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history of Davis cup With more than 100 years of tradition behind it, Davis Cup by BNP Paribas is the premier team competition in tennis, as well as being the largest annual international team competition in sport. The symbol of this prestigious event is the beautiful silver Davis Cup trophy, donated by Harvard student Dwight Filley Davis in 1900. It consists of three pieces, the silver Trophy and two wooden bases. The Davis Cup weighs 105 kg and is 107 cm in diameter at its widest point. The bowl is engraved with the competitions from 1900-1919, while the tray is engraved with the competitions from 1920-32. The competitions from 1933 through 2002 are engraved on plaques on the top two wooden plinths. In 2002, the trophy gained a new plinth, adding 16 additional plaques and castings and raising the height of the trophy to 110cm. While only two nations, the United States and the British Isles, participated in the first three competitions, interest grew and by 1913, an additional six nations had joined them. Participation continued to grow steadily, with entries reaching 50 nations in 1969 and topping 100 nations for the first time in 1993. Today, more than 120 nations regularly compete in Davis Cup. The Davis Cup is a recognised institution in world tennis, as influential today as it was instrumental in the sport's growth. The simplicity of its unchanged format has provided the framework for one of the most successful and famous competitions in sporting history. Ties consist of five rubbers over three days: two singles on the first day, the doubles rubber on the second and the two reverse singles on the third and final day. All live rubbers are played over the best of five sets with no tiebreak in the final set. From the beginning, the Davis Cup has always attracted the leading players and today the world's leading players still answer their nation's call, just as Fred Perry, Rene Lacoste, Bill Tilden, Donald Budge, Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe, Boris Becker and Pete Sampras did in their heyday. The World Group is the pinnacle of the competition. Sixteen nations play in a knockout format, leading to the Davis Cup Final in November. The remaining nations compete in Groups I to IV, divided across three regional zones: Americas, Asia/ Oceania and Europe/Africa, and aim to win promotion and avoid relegation. The successful nations in Group I of these regional zones join the eight World Group first round losers in the World Group play-offs, with the winners going on to compete in the subsequent year's World Group while the losers return to zone competition. Prize money was introduced in the Davis Cup in 1981 when the NEC Corporation became the title sponsor, a position it held for 21 years. In January 2002, BNP Paribas, already an international sponsor, assumed the role of title sponsor. The total compensation to the participating nations for 2012 amounts to around US$14 million. 2013 Davis Cup Final Media Guide | Introduction 7 Davis Cup trophy