The Professional Squash Association (PSA) and US Squash have agreed to
intensify their partnership in an effort to continue the significant
growth of PSA tournaments and associated prize money in the United
States over the coming years.
Total prize money on offer at US-based PSA tournaments has nearly
doubled to $1,725,000 since the U.S. Open became the first World Series
squash tournament to offer parity in earnings for men and women back in
2013.
As a result, the United States is the biggest market for professional
squash, with the 32 PSA tournaments staged in the United States in 2017
accounting for over a quarter of the total available prize money on the
PSA World Tour this year.
“Our partnership with US Squash has already proven fruitful over the
past years, but we both believe that working closer together will
benefit both parties even further”, said PSA Chief Executive Alex Gough.
“US Squash deserves to be credited for their help in the growth of
professional squash in the United States and they are leading the way in
many other areas of the game as well. Squash is thriving in the United
States and the upsurge at junior and college level will no doubt have a
positive effect on professional squash in due course.”
The expanded partnership between both organisations will be centred
around a range of topics, including a continued focus to grow the number
of PSA tournaments and related prize money in the United States, the
execution of joint initiatives to increase the number of US-born PSA
members, the promotion of professional squash and PSA’s video streaming
platform SQUASHTV, the production and distribution of dedicated content,
and the use of each other’s expertise, technology and products.
Furthermore, the parties will align with the World Squash Federation (WSF)
and other key stakeholders within the sport to strive towards the
inclusion of squash on the Olympic Games programme, which has become
even more relevant for US Squash now that the 2028 Olympic Games has
been awarded to Los Angeles.
US Squash President and Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Klipstein,
applauded the PSA’s improvements to both the men’s and women’s game in
recent years, saying: “The PSA has been instrumental in the improved
visibility of our sport, both in the United States and abroad. The
launch of SQUASHTV in 2010 has been a game-changer and the integration
of the women’s Tour with the PSA in 2015 has been fantastic for the
sport.
“We are excited about the prospect of working more closely together with
the PSA. We have the tools to promote professional squash under our
considerable base of recreational, competition, junior and college
players in the United States and will use these tools, such as Club
Locker, to bridge the gap between professional squash and the grassroots
level.
"Similarly, we will look to support the development of a global
officiating program in conjunction with the WSF and the PSA."
The strengthened collaboration between the PSA and US Squash follows on
the back of the recent announcement that the PSA and the WSF have signed
a Memorandum of Understanding that will see the two bodies work in
unison towards achieving a joint vision for the future of squash on a
global scale. The PSA is also in advanced discussions with other
national federations to work more closely together.
