GERARD PIQUE celebrated after his company’s £2.3billion plan to revamp the Davis Cup were voted through.

Kosmos, founded and chaired by Pique, were part of the proposed changes in conjunction with the International Tennis Federation and will spend the mammoth amount over 25 years on the new event.

The Barcelona defender, 31, was supported by American billionaire Larry Ellison, who joined Kosmos in the summer.

And Pique, who retired from international football this week, said: “This is the beginning of a new stage that guarantees the pre-eminent and legitimate place that the Davis Cup should have as a competition for national teams while adapting to the demands of this professional sport at the highest level.”

The changes, which will come into play next year, will see 18 teams play in a round-robin, week-long tournament at the end of the season.

It is the biggest overhaul in the format of the competition in its 118-year history.

British tennis’ governing body the Lawn Tennis Association opposed the changes but 71 per cent of the 140 ITF members voted in favour, passing the two-thirds required.

ITF President David Haggerty said in a statement: “I am delighted that the nations have voted to secure the long-term status of Davis Cup.

“Our mission is to ensure that this historic decision will benefit the next generation of players for decades to come.”

The changes have caused a very mixed reaction across the tennis world, with players past and present happy to speak out and voice their opinions.

Pat Cash, John Millman and Lucas Pouille were among those to criticise the changes.

Sad day for men’s tennis #ITF have voted for new format of #DavisCup (its no longer Davis Cup) Fooling themselves if they think top players will play a 18 team comp over 1 week at the end of the year???? 🤪 — Pat Cash (@TheRealPatCash) August 16, 2018

Hey @daviscup



Quick question. Was wondering when the players vote is for the Davis Cup changed format is.



Haven’t received the memo yet.



Cheers 👋 #daviscup #daviscupvote #dc — John Millman (@johnhmillman) August 16, 2018

How do you think a tennis player, backed by a billionaire, would fare wanting to change the whole format of football’s meager 63 year old Champions League competition? Including no home and away fixtures, WC teams, etc. It’s crazy 🤯😂 @3gerardpique @ITF_Tennis #daviscupvote — John Millman (@johnhmillman) August 16, 2018

Fitting on #NationalTellAJokeDay that #daviscupvote was passed in favour of radical change. Led by a footballer and a billionaire. 😔🤷‍♂️ @ITF_Tennis #daviscup — John Millman (@johnhmillman) August 16, 2018

One of the criticisms of the current format is the scheduling, with matches taking place throughout the season in February, April, September and November.

But the new format will turn the Davis Cup into another week-long tournament, similar to the remainder of the season.

World stars Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, two of the biggest names in tennis, meanwhile, have backed the changes.

From next year, the 18 teams will be split into six groups of three, with each round made up of two singles and a doubles, each best-of-three sets.

Each group winner will go through along with the two best second-placed nations for the quarter-finals on Friday, semi-finals on Saturday and the final on Sunday.

This story originally appeared on The Sun.