Citi DC Open 2025: Men's and women's draw, schedule, players, prize money breakdown and more

The Citi DC Open 2025 will kick off the North American hardcourt swing and the countdown to the US Open. It is the first pitstop of the US Open series, and the combined men's and women's tournament is set to take place from July 21-27.

The tournament has attracted several top players, including Jessica Pegula, Taylor Fritz, Naomi Osaka, Emma Raducanu, Elena Rybakina, Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton, among others. However, the biggest name in the draw is seven-time Major champion, Venus Williams, who's making her comeback after a 16-month hiatus.

After months of competing on clay and grass, players will now need to reacquaint themselves with hardcourts. With a stacked draw as usual, the Citi DC Open promises some exciting matches throughout the week. On that note, here's everything to know about the tournament:

---

What is the Citi DC Open?

It is a joint ATP and WTA tournament, with both tours classifying it as a part of the 500 series of tournaments. The ATP Tour briefly relegated the tournament to the ATP 250 level in the mid 2000s but reinstated it to the ATP 500 level from 2009.

The WTA Tour initially classified the tournament as a WTA 250 event but upgraded it to the WTA 500 level from 2023. This is the only combined men's and women's tournament at the WTA 500 level.

The men's singles draw has 48 players. 16 players are seeded and all of them receive a first-round bye. The women's singles draw features 28 players, with the top four seeds receiving a first-round bye.

---

Venue

The Citi DC Open 2025 will take place at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Washington, D.C., USA.

---

History

The Citi DC Open was first held in 1969 as the Washington Star International. It was a men's only event and held on clay. The tournament was rebranded as the Sovran Bank Classic from 1982 and switched from clay to hardcourts in 1986. The tournament was later marketed as the Newsweek Tennis Classic in 1993, the Legg Mason Tennis Classic from 1994 to 2011 and the Citi Open from 2012 to 2022.

The tournament's co-founders, John A. Harris and Donald Dell, remain at the helm even today. Arthur Ashe was the brains behind selecting Washington as the venue for the tournament.

The tournament threw its doors open to the WTA Tour starting from the 2011 edition, though it wasn't held at the same venue. The debut edition was held in College Park, Maryland. The official merger happened in 2012.

The women's player field was usually split between the Citi DC Open and the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose, California. The latter was the bigger tournament back then. However, the two tournaments merged in 2023, thus granting the Citi DC Open its current status as a WTA 500 tournament.

Andre Agassi holds the record for most men's singles titles with five. Magdalena Rybarikova and Svetlana Kuznetsova share the honors in women's singles with two titles apiece.

---

Men's Draw and Players

Frances Tiafoe is the sixth seed at the Citi DC Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

Sebastian Korda, the defending champion, is out due to an injury. The American big guns, top seed Taylor Fritz, fourth seed Ben Shelton and sixth seed Frances Tiafoe, have all landed in the top half of the draw. Fifth seed Andrey Rublev is another big name in this half.

Shelton and Tiafoe could cross paths in the quarterfinals, with the winner potentially meeting either Fritz or Rublev in the semifinals. Last year's runner-up Flavio Cobolli, rising young star Learner Tien, 12th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina are some of the other notable names in this half of the draw.

Second seed Lorenzo Musetti, third seed Holger Rune, seventh seed Alex de Minaur and eighth seed Daniil Medvedev headline the bottom half of the draw. Reilly Opelka, Gael Monfils and Cameron Norrie are some of the other well-known names in this part of the draw.

The men's draw can be found here.

---

Women's Draw and Players

Emma Navarro is the second seed at the Citi DC Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

Defending champion Paula Badosa won't defend her title due to an injury. Top seed Jessica Pegula and third seed Elena Rybakina anchor the top half of the women's draw. Venus Williams is also in this section and is up against Peyton Stearns in the first round.

Second seed Emma Navarro and fourth seed Clara Tauson lead the bottom half of the draw. Emma Raducanu will face seventh seed Marta Kostyuk in her opener, while Naomi Osaka will take on Yulia Putintseva in the first round. Danielle Collins, Maria Sakkari and Anna Kalinskaya are some of the other well-known names in this half of the draw.

The women's draw can be found here.

---

Schedule

The initial rounds will cover the first four days of the tournament starting from Monday, July 21. The singles quarterfinals will take place on Friday, July 25, followed by the semifinals on Saturday, July 26. The women's singles final will be held on Sunday, July 27, at 2:30 p.m. local time. The men's singles final will be contested after that at 5:00 p.m.

---

Prize Money and Ranking Points

Winners will receive 500 ranking points. The total prize money for the men's event stands at $2,396,115, while the total prize money for the women's event is $1,282,951. Here's a complete breakdown of the prize money and ranking points for the Citi DC Open 2025:

---

Citi DC Open 2025: Where to Watch

Fans can check out the following channels and sites to keep a track of the matches at the Citi DC Open 2025:

USA - Tennis Channel, TC Plus

UK - Sky Sports

Canada - TSN, DAZN

For more information regarding the broadcast of matches, click here (ATP) and here (WTA).

Venus Williams and Father Richard recall one match that 7-time Grand Slam champion "should have won"

Edited by Rohit