Rothesay International Eastbourne Turns 50

2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the Rothesay International Eastbourne tennis tournament, which started in 1974, and we’re eagerly counting down the days until we can celebrate this momentous occasion!

To make matters more exciting, it’s also the 150th anniversary of Devonshire Park, the location where this fan favourite event takes place – so there’s plenty to celebrate this year!

 

The tournament that gets us talking

Classified as a WTA 500 series and featured in the ATP 250 series, this beloved grass-court tournament has grown to become one of the most loved tennis events in the UK, taking place the week after the cinch Championships at The Queen’s Club and the week before The Championships, Wimbledon – it certainly is a busy month for British grass-court tennis!

It’s a tournament that has seen some of the world’s most talented tennis players take to its courts, including the likes of Coco Gauff, Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic, Billie Jean King and Daniil Medvedev. With tennis stars this big, it is not a tournament that should be dismissed; whilst it doesn’t have the ‘Grand Slam’ connotation, it certainly makes up for it in attracting the highest talent! It’s the perfect opportunity to maximise their practice on the grass-court surface before the big Grand Slam at Wimbledon.

 

The 150th Year of Devonshire Park

Devonshire Park is located on the South Coast of England. It started out as a cricket ground in 1874, but tennis soon gained greater popularity at the site and later won the rights to be claimed as a tennis ground. The first tennis courts were built in 1879 and the Devonshire Park Tennis Club opened in 1881, when the first lawn tennis Championship was recorded. The Park has successfully been developed and enhanced since then, and now hosts the annual tennis tournament, with current sponsors Rothesay, welcoming global players to the sunny South Coast year upon year.

Read all about the park’s historic timeline in our blog here.

 

Winning experiences

We can’t wait to welcome guests back to this fantastic tournament that is so well loved, and a serious fan favourite event. With hospitality experiences in Love Fifteen or The Sky Lounge, our guests can enjoy their day at the tennis in a way that suits them.

Want to discover more about our experiences at Eastbourne? We have everything you need to know right here.