Upper Austria Ladies Linz 2026: Easter premiere on clay from April 5 to 12

(Almost) everything new in Linz! Austria's biggest women's sporting event, the WTA 500 Upper Austria Ladies Linz tournament, is not only being rescheduled, but will also be played on a different surface. In 2026, the Design Center Linz will host an indoor tournament on clay for the first time, which will mark the start of preparations for the Grand Slam tournament at Roland Garros in the spring. The 35th edition of the Upper Austria Ladies Linz in 2026 will begin with the qualifying matches on Easter Sunday, April 5. The final will be played on Sunday, April 12. The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has now confirmed this date to Tournament Director Sandra Reichel. This is the first time in its history that the event will be organised as an indoor clay court tournament.

"This is great news for us," says a delighted Sandra Reichel about the Easter present she can give Austrian tennis fans. The Upper Austria Ladies Linz will now be held one week before the WTA 500 tournament in Stuttgart, thus heralding the start of the European clay court season. "The players therefore have the opportunity to play two WTA 500 tournaments in succession in close proximity to each other. This will definitely have an impact on the quality of the field of players. We have already held the first talks. In addition, a clay court tournament at the Design Centre will offer fans a completely new tennis experience due to the intense and long rallies," says Reichel, looking forward to the coming spring with great anticipation. "Easter Monday is a public holiday and we're looking forward to a great atmosphere at the Design Centre. We will certainly also have one or two Easter surprises in store for the fans," adds the tournament director.

"It's very special for us to be organising an indoor clay court tournament in Linz for the first time to mark our 35th anniversary. It is a great opportunity to further strengthen Linz as a tennis centre. The fans can look forward to absolute world-class clay court tennis in the Design Centre, which will once again provide the stage for Austria's biggest women's sporting event," adds tournament founder Peter Michael Reichel.

The postponement of the date is due to the later start of the Australian Open, which will not begin until January 18, 2026. In consultation with the WTA, the week from April 5 to 12 was then set as the new tournament date.

Advance ticket sales for the Upper Austria Ladies Linz 2026 will start at the end of October.

New WTA prize money record in 2025

The popularity of women's tennis as the most successful women's sport in the world continues to grow - and the prize money is also setting new records. In 2025, the players will be competing for a total of 249 million US dollars. This represents a new record and an increase of 13 per cent compared to the previous year. At the US Open, which began on Sunday in New York, the winner alone can look forward to five million US dollars. "It's incredible to see that the WTA has reached another milestone with record prize money of almost 250 million US dollars. This not only shows what women's tennis has achieved in recent years, but also the value of our sport on the global stage. It's not just about a number, it's about breaking barriers, creating new opportunities and sending a clear message to the next generation: dream without limits," says Coco Gauff, the current French Open winner and 2019 Linz title holder.