MUMBAI: The International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) and UFA Sports have signed an extensive cooperation agreement wherein UFA Sports will act as the exclusive marketer of the media rights of the league.

IPTL and UFA Sports agreement include the media rights distribution in the respective host countries as well as worldwide rights.

IPTL, a brand new team tennis format, will be played across several countries in Asia. The first-ever edition will be held later this year. From 28 November to 13 December, tennis stars and legends like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Serena Williams, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras will compete in four franchise teams in Manila, Singapore, New Delhi and Dubai.

The competition will feature a total of 21 Grand Slam champions and 14 current and former world number ones with a total prize money budget of over $29 million.

Founder and multiple Grand-Slam winner Mahesh Bhupathi stated: “We are pleased to announce that UFA Sports will be the exclusive marketer of the worldwide media rights of the International Premier Tennis League. UFA Sports brings wide experience and a high level of expertise which will help the IPTL reach a global audience. UFA Sports is ideally placed to promote a unique concept like IPTL and we look forward a long association.”

UFA Sports managing director Stefan Felsing commented, "The International Premier Tennis League is an extremely attractive, new format in the world of tennis with the potential to revolutionise the sport. We are glad to become a part of the development and to extend the UFA Sports portfolio with a high quality product."

The four teams will play a total of 24 matches in a round-robin format to determine the inaugural IPTL League Champion. Modeled after successful international sports franchise concepts, the IPTL combines world-class sports and entertainment in a format that keeps both, spectators and TV viewers completely engrossed. All matches will be produced in HD quality with IPTL graphics and commentary.