Serena Williams towards a return in 2026? The American champion is on the ITIA anti-doping program lists

A living legend of tennis, Serena Williams retired after the 2022 US Open. However, a small detail suggests a possible return of the American to the courts next year.

AFP

Adrien Guyot

le 02/12/2025 à 17h51

2 min to read

Williams

What if Serena Williams returns to the circuit next season? The news had the effect of a bomb this Tuesday in the tennis world. Yet, the hypothesis of a comeback for the player who has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles has gained momentum in recent hours.

Indeed, as British journalist Ben Rothenberg asserts, the former professional player, now aged 44, has been reinstated into the ITIA (International Tennis Integrity Agency) anti-doping program, a prerequisite for considering a return to competition.

Williams requested her reinstatement to the professional circuit

On September 2, 2022, Serena Williams played the last match of a 27-year professional career in the third round of the US Open against Ajla Tomljanovic (7-5, 6-7, 6-1). The next day, she confirmed her retirement by asking the ITIA to remove her name from the anti-doping program lists, which subjects players to regular random checks during the season.

Thus, if the former world number 1 is on this list, it means she has requested her reinstatement to the professional circuit. The regulations stipulate that players on the list have declared their sports retirement and cannot return to official competition, "unless they undergo out-of-competition testing for at least six months prior to the event in question."

The American champion could have returned as early as 2025

According to information from Bounces, Serena Williams had considered a return to the professional level earlier this year, a few weeks before the US Open, in which her older sister Venus participated, still active at 45, and who, unlike Serena, has never announced her sports retirement.

However, no official information has leaked about when Serena Williams requested to reappear on the anti-doping program list, but her name was reportedly communicated in a document published as early as October 2025, meaning that if Williams has been subjected to regular anti-doping checks since that date, she could make her comeback no later than April 2026.

For now, no rumors of a definitive return by Serena Williams have been made public, but her reinstatement into the ITIA's anti-doping program is certainly fueling the dreams of her fans, who are only waiting for one thing: their idol to make an unexpected return to the forefront of the stage.