The Davis Cup takes place all over the world and involves around 275 ties a year in 65 different countries.
The competition is split into different levels, with nations competing firstly based on their ranking and then on a promotion and relegation basis.
The are four main tiers of the competition can be summarised as follows:
The best of the best. Eight nations compete to win the coveted Davis Cup trophy in a six-day event played in one host city at the end of the tennis season in November.
This year's Final 8 will take place in Bologna, Italy. The hosts were given a wild card to compete having won the competition for the last two years.
They will be joined by seven other teams, who will be the nations that win in the Qualifiers 2nd Round in September.
At the start of the year, 28 nations have the chance to get their hands on the Davis Cup trophy. Two wild cards and the 26 countries that start in the Qualifiers.
The Qualifiers are played over the course of two rounds - this year, the 1st Round took place after the Australian Open in late January/early February and the 2nd Round will take place after the US Open in September.
Teams that win in the Qualifiers 1st Round progress on to the Qualifiers 2nd Round, where they are joined by one of the wild cards from the previous year's Finals. This year, 2024 runners-up Netherlands were given a wild card which meant they received a bye through to the Qualifiers 2nd Round.
Winning in the Qualifiers 2nd Round means teams book their place in the Final 8, alongside the last remaining wild card (Italy).
Teams that lose in the Qualifiers 1st Round compete again in September in the World Group I Play-offs. Teams that lose in the Qualifiers 2nd Round compete in the following year's Qualifiers 1st Round.
Below the top-tier of the competition, you will find teams from all over the world that are fighting to get into the Qualifiers so they can put together a title bid.
Twenty-six teams play in each of World Group I and World Group II at the start of the year, with nations drawn against each other based on their ranking.
Ties are played on a home-or-away basis, meaning one nation hosts the other, and the matches take place over the course of two days. Ties are decided in a best-of-five matches format, meaning the first team to win three matches, wins the tie.
On day one, teams name two players to compete in singles matches. These players are known as No. 1 and No. 2 singles players. The No. 1 on each team plays the No. 2 on the opposing team on day one.
On day two, there are up to three matches contested. The second day's play starts with a doubles match, followed by a singles match between the No. 1 singles players and then, if needed, the tie will be decided by the singles match between the No. 2 singles players.
Any match played before one team has won three points is known as a "live match". If the result of the tie is already decided, teams sometimes play matches that are known as "dead matches".
The World Group I and II Play-offs take place in the first Davis Cup week of the year. Teams in the World Group I Play-offs are competing to advance to World Group I in September. From there they can move up to the Qualifiers.
Teams that lose in the World Group I Play-offs find themselves in World Group II in September, where they play against one of the winning teams from the World Group II Play-offs.
Teams that lose in the World Group II Play-offs compete in their respective Group III regional event.
In the lower levels of the competition, teams compete based on their geographical location. Regional ties typically take place over the months of June, July and August, with each event taking place in one location.
Nation | Number of titles |
|---|---|
USA | 32 |
Australia | 28 |
France, Great Britain | 10 |
Sweden | 7 |
Spain | 6 |
Czechia*, Germany, Italy, Russia** | 3 |
Croatia | 2 |
Argentina, Canada, Serbia, South Africa, Switzerland | 1 |
*one of the titles (1980) as Czechoslovakia
**one of the titles (2021) as Russian Tennis Federation