Stuttgart Ballet on Centre Court

As a partner of Porsche, the Stuttgarter Ballet will again serve up a quite special experience within the attractive supporting programme at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. Young dancers belonging to the world famous company will perform “MatchBox” – a piece choreographed by Louis Stiens – on Centre Court in the Porsche Arena at 6.00 pm on Monday 20 April and then at 2.00 pm on Sunday 26 April to get the audience in the mood for the final.

Tennis legends at the Berenberg Classics

Big names are not only to be found in the line-up at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix: After the first matches at the tournament where there is a total of 731,000 dollars prize money and a Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS Cabriolet at stake, it will be time for the Berenberg Classics at 6.30 pm on 20 April. Facing each other in the Duel of Legends will be the American Andre Agassi, eight-time Grand Slam winner and the husband of Steffi Graf, and Austrian Thomas Muster. Immediately afterwards at 8.00 pm , the ladies, headed by Maria Sharapova, will be presented to the audience on Centre Court. Later it is party time as the Player’s Night will be hosted in the VIP Lounge.

A village to browse around and be amazed

The Sport and Lifestyle Village in the Schleyerhalle offers visitorsfar more than just a good opportunity to stretch their legs in between matches. Numerous exhibitors from the fields of sport, fashion, technology, nutrition, health and spa treatments will showcase the latest products and trends. In the attractive area for the public, there’s also no end of “get involved” activities for both young and old – plus the daily autograph sessions with the players. Additionally one can watch the stars practising from close up whilst sitting in comfort with an espresso or cappuccino.

The fascination of Porsche

Immerse yourself in the Porsche World: visitors can find out about everything Porsche throughout the tournament week in the Porsche Arena entrance hall. In addition to the Porsche Museum, Porsche Classic, Porsche Motorsport and Porsche Driving Experience will also be showcasing themselves. There is lots of information about all things Porsche at the various information stands – and there are naturally numerous sports cars to marvel at.

A heart for children: Agapedia and Plan International

Thanks partners: Jürgen Klinsmann’s charitable foundation, the “Agapedia-Stiftung”, has been a charity partner of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix for ten years. The Agapedia-Stiftung provides, for example, children meaningful after-school leisure activities including homework supervision, sport, games and creative arts at their centre for children in Esslingen. New on board as a charity partner is the “Kinderhilfswerk Plan International Deutschland” Through its development projects focussing on children, Plan International is active in 51 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Their work focuses on helping others help themselves through the support they give children and communities. Plan works above all in health, education and vocational training, child protection, income maintenance, emergency relief, water, hygiene and the environment.

Aces for a good cause

These aces count more than just one point: as a part of the Aces for Charity campaign, Porsche AG will make a donation for every ace hit during the course of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix to its charity partners, Agapedia and Plan International Deutschland.

Commitment to the environment

Sustainability is of utmost importance to Porsche – and the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix is organised in an environmentally responsible way. The so-called “Kombi-ticket” entitles tournament visitors to use the regional VVS public transport system when travelling to and from the Porsche Arena. As a result, it has been possible to reduce the number of car journeys to date by 30 per cent. The partner in.Stuttgart, which operates the Porsche Arena and the Schleyerhalle, is also committed to sustainability. When modernising the Schleyerhalle in 2012, one of the management’s primary focuses was a conscious and responsible use of resources. In leasing roof space on the complex’s logistics buildings, the “Stadtwerke Stuttgart” energy provider has installed a 2,390 m² photovoltaic system – the fifth largest in Stuttgart. It generates 300,000 kilowatt hours of electricity every year.

Thrilling ways to pass time

Great entertainment for young and old is also offered by Kids’ and Activity Village. In the area next to the Sport and Lifestyle Village there is, for example, a Kids’ Corner run jointly with the Spielwaren Kurtz toy shop. It has games stations and many “get involved” activities. The Carrera slot car racing track and video games are other thrilling ways for kids to pass time – and there’s a mini tennis court.

A fan club for every player

At the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, every player is loudly supported by their own fan club. Part of the “Players Cheer Up” campaign, each fan club is made up of 12 juniors from tennis clubs belonging to the regional Württemberg Tennis Association (WTB) and the Baden Tennis Association (BTV). They will each be allocated a player and are entitled to free entry to the Porsche Arena for as long as their players are still in the tournament. The most inventive fan club will be given a prize on finals day.

Fantastic offers for young and old

Children, adults and families are offered exciting matches and a big variety of entertainment and things to do at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. The first Saturday and Sunday (qualifying weekend, 18 and 19 April) are Kids’ Days with competitions and various “get involved” activities. On the traditional Family Day (Wednesday, 22 April), the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix is in particular well worth a visit for families. Awaiting visitors is face painting for children, games testing one’s dexterity and a serving competition: the youngster with the best serve will be invited to go on court for the day’s first match to toss the coin.

Big stage for the little ones

They are crazy about Maria Sharapova and Rafael Nadal: the finals weekend of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix also provides the big stage for the little ones when the 3rd Porsche Mini Tennis Grand Prix takes place in the Sport and Lifestyle Village from 24 to 26 April. It will be played on mini courts resembling the four surfaces used for the Grand Slam tournaments: two hard courts for the Australian Open and US Open, a grass court for Wimbledon and a clay court for the French Open. The participating U-9 boys and girls all qualified for the finals after winning one of the qualifying tournaments organised by 16 clubs in Baden and Württemberg.

A Porsche full of tennis balls

The Porsche Tennis Grand Prix will be touring Stuttgart and the surrounding region in the form of a Porsche full of pink tennis balls. Those guessing the right number of balls in the car can win tickets for the Porsche Arena. All the participants will also go into the hat for three pairs of VIP tickets for the last 16. The sports car with a tennis motif will be in BreuningerLand Ludwigsburg until 13 April, in front of the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel in Stuttgart (Mercedesstr. 75) from 14 to 17 April and then from 18 to 26 April in the Sport and Lifestyle Village in the Schleyerhalle.

Mixed doubles on the microphone

Heinz Günthardt will also be the announcer at this year’s Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. The brother of tournament director Markus Günthardt was one of the world’s best doubles players in his playing days. Together with Balazs Taroczy, Günthardt, who later coached Steffi Graf before becoming a TV commentator, won the Wimbledon (1985) and French Open (1981) men’s doubles titles and the mixed titles at the 1985 French and US Opens with Martina Navratilova. The Swiss will also be lining up for a mixed doubles in the Porsche Arena – together with the SWR presenter Annette Krause.

What moves women

When targeting men and women, what are the differences in the way they are addressed? It’s a question faced by every brand and product when females are to be specifically targeted. The “Women and Brand” congress to be held in conjunction with the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix on 23 April will highlight selected concepts and campaigns from companies such as for example Allianz, Avon, Eurosport and sixx. They intention is for them to show how women can be reached emotionally (classical advertising, events or sponsoring) and what is special about the media and consumer behaviour of women. The speakers include Markus Günthardt and Anke Huber.

And then there’s...

On Friends’ Day (Tuesday, 21 April), every visitor to the tournament will be greeted with a glass of sparkling wine. They will also receive vouchers that can be exchanged at the stands in the Sport and Lifestyle Village for a small present. Various activities with a health spa and fitness theme are on the programme for the Fitness & Health Spa Day (Thursday, 23 April) in the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix’s public area.

In front of the Porsche Museum: Maria Sharapova against Andre Agassi

It will be a real treat for all tennis fans: Maria Sharapova and Andre Agassi will play a unique exhibition match in front of the Porsche Museum (Porscheplatz, Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen) at 2.00 pm on Tuesday, 21 April. Admission is free. A court will be built specially on the museum square for the Russian, the title holder and number one seed at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, and the former superstar from USA. For Porsche AG, the attractive exhibition match is a present to all the fans unable to watch Maria Sharapova and Andre Agassi playing live in the Porsche Arena.