In a space of two months, between May and July this year, Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) will host two high profile tournaments.
The first of these, two ITF M15 and W15 tournaments, will be hosted in two consecutive weeks from the 11th to the 23rd of May 2026. The second one, the 2026 Billie Jean Cup Group 3 Africa tournament, will be on the 13th to the 18th of July 2026.
Hosting these events is part of BTA’s long term strategy to turn the country into a tennis powerhouse. It is also the BTA’s long term vision to contribute to the country’s economy through sport. And suffice to say, signs are there that both could be achieved.
On the sporting front, the ITF M15 and W15 pave the way for the country’s senior players who aspire to reach professional level. The ITF M15 and W15 tournament are an entry level professional tournament. For the two consecutive ITF M15 and W15 tournaments, a combined prize purse of US$60 000 (+/- P802 000) prize awaits.
For local players, the prize monies, though wanted, will not be the main focus. Limited opportunities at entry level professional tournaments have starved them of opportunities to get a foot into the professional setup. The ITF M15 and W15 tournaments will create such an entry.
As such, Botswana’s senior national team players, most of whom are playing college tennis in the USA, are expected to grace the tournament. Players like Ekoua Youri, Mark Nawa and Ntungamili Raguin, just to name three, are expected to be in the draw.
“We expect most of our senior players to be available for the two consecutive ITF M15/W15 tournaments. Ntungamili on the other hand is expected to be available for one tournament only as he is expected to leave for the French Open juniors,” BTA vice president technical Nonofo Othusitse says.
The BTA vice president technical says the ITF M15/W15 will also help the senior national team players to prepare for upcoming international assignments. The men will compete at the Davies Cup Africa Group IV scheduled for Nairobi, Kenya from the 17th to the 20th of June this year. The ladies on the other hand will be preparing for the 2026 Billie Jean Cup Africa Group 3 which will be hosted here in July.
Speaking of the latter tournament, Othusitse says eleven (11) countries, including hosts Botswana will attend. The countries will be vying for promotion to the Billie Jean King Cup Euro/Africa Group 2, a group composed of African and European countries.
For the local ladies, playing here at home will serve as a motivation as they make yet another attempt to get promoted. Last year during the same tournament in Namibia, the local ladies finished third behind Kenya and winners Morocco.
It is hoped the local ladies, backed by the home crowd, will emulate their male counterparts. Last year during the Davies Cup Africa Group V tournament here in Gaborone, the men’s senior team used the home ground advantage to gain promotion to Davies Cup Africa Group IV.
On the impact of hosting international tournaments in the economy, Othusitse says the country stands to benefit. Players from outside Botswana, their support staff and some of their supporters will descend into the country, injecting money into the local economy.
“A total revenue of P6 million was generated from hosting international tournaments in 2025. This shows how hosting can impact the economy.”
During the period in time, the BTA says P5 million was spent on hotel accommodations, P1 million spent on air travel, P700 000 spent on catering and a further P50 000 spent on local transport and communications. It further says 200 seasonal jobs were created during the same period.
Of greater importance, Othusitse says 80 percent of the funding used to host came from outside the country. He says the BTA got grants from both the Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to host.
“And for this year’s ITF M15 tournament, we have been funded by Tiriac Foundation. They have committed US$30 000 to the tournament. We are now currently negotiating with other potential sponsors for a further US$30 000 to cover all the prize monies for the two consecutive tournaments.”
With so much to benefit from, the BTA is open to sponsorships and partnerships in kind to make the tournaments a success. Aside from prize monies, there is a need for monies towards logistics and administration of events.
“We are open to both monetary and in kind partnerships and sponsorships to cover different services needed,” Othusitse says.
