Belgrade Open moves to Athens amid reports of Djokovic's tension with Serbian government

The Belgrade Open—owned by Novak Djokovic's family—will not be played this season as planned. The ATP 250 tournament had been held since 2021 and was scheduled to take place again in November of this year at the Belgrade Arena, but the tournament's location will now change.

The tournament license belongs to the Djokovic family, who have organized a total of nine tournaments in the Serbian capital since 2021: five ATP 250s, one WTA 250, one WTA 125, one ATP Challenger 125, and one ITF tournament.

“The Belgrade Open tennis tournament, scheduled for November 2025, will not be held in Belgrade,” the tournament organization posted on social media. “Despite great dedication and considerable effort, the conditions for holding the tournament on the planned date and in the planned format could not be secured, which is why it was decided not to hold this year's edition of the tournament.”

Belgrade Open relocates following Djokovic's public tensions

Djokovic already had the goal of moving the tournament to Athens when he traveled to Greece in June and met with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to explore the possibilities. In fact, Djokovic is currently in Greece, where he met with Mitsotakis again last weekend.

The change was made official on the ATP Tour website, which now indicates that the Hellenic Championship will be held from November 2 to 8 in Athens, the same dates initially scheduled for the Belgrade Open. The press is even speculating on the possibility of Djokovic establishing residency in Greece with a "golden visa." With this decision, Greece will have its first ATP tournament since 1994.

Djokovic's decision to move to Greece comes amid supposed tensions with the Serbian Government and the country's president, the nationalist-populist Aleksandar Vučić. These tensions reportedly stem from the tennis player's support for the massive student protest movement that erupted after the death of 16 people in the collapse of a train station canopy in Novi Sad in November 2024.

While it has been widely discussed that Djokovic will establish his permanent residence in Greece, the fact is that the Belgrade Open will not be held this year. The post published on social media recalls the nine tournaments organized in the Serbian capital since 2021 under different brands: five ATP 250s, one WTA 250, one WTA 125, one ATP Challenger 125, and one ITF tournament.

“Since 2021, the organisation has successfully held a total of nine professional tennis tournaments under various brands, including five ATP 250 tournaments, one WTA 250, one WTA 125, one ATP Challenger 125 and one ITF tournament. During this period, the tournaments attracted a large number of tennis fans from the country and around the world, putting Belgrade on the map of significant international tennis events.

We are proud of everything that has been achieved so far and grateful to everyone who has been part of this project – above all, our partners, sponsors and the public, who have given us tremendous support. The organisation remains committed to the development of tennis in Serbia and will continue to work on creating the conditions for professional tournaments to be held in Belgrade again in the future.”

The Belgrade Open had its previous edition in 2024, where players like Francisco Cerúndolo, Jiří Lehečka, and Brandon Nakashima attended the tournament, which ended with former world No. 10 Denis Shapovalov defeating local star Hamad Međedović. The awards ceremony even featured Novak Djokovic himself presenting the prize, as he was unable to participate due to an injury.