Pharmaceutical company Mylan is extending its title sponsorship of World TeamTennis through '17 and will promote around the circuit’s 40th season next year. With the extension, Mylan will become the longest-running title sponsor for WTT, founded and owned by Int'l Tennis HOFer Billie Jean King. Mylan is in the second year of a three-year deal that would have expired at the end of the '15 season. The formal name of the league is Mylan World TeamTennis. “In sports, being without a title sponsor is tough,” said WTT CEO & Commissioner Ilana Kloss. The league suffered through the bankruptcy filing of its previous lead backer, Advanta, in '09. It went four years after that before Mylan came onboard. Kloss declined to disclose financial terms. WTT is a fairly limited endeavor, playing in July and August with seven U.S. teams; Kloss hopes to add an eighth team and expand in future years to Mexico and Canada. The teams feature women and men each playing singles and doubles with different scoring formats from traditional pro tennis. WTT next year will stage celebrations of its 40th season, starting with an event at the BNP Paribas Open in March in Indian Wells, Calif. “Players from all four decades will be there,” Kloss said.
