What's at stake in Davis Cup Final 8? Alcaraz leads Spanish charge for 2025 title, Sinner-less Italy aim for threepeat

The men’s World Cup of tennis reaches its grand finale at the 2025 Davis Cup Final 8 (18-23 November).

Eight nations are heading to the Italian city of Bologna to wrap up the season in pursuit of the sport’s ultimate team crown. Back-to-back champions Italy welcome the seven teams who made it through the last stage of qualification in September.

Three of the top 10 players in the world are set to star at the Davis Cup finals, headlined by Spain’s world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medallist Alexander Zverev of Germany.

Completing the eight-strong lineup are Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Czechia, and France, as the race to be crowned champions of the world reaches a thrilling climax at the Unipol Arena in Emilia-Romagna.

Here are the key storylines to follow at the Davis Cup.

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2025 Davis Cup Final 8 – Can Italy defend their title without Jannik Sinner?

When Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Jannik Sinner announced in October that he would not compete at the Davis Cup, there was as much shock around the world as there was uproar back home.

Sinner, who served a three-month doping ban in February, has led the Azzurri to consecutive world titles, but as he prioritises preparations for his Grand Slam title defence in January 2026, Italy must look elsewhere for inspiration.

They had hoped that Paris 2024 bronze medallist Lorenzo Musetti would lead the charge in singles, but after his exit from the ATP Finals, the 23-year-old announced he would also miss the David Cup Final 8 event, due to physical exhaustion, and with his partner due to give birth in the coming days.

It leaves former major finalist Matteo Berrettini, rising 23-year-old star Flavio Cobolli, and Lorenzo Sonego, the world number 45, to shoulder home hopes. Grand Slam doubles champions Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori will give the Italians optimism that they can still be title contenders. The challenge is whether they can do so without the most decorated Italian player of all time.

Italy [1] vs Austria – Wednesday 19 November from 16:00 CET

2025 Davis Cup Final 8 – Carlos Alcaraz chases more silverware with Spain

With no Sinner in sight, Alcaraz will feel even more confident of guiding Spain to a first Davis Cup title since 2019. His inclusion is a massive boost for the Spanish contingent, who recovered from 2-0 down to win their decisive qualifier against Denmark in Marbella.

The No. 1 player has a 5-1 singles record in the competition and sealed Spain’s only point in their 2024 finals campaign, before losing the decisive doubles match.

Now Rafael Nadal has retired, it is time for the 22-year-old to lead his country in what is the self-proclaimed best season of his career. The French Open and the US Open are the jewels of his collection of eight singles trophies in a dominant 2025 campaign.

Alcaraz and co. have a tough ask, the unseeded nation taking on No. 4 seed Czechia in the quarter-finals. But with the tennis he is playing and the level that comes out when he pulls on the red and gold colours, the Spaniard is a force to be reckoned with.

Spain vs Czechia [4] – Thursday 20 November from 10:00 CET

2025 Davis Cup Final 8 – Argentina bring South American spirit to Bologna

Only one nation competing in the last eight hail from outside of Europe, and that is the 2016 champions Argentina. They had to play two European away ties to reach the finals, defeating Casper Ruud’s Norway and last year’s runners-up Netherlands.

Returning to the Final 8 for the second consecutive year, Argentina will aim to go deeper after a quarter-final exit in 2024. They had a tough ask against defending champions Italy and only narrowly missed out in the doubles rubber, where then world No. 1 Sinner was brought in at the last minute to seal the tie.

The South Americans are headlined by singles world No. 21 Francisco Cerúndolo and doubles No. 3 Horacio Zeballos, the latter of whom could be crucial if Argentina must contest a deciding doubles match in Bologna.

Argentina vs Germany [2] – Thursday 20 November not before 17:00 CET

2025 Davis Cup Final 8 – Will Czechia cause an upset?

It may not seem just to view a seeded team as an underdog, but as Czechia prepare to tackle Alcaraz and Spain, they have a mammoth task ahead.

Nonetheless, the Czechs have a well-rounded team with a solid blend of in-form youngsters and experienced heads. There is 20-year-old Jakub Menšík, having won his maiden career title this season at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Miami.

Two places up in the ATP rankings is Jiří Lehečka, who won two of Czechia’s three points when they dispatched the USA 3-2 in the qualifiers. Along with Paris 2024 mixed doubles champion Tomáš Macháč, Team Czechia could certainly spring a surprise in Bologna.

Spain vs Czechia [4] – Thursday 20 November from 10:00 CET

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