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| How the Davis Cup Works |
Davis Cup Structure
How to become a World Group Nation
Zonal Competitions
Tie Format
When and Where Ties are Played
Davis Cup Structure
There is a diagram available on this site that illustrates promotion and relegation at all levels of the Davis Cup.
How to become a World Group Nation
While 125 nations have entered the Davis Cup for 2009, only 16 countries qualify for the elite World Group each year.
They reach the World Group as follows:
(a) eight of the nations that make the World Group cut are the first round tie winners from the previous year’s World Group competition.
(b) the eight losers from the first round ties in the World Group go into a 16-team World Group Play-off competition. Into this also go the winners of the Zonal Group I sections (two nations from Asia/Oceania Group I, two from Americas Group I, and four from Europe/Africa Group I). A draw is used to determine the Play-Off ties. The eight winners from these World Group Play-Off ties are then placed in the World Group for the following year, while the losers are placed in Group I in their Zone.
Once in the World Group, eight nations will be seeded. The decision as to which nations will be seeded is made by the Davis Cup Committee, who take a range of factors into consideration. Among the deciding factors taken into account are the ITF Davis Cup Nations Ranking, how the nation fared in recent Davis Cup action, the strength and ranking of the players likely to perform for a given nation, the ability of a nation’s players to compete on a variety of surfaces, and the depth of a nation in terms of doubles.
To find out when and where World Group and World Group Play-Off ties are played throughout the year, please click here.
To see nations by Davis Cup Group for this year, please go to our Teams section.
Zonal Competitions
At the levels below the World Group, the Davis Cup nations compete in Zonal Competitions, which are split into three zones: the Americas Zone, the Asia/Oceania Zone and the Eurooe/Africa Zone. In each zone there are four groups, Group I being the highest and Group IV the lowest.
Groups I and II operate on a home and away knockout basis in all three zones. The exact format and draw size varies from group to group and zone to zone, but essentially winning nations advance until one or more nations are promoted to Group I from Group II, and to the World Group Play-Off ties from Group I. See the Draws & Results section for more details.
Nations which lose in the first round in Groups I and II then play off in one or more play-off rounds, until one or more losing nations are relegated to the group below. Again, the Draws & Results section has more details.
In Groups III and IV, teams play against each other in a round robin format at one venue during one week. In the Europe/Africa Zone, each group is split between two venues.
At the end of the round-robin stages, there are then play-offs to determine the final placings within and promotion / relegation from the group. In the Asia/Oceania and Americas Zones, the top two nations progress to the group above, while the bottom two are relegated to the group below, while it is four nations up or down in the Europe/Africa Zone (two up and two down from each venue). There is no relegation from Group IV.
To find out when and where Zonal Competitions are played throughout the year, please click here.
To see nations by Davis Cup Group for this year, please visit our Teams section.
Tie Format
In the World Group, World Group Play-Off ties, and Groups I and II, each tie is contested in a best of five matches format, and is played across three days. On the first day (Friday) there are two singles matches, and then the doubles match takes place on the following day. The reverse singles take place on the final day (Sunday). All matches are best of five sets.
In Groups III and IV, ties are played over the best of three matches (two singles and a doubles). These matches are best of three sets.
When and Where Ties are Played
World Group and World Group Play-Off ties
The eight first round ties in the World Group are played on a home and away knock-out basis, and take place over a weekend in the early part of the year.
The winning teams advance to the quarterfinals, which are also played on a home and away knock-out basis, over a weekend in the summer.
The eight losing teams from the first round go into the World Group Play-Off ties, along with the eight qualifiers from the Group I Zonal regions. The World Group Play-Off ties are also played on a home and away knock-out basis over the same weekend as the World Group semifinal ties.
The World Group Final is played in the last part of the year.
The choice of ground for the above ties is decided by lot or goes automatically to one of the competing nations. To find out how the choice of ground is determined, please go to our Rules & Regulations page.
Zonal Competitions
Groups I and II are played on a similar home and away basis. Dates for rounds vary from group to group and zone to zone; please check the Draws & Results and Ties sections for more details.
As Groups III and IV are played in a round robin format in all three zones, each event takes place at a single venue over one week, except in the Europe/Africa zone, where each group is played at two venues. Dates and venues vary and are decided by the Davis Cup Committee. Please see the Ties section and Draws & Results section for details on dates and venues.
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