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It started with a storm. “Our first tournament in 2016?” recalls Geoffrey Fernandez, director of the Mifel Tennis Open by Telcel Oppo that will be held from July 14 to 19 in Los Cabos. “It rained so hard we couldn’t play on Monday. Then a tornado hit the next year.”
He tells the story without complaint. Just the quiet certainty of someone who has built something year by year, setback by setback, until it took on a life of its own.
Now, in its ninth edition, the tournament is no longer a gamble or an experiment. It’s a fixture on the ATP Tour, drawing over 34,000 spectators and pumping more than 150 million pesos into the local economy. With top-ranked players, high-end infrastructure, and a growing calendar of community programs, the tournament has helped transform Los Cabos into a legitimate stop for world-class sport and entertainment.
What makes it resonate, especially for locals, is the way the tournament has woven itself into the region’s fabric: through schools, families, neighborhood clinics, and long weekends that blend elite tennis with genuine community life. “It’s not just about numbers,” Geoffrey says. “You look back and realize what this tournament has delivered to the city.”
Infrastructure & Innovation: Building a Global-Standard Experience
“The venue is one of the best on the tour. The players talk about it all the time. They love the hotels, the conditions, and the way everything runs.” His confidence comes from experience. As tournament director since the first edition in 2016, Geoffrey Fernandez has overseen a steady transformation of the event into one of the most admired ATP 250s on the calendar.
This year brings a new round of improvements. “For the first time, tickets are 100 percent digital. That’s important because it improves the fan experience and helps us avoid issues with resale. It also means people carry the tournament with them on their phone.”
Inside the courts, large-format spectator screens now face both the north and south ends, providing real-time updates and enhancing the immersive experience for fans.
Even the rules of the game reflect a shift. “We’ve implemented electronic line-calling. The line judges are gone. More than 15 cameras track every match, which lets us call everything with precision and consistency.”
Off the court, the upgrades continue. A new wing in the food court of the Cabo Sports Complex adds space for cafés, snacks, and shaded seating. “People spend the whole day here. We want to give them more than tennis.” New ticket offices in La Paz and San Jose del Cabo were added to make the event more accessible across the region.
Every change has a purpose. “We make improvements based on what we observe each year. That’s how you build something that keeps growing.”
Community Programs & Social Impact
“We’re not just organizing a tennis tournament. We’re building something that connects with the community.” That vision has shaped the event from its earliest editions and has become more deliberate each year.
One of the most visible examples is Family Day, a full-day initiative that brings over 200 families from local neighborhoods to the venue. “We offer everything from haircuts and legal advice to vaccinations and mammograms. There’s sports programming for the kids, but we also try to meet practical needs. It’s a day that really leaves a mark.”
Another highlight is Kids Night, where hundreds of children from local shelters and community organizations come to the tournament for games, music, and player interaction. “We make it neon-themed. It’s fun, it’s loud, and the players join in. That format, where the athletes really engage with the kids, doesn’t exist at most tournaments.”
The event also includes Tennis Talks, where young fans get to speak directly with professional players and coaches about training, nutrition, and life on tour. “It’s a way to open up the world behind the game. We want the kids to ask questions, to feel close to the players, and to imagine themselves in those shoes.”
These initiatives are not decorative. They are woven into the tournament’s identity. “Every year, we try to reach more families, work with more schools, and do more than we did the year before. The tournament has to mean something to people who live here.”
Growing a Tennis Culture in Baja
“When we started, only about 30 percent of the ball kids were from Baja California Sur. Now it’s 100 percent. That tells you something.”
The tournament hasn’t only brought world-class tennis to Los Cabos, but it has also helped build the foundations of a local tennis culture. Geoffrey credits the shift to consistent investment in outreach and the natural pull of proximity. “The kids come, they watch, they get inspired. Then they want to play. And once they start, we find ways to keep them connected.”
One story stands out. In 2017, a 13-year-old named Luis Carlos Alvarez entered the Cabo Cup, a youth tournament launched by the organizers as part of their broader community programming. “He finished in third place. Now, he’s playing professionally. Right now, he’s in Europe, competing on clay. He’s the second seed in the Mexican national rankings.”
Alvarez will return this year as a wildcard entry in the tournament’s qualification round. “That’s the dream,” Fernandez says. “To see someone go from a kid in the stands to a player on the court.”
The development goes beyond one story. The tournament has collaborated with clubs across the state, hosted junior events in cities such as La Paz and Tijuana, and maintained contact with the national federation to monitor the region’s growth. “We’ve seen a real increase in the number of people playing tennis in Baja. That’s one of the legacies we care about most.”
Los Cabos’ Economy. And Its Future
The numbers are impressive. This year, the organizers project the tournament to generate 150 million pesos in economic impact for the region. Last year, over 34,000 spectators passed through the gates. But for Geoffrey Fernandez, the real story goes beyond hotel nights and vendor sales.
“Look at Banca Mifel. They came in as a sponsor in 2016. Now their top-performing bank branch is the one in Los Cabos.” Since then, the company has opened additional branches in San Jose and La Paz. “It’s not just exposure. These companies come, they see what’s happening here, and they stay.”
The pattern has repeated with other sponsors. Mazda opened a dealership in the area after becoming involved with the tournament. Interproteccion, one of Mexico’s major insurance firms, followed a similar path. “These are year-round impacts. The tournament creates a moment, but that moment brings people in, and some of them build something permanent.”
For local workers and small businesses, that stability matters. Vendors in food services, event logistics, and transportation directly benefit from the tournament. Others benefit from the broader network it activates. “You can’t just measure it by the week of the event. You have to look at what stays behind.”
Player Experience & Destination Appeal
“The players love it here. They bring their families, they stay longer, they talk about Cabo with other players. That’s how you know it’s working.”
This year’s lineup supports that claim. At the top of the draw is Lorenzo Musetti, the Italian currently ranked No. 7 in the world. He arrives following a remarkable clay season, with semifinal appearances in Madrid, Monte Carlo, and Rome.
Andrey Rublev, a mainstay of the ATP Top 10 for over 230 weeks, brings consistency and firepower to the court.
First-time participants include Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, a recent finalist in Acapulco, and Denis Shapovalov, the flamboyant Canadian known for his aggressive style and crowd appeal. Other standouts include Brandon Nakashima, a former Los Cabos finalist, and Jordan Thompson, the defending champion in both singles and doubles.
Returning champions and rising stars round out the field. Names like Jaume Munar, Daniel Altmaier, Cameron Norrie, Wu Yibing, Rinky Hijikata, Borna Coric, and Rodrigo Pacheco Mendez, Mexico’s top-ranked player and this year’s wildcard, reflect both depth and diversity.
For many of them, the tennis is only part of the draw. “They stay at Solaz or Hacienda del Mar. They enjoy the destination. The tournament becomes a week for the whole family. Some even stay longer. And when they leave, they take Cabo with them.”
You can’t buy this kind of reputation isn’t bought with appearance fees. It’s earned over time through logistics that work, venues that impress, and a setting that feels both professional and personal. “They come to compete, but they also come to relax. Cabo gives them both.”
Positioning Cabo as a Global Events Hub
The Mifel Tennis Open by Telcel Oppo is no longer just a tennis tournament; it has become a cultural phenomenon. It’s part of a broader shift that’s quietly redefining what this region can offer and how it wants to be perceived.
“This venue wasn’t built just for tennis,” Geoffrey explains. “We had Jesse & Joy here last November. We want more concerts, more events, more reasons for people to see Los Cabos as a place where world-class things happen.”
The Cabo Sports Complex, which houses the tournament, was designed with multi-use functionality in mind. While the stadium is tailored for ATP requirements, the surrounding infrastructure supports concerts, cultural festivals, and other large-format gatherings. “The idea is that this becomes a space for the city. Not just for a week in July.”
Geoffrey sees the potential for Cabo to grow into a destination known for its events calendar as much as its beaches. He points to other recurring highlights, like the PGA Tour stop, as signs that momentum is building.
“We’re well located. We have a growing population with strong purchasing power. People from the U.S. already know us well. Now we give them another reason to come.”
By anchoring that vision in a tournament that has already proven its staying power, he is building something larger than sport. “This can be a city of events. We’ve started with tennis, but that’s just the beginning.”
Conclusion: Redefining Success
“For me, personally? It’s a success when we see the kids playing,” Geoffrey says. “Even if they don’t know tennis, even if it’s their first time here, when they leave with a smile and want to come back, that’s what matters.”
After nine years of directing the tournament, Geoffrey Fernandez measures the tournament’s value by more than rankings, attendance, or sponsorships. Those things matter, but they don’t tell the whole story.
What stays with him are the moments that feel like proof of something lasting: a local kid rising through the ranks, a sponsor opening permanent offices, a family who returns every year because it has become their tradition.
There is no doubt that the tournament has helped shape Los Cabos’ international image. But it has also helped shape its internal identity as a place that hosts not only visitors but ideas, experiences, and opportunities.
“The event will keep growing. We’ll have more players, more infrastructure, more programs. But we always come back to the same thing. It has to mean something to the people who live here.”
That, more than any trophy or headline, is what success looks like.