List of Davis Cup champions

The Davis Cup is an annual international team event in men's tennis. Established in 1900 as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge, it is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), who describe it as the "World Cup of tennis."[1] The first event in 1900 was a match between Great Britain and the United States,[2] while 135 nations entered the 2016 Davis Cup.[3]

List of Davis Cup champions
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2022 Davis Cup
SportTennis
Founded1900; 124 years ago (1900)
FounderDwight F. Davis
No. of teams16 (World Group)
135 (2021 total)
CountriesITF member nations
Most recent
champion(s)
 Italy
Most titles United States
(32 titles)
Official websitedaviscup.com

The tournament sees players competing for their country in four singles and one doubles matches, known as rubbers, over the course of three days, with the team that wins three rubbers progressing.[4] The countries are divided into groups based upon their location or performance in previous years. The Davis Cup World Group is the top level of the competition and features matches between players from the top 16 countries at the start of the year.[3] Countries that lose their first round match face a relegation play-off against winning countries from the continental zones. World Group winning countries progress to the quarter-finals. Nations have to win a further three ties in order to claim the position of Davis Cup champions.[3]The United States are the most successful nation in the history of the competition, with 32 victories. Australia are second with 28 (individually or in a combined Australasia team) and Great Britain and France are tied for third with 10. Teams from Europe have won the competition the most with 48 victories, followed by North America with 33 and Oceania with 28.[5]

History edit

The Davis Cup was founded in 1900 as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge. Four members of Harvard University wished to challenge Great Britain in a tennis competition. One of the American players, Dwight F. Davis, designed a tournament format and ordered a sterling silver trophy from Shreve, Crump & Low for approximately $1,000.[6] The first match, held at Longwood Cricket Club in Boston, Massachusetts, was won by the American team 3–0.[7] There was no match the following year, but the United States retained the trophy in 1902, beating Great Britain 3–2. This was followed by four successive victories for Britain, from 1903 to 1906. The 1904 Davis Cup saw new teams compete for the first time, as Belgium and France entered.[8]

Australasia (Australia and New Zealand) became the first victors outside of Britain and the United States when they won the tournament in 1907.[9] No tournament was held in 1910 as no country challenged Australasia,[10] who retained the trophy until 1912 when they were defeated by Great Britain.[11] The United States and Australasia won the two competitions prior to the outbreak of the First World War, in 1914. The tournament resumed in 1919, with Australasia retaining the trophy, beating Great Britain 4–1.[12] The Americans won the following seven tournaments before they were defeated 3–2 by France in 1927.[13] The tournament underwent restructuring for the 1923 edition. Teams were split into two zones; the 'America Zone' and 'Europe Zone', with the winners playing each other to determine who would face the defending champions.[14]

 
Doubles match between the Australasia and British isles in the 1912 International Lawn Tennis Challenge final.

The French won a further five successive tournaments before they were beaten 3–2 by Great Britain in 1933.[15] Australia were the last winners before the onset of the Second World War. They beat the United States 3–2 in 1939.[16] Upon resumption of the tournament in 1946, it was renamed the Davis Cup after the death of Dwight D. Davis in 1945.[17] The United States regained the title after they beat Australia 5–0.[18] They retained the title until 1950 when Australia won 4–1. This marked the start of Australian dominance of the Davis Cup, as they only lost three times from 1950 to 1967.[19] Prior to 1972, the champion received a bye directly to the final.[1]

The 1974 Davis Cup marked the first time that neither Australia or the United States won the final since 1936, as South Africa and India were the finalists.[20] However, the Indian team refused to travel to South Africa in protest at the South African government's apartheid policies, meaning that the final was scratched and South Africa were awarded the Davis Cup.[21] Sweden beat Czechoslovakia 3–2 the following year to become the first European nation since 1936 to win the Davis Cup.

The Davis Cup underwent further reorganisation in 1981 when a 16-team World Group was introduced. The remaining nations were split into regional groups with promotion and relegation to and from the World Group.[1]

Sweden reached two more finals in 1988 and 1989, but lost both times to West Germany.[22][23] The United States regained the title in 1990,[24] but they lost 3–1 to France the following year.[25] They regained the title a year later, but could not defend it in 1993 as Germany won. Sweden were victorious in 1994, and they won a further two Davis Cups in 1997 and 1998.[26] Australia regained the Davis Cup in 1999,[27] but they lost the following two finals to Spain and France respectively.[28][29] Russia won their first Davis Cup in 2002,[30] before Australia regained the title the following year.[31] Spain won the tournament for the second time in 2004,[32] and would win a further three titles in 2008, 2009 and 2011.[33] The Czech Republic won successive Davis Cups in 2012 and 2013,[34] before Switzerland won their first title in 2014.[35] In 2015, Great Britain ended the longest drought in the competition's history, 73 years, when they won their first Davis Cup since 1936, beating Belgium 3–1.[5] [36]

Finals edit

Key
* Title won by away country
G Grass
C Clay
CP Carpet
H Hard
Ix Indoor
  • The "Year" column refers to the year the Davis Cup tournament was held, and wikilinks to the article about that tournament.
  • Links in the "Winners" and "Runners-up" columns point to the articles for the national teams of the countries, not the articles for the countries.
Key
Inter-Zonal winner, Challenge round winner ‡
Defending champion, Challenge round winner †
Single round ◊
Davis Cup finals[37]
Year Winner Score Runner-up Finals venue (surface) Location
1900   United States 3–0   British Isles Longwood Cricket Club (G) Boston, United States
1902   United States 3–2   British Isles Crescent Athletic Club (G) New York City, United States
1903   British Isles 4–1*   United States Longwood Cricket Club (G) Boston, United States
1904   British Isles 5–0   Belgium Worple Road (G) London, United Kingdom
1905   British Isles 5–0   United States Queen's Club (G) London, United Kingdom
1906   British Isles 5–0   United States Worple Road (G) London, United Kingdom
1907   Australasia 3–2*   British Isles Worple Road (G) London, United Kingdom
1908   Australasia 3–2   United States Albert Ground (G) Melbourne, Australia
1909   Australasia 5–0   United States Double Bay Grounds (G) Sydney, Australia
1911   Australasia 4–0   United States Lancaster Park (G) Christchurch, New Zealand
1912   British Isles 3–2*   Australasia Albert Ground (G) Melbourne, Australia
1913   United States 3–2*   Great Britain Worple Road (G) London, United Kingdom
1914   Australasia 3–2*   United States West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1919   Australasia 4–1   Great Britain Double Bay Grounds (G) Sydney, Australia
1920   United States 5–0*   Australasia Domain Cricket Club (G) Auckland, New Zealand
1921   United States 5–0   Japan West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1922   United States 4–1   Australasia West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1923   United States 4–1   Australia West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1924   United States 5–0   Australia Germantown Cricket Club (G) Philadelphia, United States
1925   United States 5–0   France Germantown Cricket Club (G) Philadelphia, United States
1926   United States 4–1   France Germantown Cricket Club (G) Philadelphia, United States
1927   France 3–2*   United States Germantown Cricket Club (G) Philadelphia, United States
1928   France 4–1   United States Stade Roland Garros (C) Paris, France
1929   France 3–2   United States Stade Roland Garros (C) Paris, France
1930   France 4–1   United States Stade Roland Garros (C) Paris, France
1931   France 3–2   Great Britain Stade Roland Garros (C) Paris, France
1932   France 3–2   United States Stade Roland Garros (C) Paris, France
1933   Great Britain 3–2*   France Stade Roland Garros (C) Paris, France
1934   Great Britain 4–1   United States Centre Court, Wimbledon (G) London, United Kingdom
1935   Great Britain 5–0   United States Centre Court, Wimbledon (G) London, United Kingdom
1936   Great Britain 3–2   Australia Centre Court, Wimbledon (G) London, United Kingdom
1937   United States 4–1*   Great Britain Centre Court, Wimbledon (G) London, United Kingdom
1938   United States 3–2   Australia Germantown Cricket Club (G) Philadelphia, United States
1939   Australia 3–2*   United States Merion Cricket Club (G) Haverford, United States
1946   United States 5–0*   Australia Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1947   United States 4–1   Australia West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1948   United States 5–0   Australia West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1949   United States 4–1   Australia West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1950   Australia 4–1*   United States West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1951   Australia 3–2   United States White City Stadium (G) Sydney, Australia
1952   Australia 4–1   United States Memorial Drive Tennis Centre (G) Adelaide, Australia
1953   Australia 3–2   United States Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1954   United States 3–2*   Australia White City Stadium (G) Sydney, Australia
1955   Australia 5–0*   United States West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1956   Australia 5–0   United States Memorial Drive Tennis Centre (G) Adelaide, Australia
1957   Australia 3–2   United States Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1958   United States 3–2*   Australia Milton Courts (G) Brisbane, Australia
1959   Australia 3–2*   United States West Side Tennis Club (G) New York City, United States
1960   Australia 4–1   Italy White City Stadium (G) Sydney, Australia
1961   Australia 5–0   Italy Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1962   Australia 5–0   Mexico Milton Courts (G) Brisbane, Australia
1963   United States 3–2*   Australia Memorial Drive Tennis Centre (G) Adelaide, Australia
1964   Australia 3–2*   United States Harold Clark Courts (C) Cleveland, United States
1965   Australia 4–1   Spain White City Stadium (G) Sydney, Australia
1966   Australia 4–1   India Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1967   Australia 4–1   Spain Milton Courts (G) Brisbane, Australia
1968   United States 4–1*   Australia Memorial Drive Tennis Centre (G) Adelaide, Australia
1969   United States 5–0   Romania Harold Clark Courts (H) Cleveland, United States
1970   United States 5–0   West Germany Harold Clark Courts (H) Cleveland, United States
1971   United States 3–2   Romania Olde Providence Racquet Club (C) Charlotte, United States
1972   United States 3–2*   Romania Club Sportiv Progresul (C) Bucharest, Romania
1973   Australia 5–0*   United States Public Auditorium (ICp) Cleveland, United States
1974   South Africa w/o   India
1975   Sweden 3–2   Czechoslovakia Kungliga tennishallen (ICp) Stockholm, Sweden
1976   Italy 4–1*   Chile Estadio Nacional (C) Santiago, Chile
1977   Australia 3–1   Italy White City Stadium (G) Sydney, Australia
1978   United States 4–1   Great Britain Mission Hills CC (H) Rancho Mirage, United States
1979   United States 5–0   Italy Civic Auditorium (ICp) San Francisco, United States
1980   Czechoslovakia 4–1   Italy Sportovní Hala (ICp) Prague, Czechoslovakia
1981   United States 3–1   Argentina Riverfront Coliseum (ICp) Cincinnati, United States
1982   United States 4–1*   France Palais des Sports (IC) Grenoble, France
1983   Australia 3–2   Sweden Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1984   Sweden 4–1   United States Scandinavium (IC) Gothenburg, Sweden
1985   Sweden 3–2*   West Germany Olympiahalle (ICp) Munich, West Germany
1986   Australia 3–2   Sweden Kooyong Stadium (G) Melbourne, Australia
1987   Sweden 5–0   India Scandinavium (IC) Gothenburg, Sweden
1988   West Germany 4–1*   Sweden Scandinavium (IC) Gothenburg, Sweden
1989   West Germany 3–2   Sweden Schleyerhalle (ICp) Stuttgart, West Germany
1990   United States 3–2   Australia Suncoast Dome (IC) St. Petersburg, United States
1991   France 3–1   United States Palais des Sports de Gerland (ICp) Lyon, France
1992   United States 3–1    Switzerland Tarrant County Center (IH) Fort Worth, United States
1993   Germany 4–1   Australia Messe Düsseldorf Exhibition Hall (IC) Düsseldorf, Germany
1994   Sweden 4–1*   Russia Olympic Stadium (ICp) Moscow, Russia
1995   United States 3–2*   Russia Olympic Stadium (IC) Moscow, Russia
1996   France 3–2*   Sweden Malmö Isstadion (IH) Malmö, Sweden
1997   Sweden 5–0   United States Scandinavium (ICp) Gothenburg, Sweden
1998   Sweden 4–1*   Italy Forum (IC) Milan, Italy
1999   Australia 3–2*   France Acropolis Exhibition Hall (IC) Nice, France
2000   Spain 3–1   Australia Palau Sant Jordi (IC) Barcelona, Spain
2001   France 3–2*   Australia Rod Laver Arena (G) Melbourne, Australia
2002   Russia 3–2*   France Palais Omnisports (IC) Paris, France
2003   Australia 3–1   Spain Rod Laver Arena (G) Melbourne, Australia
2004   Spain 3–2   United States Estadio de La Cartuja (IC) Seville, Spain
2005   Croatia 3–2*   Slovakia Sibamac Arena (IH) Bratislava, Slovakia
2006   Russia 3–2   Argentina Olympic Stadium (ICp) Moscow, Russia
2007   United States 4–1   Russia Memorial Coliseum (IH) Portland, United States
2008   Spain 3–1*   Argentina Polideportivo Islas Malvinas (IH) Mar del Plata, Argentina
2009   Spain 5–0   Czech Republic Palau Sant Jordi (IC) Barcelona, Spain
2010   Serbia 3–2   France Belgrade Arena (IH) Belgrade, Serbia
2011   Spain 3–1   Argentina Estadio de La Cartuja (IC) Seville, Spain
2012   Czech Republic 3–2   Spain O2 Arena (IH) Prague, Czech Republic
2013   Czech Republic 3–2*   Serbia Kombank Arena (IH) Belgrade, Serbia
2014    Switzerland 3–1*   France Stade Pierre-Mauroy (IC) Lille, France
2015   Great Britain 3–1*   Belgium Flanders Expo (IC) Ghent, Belgium
2016   Argentina 3–2*   Croatia Arena Zagreb (IH) Zagreb, Croatia
2017   France 3–2   Belgium Stade Pierre-Mauroy (IH) Lille, France
2018   Croatia 3–1*   France Stade Pierre-Mauroy (IC) Lille, France
2019   Spain 2–0   Canada Caja Mágica (IH) Madrid, Spain
2021[a]   RTF[b] 2–0   Croatia Madrid Arena (IH) Madrid, Spain
2022   Canada 2–0   Australia Martin Carpena Arena (IH) Málaga, Spain
2023   Italy 2–0   Australia Martin Carpena Arena (IH) Málaga, Spain

Victories by team edit

All-time edit

Country Titles First Last
  United States 32 1900 2007
  Australia
  Australasia
28 1907 2003
  Great Britain 10 1903 2015
  France 10 1927 2017
  Sweden 7 1975 1998
  Spain 6 2000 2019
  Czechoslovakia
  Czech Republic
3 1980 2013
  West Germany
  Germany
3 1988 1993
  Russia
  RTF
3 2002 2021
  Italy 2 1976 2023
  Croatia 2 2005 2018
  South Africa 1 1974
  Serbia 1 2010
   Switzerland 1 2014
  Argentina 1 2016
  Canada 1 2022

Since 1972 edit

Country Titles First Last
  United States 9 1972 2007
  Sweden 7 1975 1998
  Australia 6 1973 2003
  Spain 6 2000 2019
  France 4 1991 2017
  West Germany
  Germany
3 1988 1993
  Czechoslovakia
  Czech Republic
3 1980 2013
  Russia
  RTF
3 2002 2021
  Italy 2 1976 2023
  Croatia 2 2005 2018
  South Africa 1 1974
  Serbia 1 2010
   Switzerland 1 2014
  Great Britain 1 2015
  Argentina 1 2016
  Canada 1 2022

Victories by continent edit

Continent Wins
Europe 48
North America 33
Oceania 28
South America 1
Africa 1

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ The 2020 edition was originally scheduled to take place from 23 until 29 November 2020. However, on 26 June 2020, ITF announced that 2020 Finals would take place from 22 until 28 November 2021 due to coronavirus pandemic and be named 2021 Davis Cup Finals.
  2. ^ The team from Russia was not permitted to use the Russian name, flag, or anthem in 2021; it won the Finals as the team of the Russian Tennis Federation (RTF), and used the flag of the RTF.

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Davis Cup History". Davis Cup. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  2. ^ "What a racquet: Britain's Davis Cup history". BBC. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  3. ^ a b c "Davis Cup format". Davis Cup. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  4. ^ "Davis Cup Explained". Lawn Tennis Association. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  5. ^ a b Newberry, Piers (29 November 2015). "Andy Murray wins the Davis Cup for Great Britain". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  6. ^ Grasso, John (September 2011). Davis Cup. Scarecrow Press. p. 79. ISBN 9780810874909. Retrieved 8 December 2011. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  7. ^ Schooler, Andy (3 March 2015). "Davis Cup: Player profiles and statistics ahead of this week's Great Britain v USA tie". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  8. ^ "No Tennis Challenge; Americans Will Not Enter a Team for Davis Trophy Contest" (PDF). The New York Times. 8 March 1904. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  9. ^ "Lawn Tennis Championship. Australasia Wins The Davis Cup". Sydney Morning Herald. 25 July 1907. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  10. ^ "Only Four Nations Have Held The Davis Cup". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 December 1951. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  11. ^ "Australia and the Davis Cup". Tennis Australia. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  12. ^ "Australasia 4–1 Great Britain". Davis Cup. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  13. ^ "U.S. loses Davis Cup held for 7 years". Chicago Tribune. 11 September 1927. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  14. ^ Davis, Dwight F. (23 May 1923). "Tennis being developed as International Game". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  15. ^ "France". Davis Cup. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  16. ^ "Tennis – Popular and international 1900s–1950s". Australian Government. Archived from the original on 11 July 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  17. ^ Riess, Steven A. (2015). Sports in America from Colonial Times to the Twenty-First Century: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 781. ISBN 9781317459460.
  18. ^ Clarey, Christopher (27 February 2016). "Davis Cup returns to a scene of its Grassy past". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  19. ^ "Australia". Davis Cup. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  20. ^ Seminara, Dave (28 November 2009). "The Year the Davis Cup felt empty". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  21. ^ Tignor, Steve (19 November 2014). "The Shots Not Heard Around The World". Tennis. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  22. ^ "West Germany wins title behind Becker-Jelen". Los Angeles Times. 18 December 1988. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  23. ^ Nasstrom, Stephan (18 December 1989). "Becker dominates Wilander, W. Germany keeps Davis Cup". The Washington Post. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  24. ^ "USA 3–2 Aus". Davis Cup. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  25. ^ Finn, Robin (2 December 1991). "A bubbly France drinks up Davis Cup". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  26. ^ "Sweden". Davis Cup. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  27. ^ "Philippoussis wins Davis Cup for Australia". BBC News. 5 December 1999. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  28. ^ "Spain wins first Davis Cup title". CBS News. 8 December 2000. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  29. ^ "France win Davis Cup". BBC Sport. 2 December 2001. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  30. ^ "Russia claim Davis Cup thriller". BBC Sport. 1 December 2002. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  31. ^ "1990: Teammates Agassi and Chang Propel United States in St. Pete". World Tennis Magazine. 30 November 2009. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  32. ^ Newman, Paul (2 December 2011). "Nadal lifted by golden memories of Seville". The Independent. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  33. ^ "Spain". Davis Cup. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  34. ^ "Davis Cup final: Czech Republic edge out Serbia". BBC Sport. 17 November 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  35. ^ "Davis Cup final: Roger Federer dedicates win to his team-mates". BBC Sport. 23 November 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  36. ^ The Davis Cup was not played in 1940-1945 due to World War II.
  37. ^ "Davis Cup finals". Davis Cup. Retrieved 29 January 2016.