Italian tennis has never had it better.
There has been great moments in the past — Adriano Panatta’s Roland Garros triumph in 1976, the women making a point in the early 2010s — Francesca Schiavone (World No. 4 in 2011), Flavia Pennetta (No. 6 in 2015) and Roberta Vinci (No. 7 in 2016).
But those were isolated peaks. What makes 2026 different is the depth, consistency and elite success across both the ATP and WTA Tours.
The defining factor, without doubt, has been Jannik Sinner. His rise to world
No. 1 shattered a long-standing ceiling for Italian men’s tennis and placed Italy at the very centre of attention.
Never before had an Italian male player dominated the sport week after week, winning grand slams and leading the rankings. And now, in 2026, Italy boasts multiple men inside the ATP top-50, including Lorenzo Musetti, Flavio Cobolli and Luciano Darderi.
On the women’s side, Jasmine Paolini’s top-10 presence adds balance to Italy’s strength, something rarely seen simultaneously with men’s success in previous eras.
Italy have won the Davis Cup four times, the first in 1976, but then thrice on the trot in the past three years (2023, 2024 and 2025). The women won the Billie Jean King Cup in 2006, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2024 and 2025.
Sinner has already won the Australian Open in 2024 and 2025, the US Open in
2024, and Wimbledon in 2025. Not to forget his back-to-back ATP Finals titles in
2024 and 2025.
Jasmine Paolini has achieved a career-high ranking of World No. 4 in singles, a joint-record for Italian women (alongside Schiavone), and reached the finals at the 2024 French Open and Wimbledon.
Sinner and Musetti have ensured that for the first time, two Italian men have been in the ATP top-5 simultaneously.
In the 2024 Paris Olympics, Paolini and Sara Errani won a gold medal in women’s doubles, while Musetti secured a bronze medal in men’s singles.
The rise of Sinner has been a catalyst for Italy’s recent success. Back in 2020, Italian tennis lacked consistent depth. On the men’s side, Matteo Berrettini stayed within the top 20. Among women, Camila Giorgi and Sara Errani made impacts, but none were regularly threatening for major titles. Everything changed with Sinner. He became the first Italian man to reach world No. 1 on June 10, 2024. Prior to this, Panatta’s World No. 4 in the 1970s stood as the highest ranking for an Italian man.
And that gave rise to what generally happens when a nation finds a hero in sports — the Italian media coverage saw a boost and grassroot participation exploded.
What’s the backstory? Mostly, the structural improvements implemented by the Italian Tennis Federation (FITP) have paid dividends.
Italy now hosts one of the most extensive calendars of Challenger and ITF events in Europe. According to reports, tennis club membership has grown over the past 20 years, taking its place in popularity only after football.
It is a renaissance in Italian tennis — deep, sustained, and likely to endure for years.
