Top tennis players have expressed their “deep and collective disappointment” at the prize money on offer at this year’s French Open, reigniting a feud with grand slam organisers. Despite a 9.5 per cent increase in total prize money to €61.7 million (£53.7 million), leading players including Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff argue that their share of tournament revenues is declining.
According to the players, their share of the revenue generated by Roland Garros is projected to fall to 14.3 per cent this year. They have long pushed for a figure closer to the 22 per cent received at combined ATP and WTA events such as Indian Wells and the Italian Open. The group was similarly disappointed by prize money at this year’s Australian Open.
In a statement, the players said: “As Roland Garros looks to post record revenues, players are therefore receiving a declining share of the value they help create. The announcement does nothing to address the structural issues that players have consistently and reasonably raised over the past year. There has been no engagement on player welfare and no progress towards establishing a formal mechanism for player consultation within grand slam decision making.”
The French Tennis Federation (FFT) defended its approach, saying it had focused prize money increases on early-round losers, with rises of around 11 per cent for the first three rounds compared to 9.8 per cent for the champions. The FFT noted that it is a non-profit organisation that reinvests all revenues into the tournament and the development of tennis in France and internationally, including €400 million in infrastructure improvements.
The players initially outlined their demands in letters to the four grand slams in March last year, calling for contributions to a player welfare fund covering pensions, healthcare and maternity leave, as well as more consultation on scheduling. Ben Shelton, the world No 6, told The Independent that players are “at the bottom” when prize money as a percentage of revenue is compared to other sports.
