Edinburgh Event Makes History With Venue Announcement

© ATP Champions Tour

The ATP Champions Tour tournament in Edinburgh - the Champions of Tennis - will make history by being the first tennis tournament ever to take place at a Rugby Club. The tournament launches at Raeburn Place, the home of Edinburgh Academicals Football Club, 20-23 June 2013.

Raeburn Place is used to being at the forefront of sporting history and has a rich record in the sporting world.

It was the first venue to ever hold a full Rugby international between Scotland and England in 1871, and the club itself, founded in 1857, is the second oldest in the world. It was also the venue for the first ever Scotland women’s rugby international in 1993, held games during the U21 Rugby World Cup, but until now has never hosted Tennis.

Viki Mendelssohn, Tournament Director of Champions of Tennis, said: “Raeburn Place will be a fantastic location for Champions of Tennis and will contribute a great deal to the local economy during the event. I am sure many of the local businesses will prosper and indeed Edinburgh and Scotland as a whole are going reap the benefits of this global event. Being born in Stockbridge, living my early years there and going to Flora Stevenson I have always been a big fan of the area. I played rugby for Edinburgh Academicals for 9 years, helped to found the Women’s section and even now I spend a lot of time around Raeburn Place, so the area and club are very close to my heart.”

Euan MacFee, President of Edinburgh Academicals FC, said: “Champions of Tennis is exactly the type of event we wish to attract and show that we can host sports apart from Rugby. To have an event of a global nature at Raeburn Place is an honour and we are very much looking forward to developing a longstanding relationship with Champions of Tennis to ensure success in 2013 and beyond. The event could not be coming at a better time in terms of Tennis being in the spotlight and we are very excited to be part of the first ever ATP event to be held in Scotland." 

Jan Felgate, CEO of the ATP Champions Tour, added: "The ATP Champions Tour visits cities all over the world and our events are held in many different stadiums and arenas, but this is the first time we will have been hosted at a rugby club. The players will very much look forward to it and I'm sure it will make for a fantastic atmosphere."

Cllr Steve Cardownie, Festivals and Events Champion, said: "There's still a huge buzz in the air following Andy Murray's gold medal at the Olympics and his stunning US Open triumph last month, so it’s fantastic that the ATP Champions Tour will be coming to Scotland's capital next summer. Occasions like this further cement this city's much-envied reputation as the home of top notch sporting and cultural events and I'm sure people will turn out in their thousands to support the event and catch a glimpse of some of tennis' true greats."

Paul Bush OBE, Chief Operating Officer for EventScotland, said: “Scotland is the perfect stage for events and it will be fantastic to see the greats of Tennis descend on the capital for the ATP Champions Tour next year. Tennis is in the Scottish spotlight like never before following the huge success of Andy Murray this summer, and I have no doubt that will help to make this a must-see event for fans of the sport in 2013.”

The player-field for the tournament and ticket details will be announced in the months to come.

To read more about the tournament, go to our Edinburgh event page.