A VINTAGE YEAR FOR DAVIS CUP

Written by: Staff on 2nd December 2014

A VINTAGE YEAR FOR DAVIS CUP

epa04500835 Roger Federer (R) of Switzerland returns the ball to Richard Gasquet (L) of France during their single match of the Davis Cup World Final between France and Switzerland at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille, France, 23 November 2014. EPA/YOAN VALAT |

(Courtesy of the ITF and original Link: http://www.daviscup.com/en/news/191865.aspx

It has been another memorable year for Davis Cup by BNP Paribas with a record-breaking crowd in the final between France and Switzerland proving to be the icing on the cake.

In total 566 players from 122 nations contested this year’s competition, in which Switzerland, led by Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka, became only the 14th nation to win the 115-year-old event after defeating France 3-1 in the Final in Lille on 21-23 November.

The Final attracted a record number of spectators for an officially-sanctioned tennis event with a crowd of 27,448 on Sunday in Lille. This brought the total attendance for Davis Cup in 2014 to 600,000 spectators.

Richard Gasquet (front C) of France serves to Roger Federer (back) of Switzerland during their single match of the Davis Cup World Final between France and Switzerland at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille, France, 23 November 2014. EPA/YOAN VALAT

ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said: “It has been an outstanding year for Davis Cup, with strong player participation, record attendances, and increasing TV and online audiences.

“The competition has continued to capture the imagination of both players and fans throughout the world in the unique atmosphere of a team environment.”

Davis Cup was played in 58 countries in 2014, with a total of 82 home-and-away ties and seven group events held in the World Group and three regional zones: Americas, Asia/Oceania and Europe/Africa.

(L-R) Swiss Davis Cup Team captain Severin Luethi and players Michael Lammer, Marco Chiudinelli, Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka wave to the fans and pose with the Davis Cup Trophy during a public welcome ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland, 24 November 2014. Switzerland clinched the first Davis Cup title on 23 November 2014 by beating France. EPA/LAURENT GILLIERON

It was another successful year for Davis Cup on television, with the Final shown by 41 broadcasters in 158 territories. The Swiss broadcaster SRG saw market shares of over 50 per cent on its three television channels, while France Television recorded a 25 per cent market share on Saturday. Throughout 2014, a total of 76 broadcasters showed Davis Cup in 168 territories.

The Davis Cup websites in English and Spanish have shown a 30 per cent growth in 2014, with 6.8 million visits, 3.5 million unique visitors and over 30 million page views achieved by the end of the Final. The 2014 Final saw a record website audience with almost 1.4 million visitor sessions.

The competition’s social media properties in English, Spanish and Chinese have seen a 90 per cent increase in users this year, with 180,000 Twitter followers and 300,000 Facebook likes.

A key factor in the success of Davis Cup in 2014 has been the launch of Show Your Colours, a new fan-focused campaign to promote Davis Cup and Fed Cup as the world cups of tennis, and already used by over 60 nations globally.

French and Swiss supporters react during the second day’s double match of the Davis Cup World Final between France and Switzerland at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille, France, 22 November 2014. EPA/YOAN VALAT

Building on the unique team nature of both competitions, Show Your Colours uses branding elements for promotion, in-stadium activities and all of the ITF’s website and social media activity.

Topics: 2014 Davis Cup, Federer, France, Switzerland, Tennis

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10sBalls_com says:

December 2, 2014 at 12:13 pm

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