.jpg?itok=qxPS8PJM "United Cup 2024: Players, nations, groups, tickets as tennis tournament returns to Australia")
The United Cup — the ATP Cup's successor — is returning for 2024.
National teams will be going toe-to-toe as some of the sport's biggest names compete in the mixed warm-up event ahead of the Australian Open.
The Sporting News takes you through the key details.
MORE: United Cup 2024 – Schedule and results
How does the United Cup work?
The United Cup is a mixed tennis tournament, played in a team competition format.
Eighteen countries will take part in the upcoming event, with Sydney and Perth to host nine teams each — three more than last year.
Countries have been placed into six groups of three before facing off in a round-robin format.
Each tie will comprise one men's singles, one women's singles and one mixed doubles match.
The three group winners in each city will progress to the quarterfinals, joined by the best runner-up.
Sydney will then host the semifinals and final.
As a combined ATP-WTA event, a minimum of AU$15 million of prize money will be on offer, as well as 1000 combined rankings points.
Where is the United Cup being played? Schedule, dates, venues
The 2024 edition of the United Cup will be played in the Australian cities of Perth (RAC Arena) and Sydney (Ken Rosewall Arena).
It will run from December 29, 2023 through to January 7, 2024.
United Cup 2024: Perth schedule
| Date | Time (AEDT) | Stage | Group | Teams |
| Fri. Dec. 29 | 1:00 p.m. | Group | A | Spain vs. Brazil |
| Fri. Dec. 29 | 8:00 p.m. | Group | C | Great Britain vs. Australia |
| Sat. Dec. 30 | 1:00 p.m. | Group | E | Czech Republic vs. China |
| Sat. Dec. 30 | 8:00 p.m. | Group | A | Poland vs. Brazil |
| Sun. Dec. 31 | 1:00 p.m. | Group | C | USA vs. Great Britain |
| Sun. Dec. 31 | 8:00 p.m. | Group | E | China vs. Serbia |
| Mon. Jan. 1 | 1:00 p.m. | Group | A | Poland vs. Spain |
| Mon. Jan. 1 | 8:00 p.m. | Group | C | USA vs. Australia |
| Tue. Jan. 2 | 1:00 p.m. | Group | E | Czech Republic vs. Serbia |
| Wed. Jan. 3 | 1:00 p.m. | QF1 | - | Group A winner vs. Best runner-up |
| Wed. Jan. 3 | 8:00 p.m. | QF2 | - | Group C winner vs. Group E winner |
United Cup 2024: Sydney schedule
| Date | Time (AEDT) | Stage | Group | Teams |
| Sat. Dec. 30 | 10:30 a.m. | Group | F | Netherlands vs. Norway |
| Sat. Dec. 30 | 5:30 p.m. | Group | D | Italy vs. Germany |
| Sun. Dec. 31 | 10:30 a.m. | Group | B | Canada vs. Chile |
| Mon. Jan. 1 | 10:30 a.m. | Group | F | Croatia vs. Norway |
| Mon. Jan. 1 | 5:30 p.m. | Group | D | France vs. Germany |
| Tue. Jan. 2 | 10:30 a.m. | Group | B | Greece vs. Chile |
| Tue. Jan. 2 | 5:30 p.m. | Group | F | Croatia vs. Netherlands |
| Wed. Jan. 3 | 10:30 a.m. | Group | D | France vs. Italy |
| Wed. Jan. 3 | 5:30 p.m. | Group | B | Greece vs. Canada |
| Thu. Jan. 4 | 5:30 p.m. | QF3 | - | Group D winner vs. Group F winner |
| Fri. Jan. 5 | 5:30 p.m. | QF4 | - | Group B winner vs. Best runner-up |
| Sat. Jan. 6 | 10:30 a.m. | SF1 | - | QF1 winner vs. QF3 winner |
| Sat. Jan. 6 | 5:30 p.m. | SF2 | - | QF2 winner vs. QF4 winner |
| Sun. Jan. 7 | 5:30 p.m. | Final | - | SF1 winner vs. SF2 winner |
The full schedule – including every game – can be viewed here.
United Cup 2024: How to buy tickets
Tickets for every stage of the United Cup are currently on sale via the tournament's official website.
General admission entrance for the group stage starts at AU$40, while entry to the finals in Sydney starts at AU$90.
United Cup 2024: Draw, groups, players, seeds
All 18 countries have now been announced for the United Cup.
Reigning men's Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic is a notable inclusion for Serbia, along with world No. 1 Iga Swiatek who is part of the top-seeded Poland team.
No. 2 seeds Greece have confirmed the participation of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari, while host nation Australia will be led by Alex de Minaur and Ajla Tomljanović.
Notably, five of the world’s top 10 women and nine of the world’s top 20 men will play at the event.
Perth
Group A
#1 Poland
| Hubert Hurkacz | Iga Swiatek |
| Daniel Michalski | Katarzyna Kawa |
| Jan Zielinski | Katarzyna Piter |
#11 Spain
| Alejandro Davidovich Fokina | Sara Sorribes Tormo |
| Roberto Carballes Baena | Marina Bassols Ribera |
| Bernabe Zapata Miralles | Nuria Parrizas Diaz |
#17 Brazil
| Thiago Seyboth Wild | Beatriz Haddad Maia |
| Felipe Meligeni Alves | Carolina Alves |
| Marcelo Melo | - |
Group C
#3 USA
| Taylor Fritz | Jessica Pegula |
| Denis Kudla | Alycia Parks |
| Rajeev Ram | Desirae Krawczyk |
#8 Great Britain
| Cameron Norrie | Katie Boulter |
| Daniel Evans | Francesca Jones |
| Neal Skupski | Maia Lumsden |
#15 Australia
| Alex de Minaur | Ajla Tomljanovic |
| John Millman | Storm Hunter |
| Matt Ebden | Ellen Perez |
Group E
#5 Czech Republic
| Jiri Lehecka | Marketa Vondrousova |
| Vit Kopriva | Sara Bejlek |
| Petr Nouza | Miriam Kolodziejova |
#9 China
| Zhizhen Zhang | Qinwen Zheng |
| Yunchaokete Bu | Xiaodi You |
| Fajing Sun | - |
#13 Serbia
| Novak Djokovic | Olga Danilovic |
| Hamad Medjedovic | Natalija Stevanovic |
| Nikola Cacic | Dejana Radanovic |
Sydney
Group B
#2 Greece
| Stefanos Tsitsipas | Maria Sakkari |
| Stefanos Sakellaridis | Despina Papamichail |
| Petros Tsitsipas | Valentini Grammatikopoulou |
#7 Canada
| Felix Auger-Aliassime | Leylah Fernandez |
| Alexis Galarneau | Stacey Fung |
| Peter Polansky | - |
#18 Chile
| Nicolas Jarry | Daniela Seguel |
| Tomas Barrios Vera | Fernanda Labrana |
| Alejandro Tabilo | - |
Group D
#4 France
| Adrian Mannarino | Caroline Garcia |
| Antoine Escoffier | Amandine Hesse |
| Edouard Roger-Vasselin | Elixane Lechemia |
#12 Italy
| Lorenzo Sonego | Jasmine Paolini |
| Flavio Cobolli | Nuria Brancaccio |
| Andrea Pellegrino | Angelica Moratelli |
#16 Germany
| Alexander Zverev | Angelique Kerber |
| Maximilian Marterer | Tatjana Maria |
| Kai Wehnelt | Laura Siegemund |
Group F
#6 Croatia
| Borna Coric | Donna Vekic |
| Nino Serdarusic | Petra Marcinko |
| Ivan Dodig | Tena Lukas |
#10 Netherlands
| Tallon Griekspoor | Arantxa Rus |
| Thiemo De Bakker | Arianne Hartono |
| Wesley Koolhof | Demi Schuurs |
#14 Norway
| Casper Ruud | Malene Helgo |
| Andreja Petrovic | Ulrikke Eikeri |
| Nicolai Budkov Kjaer | - |
How are countries selected for the United Cup?
Countries for the tournament are selected from the nations of the top five men's and women's players, according to ATP and WTA rankings.
The remaining teams earned entry based on combined men's/women's rankings.
How to watch the United Cup
As the rights holders of the upcoming Summer of Tennis - including the Australian Open - the Nine Network will broadcast the United Cup in Australia.
Fans will be able to watch most sessions across Nine's free-to-air channels – including Channel 9, Go! and 9Gem – but will need to check local guides.
The action can also be streamed for free on 9Now or via subscription service Stan Sport.
What happened to the ATP Cup?
Replacing the Hopman Cup in 2020, the ATP Cup has lasted just three years.
A male-only tournament, it pitted nations together in a team competition format.
Team Serbia claimed the inaugural edition, with Team Russia (2021) and Team Canada (2022) the other victors.
Ultimately, the ATP Cup has been replaced due to the increasing cooperation between the men's and women's tennis tours — the ATP and WTA.
The significant prize pool for the United Cup reflects the backing mixed tournaments are receiving, as tennis prioritises efforts towards equality.