“Davis Cup Fan World Cup Presented by Rakuten” gives global tennis fans a new way to support their team
With the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals set to return later this month, Rakuten and the Davis Cup are serving up an exciting new initiative to engage tennis fans around the world.
Rakuten and Kosmos Tennis today announced the launch of the Davis Cup Fan World Cup Presented by Rakuten, which allows tennis fans around the globe to cheer on their favorite team at the Davis Cup by submitting messages of support for the national teams competing at this year’s final held from 25 November until December 5.
“With the Davis Cup Fan World Cup Presented by Rakuten, we are launching a platform for fans to show their support in a way that players can experience first-hand – even when the fans are half a world away.”
Rahul Kadavakolu, Director of Global Marketing and Branding, Rakuten Group
Fans can submit their messages at the following link from now until the final day of the tournament: https://rakutenfans.com/
From words of encouragement to unique art installation
Rakuten became the first-ever Global Innovation and Entertainment Partner and Global Presenting Partner of the Davis Cup back in June of 2019, quickly working to drive innovation both on and off the court for the sport’s largest annual international team competition. That innovative streak continues with this year’s much-anticipated finals.
Ahead of the 2021 Davis Cup Finals, Rakuten has invited supporters to submit messages of encouragement for their national teams. These messages will be printed on tennis balls and canvas to create 19 unique art installations, one dedicated to a different team and spread across Madrid Arena in Madrid, Olympiahalle in Innsbruck and Pala Alpitour in Turin, the sites of the group stages, quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals of the tournament. The installations will be installed at the venues where each national team is playing in the group stage of the tournament, ensuring that competing athletes have a chance to feel the support of their fans in-person, even if those fans are thousands of miles away.
Each installation represents one of the 18 national teams at the Finals, with a special piece dedicated to all fans at Madrid Arena. The designs for the installation are inspired by iconic moments of victory each team experienced on their journey to the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals 2021, while the 19th installation is a tribute to the global fans and tennis community who have supported the Davis Cup and its competitors with remarkable passion, especially throughout the challenges of the past two years.
Engaging fans in-stadium and around the world
“In a historic national team tournament like the Davis Cup, fan support is key. Over the past two years, the pandemic has highlighted the ever-increasing importance of engaging fans not just in the stadium, but all over the world,” said Rahul Kadavakolu, Director of Global Marketing and Branding at Rakuten Group, Inc. “With the Davis Cup Fan World Cup Presented by Rakuten, we are launching a platform for fans to show their support in a way that players can experience first-hand – even when the fans are half a world away.”
“The Davis Cup fans are very important for the competition. Their passion for cheering on the players is unique, there is no other tournament where they are so strong, so colourful and so much fun.”
Enric Rojas, CEO of Kosmos Tennis
“The Davis Cup fans are very important for the competition. Their passion for cheering on the players is unique, there is no other tournament where they are so strong, so colourful and so much fun,” added Enric Rojas, CEO of Kosmos Tennis. “The fact that Rakuten, in partnership with Kosmos, has come up with this campaign to reinforce their role and prominence, seems to us to be extremely appropriate and we encourage all fans to send their messages. It’s a unique opportunity for fans, that cannot travel to the venues, to be there supporting their teams.”
Keen to be a part of the Davis Cup Fan World Cup Presented by Rakuten? Fans will have the opportunity to submit their messages of support, to be included in the 19th installation, up until the final week of the tournament – both through the website and at the Rakuten Fan Zone in the Madrid Arena.
About the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals 2021
Founded in 1900, Davis Cup by Rakuten has grown to become the largest annual world championship in the sport, with 142 nations entered in 2021. The new Finals format, which sees the top 18 nations compete to be crowned Davis Cup champions, was introduced in 2019 with Spain winning the title in Madrid in remarkable fashion. The 2021 Finals – held from 25 November until 5 December – will see the 2019 semi-finalists and two wild card nations joined by the 12 winning teams from the 2020 Qualifiers. Madrid will be the host city for the group stage, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final of this year edition, while Innsbruck (Austria) and Turin (Italy) will be host cities for the group stage and the quarter-finals.
