The Davis Cup is referred to as “the tennis answer to the World Cup” for a reason.

In fact, with roots dating back to the year 1900, the Davis Cup has, in one format or another, a claim to seniority over football’s iconic tournament.

Ahead of the latest edition of the Davis Cup finals, here’s a rundown of the history of the event and its changes over the years.

When was the first Davis Cup?

The first took place in 1900, known at the time as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge. Four members of Harvard University made a proposal to take on British players. One of the American players, Dwight F. Davis, designed a tournament format and ordered a sterling silver trophy from Shreve, Crump & Low.

 The first match, held at Longwood Cricket Club in Boston, Massachusetts, was won by the Americans 3–0. There was no match in 1901, but the United States retained the trophy in 1902, beating Britain 3–2. 

When did the Davis Cup begin in its current format?

The Cup became a knockout tournament in 1972. There have been some additional evolutions since then, too.

In 1981, a tiered system was created, in which the 16 best national teams compete in the World Group and all other national teams compete in one of four groups across three regional zones.

In 1989, the tiebreak was introduced into Davis Cup competition, and from 2016 it has been used in all five sets.

From 2019, the tournament became an 18-team event taking place at the end of that year’s tennis season. This move in particular accelerated comparisons to the football World Cup.

Who has won the most Davis Cups?

Here are the biggest-performing nations by titles won, all-time:

Who won the most Davis Cups in the modern era?

Here are the number of wins per nation since 1972:

Who are the current Davis Cup holders?

Italy won the 2023 Davis Cup, their second overall and first in almost 50 years.

The 2024 edition of the tournament takes place from November 19-24, with the big story heading into the event being Rafael Nadal declaring it his last before retiring.

One of the all-time greats, Nadal will hope to help Spain clinch a seventh title on home soil in Malaga.