However, the WTA has failed South America with just one tournament for the entire year.
Money talks:
Some of the growth areas for both ATP and WTA have been in China and Saudi Arabia. This has been controversial because of their checkered human rights records and because it often appears to be mainly money-driven.
At least in the case of China, the long-term investment in the sport this century has yielded results. There have been Grand Slam champions in the women’s game, while the men have started to break through in recent years.
Decades of tournaments in the Middle East have yet to see top players from the region.
Last month during the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi's capital, eyebrows were raised over the poor attendance numbers which heightened doubts as to whether the country should host future events.
Missed opportunities:
Not investing more heavily in large markets like South America and Eastern Europe and missing many parts of Asia entirely (including India and Indonesia) will continue to limit tennis as a "world" game.
It is a balancing act of keeping the game financially sound while also growing the sport globally.
More tournaments have sprung up in North Africa while the Republic of the Congo had their first-ever Challenger event this year.
So, is there a bias?
Perhaps it depends on who you ask.
For Australian players at the ATP and WTA level, they have to play the majority of the year away from home. They can’t pop home in between tournaments and see friends and family. The same applies to those in Southern Africa, South America and much of Asia.
However, the tour is dominated by Europe and North America for a reason. It’s where many of the fans are, where the money is, and where the results come from. But is it a self-fulfilling prophecy?
If the majority of the game is there, the majority of the top players statistically should be too. Does France alone need double the tournaments of the entire continent of South America? Does the ATP Tour really need all their indoor European tournaments?
Tennis is often trying to shake off an image of a rich white middle-class sport and reach more (and younger) audiences globally. But with its schedule either keeping historic tournaments or chasing money where there is no fan base, it appears that the status quo is here to stay.
So enjoy the summer of tennis in Australia, because if you want to see more action throughout the year, you’ve got a long flight to catch.
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