Between 25,000 and 50,000 euros. That is the price range to see Roger Federer one last time. Tickets to attend the Laver Cup have soared thanks to the Swiss, who will delight the public with his latest rackets in one of the most exclusive events in London.
And that the Laver Cup continues to be a practically exhibition tournament, although now it has the support of the ATP and the victories and defeats count for the official count of the circuit. Of course, it does not distribute points for the ranking.
But the tournament, organized by TEAM8, the representation agency that Federer himself runs together with his lifelong agent, Tony Godsick, remains a unique piece of the circuit, for pitting the best players in Europe against those from the rest. of the world and for being able to see unique scenes, such as enjoying Federer and Rafa Nadal together in the same doubles team, or the Swiss and Novak Djokovic being also a couple on the court.
To the morbidity of having together with the Big Four, made up of Nadal, Federer, Djokovic and Andy Murray, for the first time in history, has been added the last minute surprise that this will be the last tournament of the Swiss, who will not return to play any official competition after this weekend.
This has broken the bank of ticket prices. A ticket for the tournament appeared, months ago, on the official website, at a maximum price of 375 pounds (430 euros), an amount adjusted to the economic level of the British capital, used to paying thousands and thousands of euros to attend Wimbledon .
In fact, the London public is not surprised by this price list, since the Masters Cup, the jewel in the crown of the ATP, was played at the O2 in London for 13 years. The same scenario as this Laver Cup, for which prices have skyrocketed.
An entry into the tournament is like finding a golden ticket to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. With the only difference that this time it is not necessary to seek fortune in chocolate bars, but to go to resale.
The most expensive tickets, those for Friday, the only day Federer will play, range between 25,000 and 50,000 euros. One last golden opportunity to bring down the curtain on a career that has spanned 24 years and has left behind 20 Grand Slams, 310 weeks at the top, 103 titles, two Olympic medals and more than 1,250 victories. in addition to earnings only in prizes that reach 130 million euros.
To support Laver, a tournament now in its fifth edition, Federer has the backing of the Australian tennis federation, the US federation and the Brazilian banker Jorge Paulo Lemann.
In addition, there are several brands that have not hesitated to join Federer's initiative, which since its inauguration in Prague in 2017, has passed through Chicago, Prague and Boston, and that after London will fly to Vancouver in 2023 and to Berlin in 2024 .
The main sponsors of the event are Rolex, Credit Suisse and Mercedes Benz, brands that are also associated with Federer, who they nourish each year with several million euros. To these we must add the presence at the O2 of Uniqlo, the clothing brand that dresses Federer and that showered him with 300 million over ten years. The Japanese supply the clothes to all the employees of the tournament.
Within the fan zone of the tournament is the racket brand Head, the courier company UPS, the Swiss tourist office, which has a reserved space at the exit of the O2, and even the Rafael Nadal Academy, which sponsors its training programs in Manacor.
