LONDON/WASHINGTON, September 25, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)
The Laver Cup returns this weekend for its ninth edition in London, the second time that the O2 Arena has played host to the annual event, which turns individual tennis rivals into teammates and honors the history of the sport of tennis by uniting multiple generations of legends.
The namesake of the event, Hall of Fame great Rod Laver, will be on hand to award the Laver Cup to the winner between Team Europe and Team World. Last year in San Francisco, Team World won the Laver Cup 15-9. However, Team Europe maintains an overall 5-3 lead, after winning the first four competitions.
Champion chitchat 🗣️#LaverCup #TennisUnrivaled pic.twitter.com/25LlLc5OJw
— Laver Cup (@LaverCup) September 23, 2026
Newest Hall of Famer Roger Federer, who conceived the idea of the Laver Cup, is back in London. So are team captains, Andre Agassi of Team World and Yannick Noah of Team Europe, who assumed their positions from original Laver Cup team captains John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg last year. Also, one of the unique features of the Laver Cup atmosphere remains the distinctive black court aesthetic which all of the matches are played on.
While it is easy to dismiss this weekend as a glorified, all-star exhibition – after all, there is no fixed draw, the team captains shape each day’s match-ups and even a win changes in value as the weekend progresses – the Laver Cup is part of the ATP calendar and is a sanctioned event. Its results count on the players’ official records. And, best of all, everyone is in it to win it.
“Well, my job is very easy, basically, sitting in probably the best seat of the whole stadium, looking at champions playing,” Noah said during Team Europe’s news conference on Thursday. “Sometimes they come to me. I believe that if I make them feel comfortable, slightly happy, they will play well, because they don’t need me to play well. …
“I’m very happy and grateful to be here with them. As I told them last night, I’m very happy to be part of this journey.”
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This year, defending champion Team World’s roster includes: Taylor Fritz of the United States, Alex de Minaur of Australia, Brandon Nakashima of the United States, Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan, Learner Tien of the United States and Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina.
Meanwhile, Team Europe’s roster features: reigning French Open and US Open champion Alexander Zverev of Germany, Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, Flavio Cobolli of Italy, Rafael Jodar of Spain, Jakub Mensik of Czechia and Casper Ruud of Norway.
On Wednesday evening, both teams and their captains came together at Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich for the traditional Laver Cup group photoshoot.
Best face forward 🤳#LaverCup #TennisUnrivaled pic.twitter.com/ZU5IpOG7iO
— Laver Cup (@LaverCup) September 24, 2026
Starting Friday, the two teams will engage in as many as 12 matches over the three-day event, with three singles matches and one doubles match scheduled each day.
Each match is best-of-3 sets. However, a 10-point match tie-break will be used instead of a conventional deciding set if the first two are split. As a rule, every player must appear in singles at least once on Friday or Saturday, and no one can play more than twice. Also, at least four members of each team must appear in doubles.
The Laver Cup scoring system is designed so that the trophy cannot be won before Sunday. That’s because while a match victory in either singles or doubles earns a single point on Friday, it increases to two on Saturday and three on Sunday. Four points are available on Friday, eight on Saturday and 12 on Sunday – half of the competition’s total.
“It’s an honor to be back here in London.”@carlosalcaraz returns for his third Laver Cup, this time in the English capital.#LaverCup #TennisUnrivaled pic.twitter.com/DORstT6JHk
— Laver Cup (@LaverCup) September 24, 2026
Fritz, for one, is sold on the Laver Cup. He’s been a member of Team World in six different Laver Cup competitions – and has won the Laver Cup three times, compiling a 6-2 singles and 1-1 doubles win-loss record.
“I just feel like it’s pretty tough not to get fired up and give it everything you have when you have all these guys on the bench going crazy for you,” Fritz said during Team World’s news conference on Thursday. “You’ve got Andre [Agassi] on the bench going crazy. It’s so tough to not get really fired up in that type of environment, and I feel like that’s always when I’m playing my best.”
“It’s so tough to not get really fired up in that type of environment.”@Taylor_Fritz97 + Laver Cup = 🔥#LaverCup #TennisUnrivaled pic.twitter.com/7SFxM2vNop
— Laver Cup (@LaverCup) September 24, 2026
During Team World’s news conference on Thursday, Agassi admitted last year was a learning experience for him as team captain. “I do my part not to screw any of these guys up. You know, they’re here for a reason,” he said.
“But what I will say is that it was a unique experience for me, one that I wasn’t sure how I’d respond to. It kind of made me realize how much intensity I lived with in my own head when I played, because emotions were my nemesis on a tennis court. So I had to keep, you know, my shit under control. Sitting on the side with all these Ferraris, not having to keep my shit under control and they still perform, it’s, like, you know, I recognized that it matters to me a lot and they matter to me a lot.”
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Day 1 matchups
Afternoon session, 1 p.m. London Time
• Francisco Cerundolo vs. Casper Ruud
• Brandon Nakashima vs. Jakub Mensik
Evening session, 7 p.m London Time
• Alexander Bublik vs. Rafael Jodar
• Carlos Alcaraz/Jakub Mensik vs. Alexander Bublik/Taylor Fritz
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By the numbers
• Four players will make their Laver Cup debuts this weekend: Rafael Jodar for Team Europe; and Learner Tien, Brandon Nakashima and Alexander Bublik for Team World.
• This is the second time in nine editions that the Laver Cup has been held in London. Previously, it was held in London in 2022, won by Team World for the first time by a score of 13-8. The 2022 edition marked the retirement of Roger Federer, who teamed with Rafael Nadal in doubles on the first day.
“Quotable …”
“Everybody played a part in making this one of the most memorable weeks I’ve ever spent on a tennis court. I can honestly say that, and that’s saying something, because it was a lot of years I’ve been out there in one form or another with a perceived team, but this really was a team.”
– Team World captain Andre Agassi, after his team won the 2025 Laver Cup title in San Francisco.
