Top players threaten Grand Slam boycott over prize moneyPTPA supports fight for fair share of tournament revenueDispute brings focus on lawsuit against governing bodies<\/p>\n
BENGALURU, May 6 \u2014 The \u200cProfessional Tennis Players Association said the row over French Open prize money shows precisely why it is challenging the way tennis is run, warning that without reform the sport will be stuck in cycles of disputes and incremental change.<\/p>\n
Leading players have sought a bigger share of the \u200cpie from French Open organisers, whose prize purse of \u20ac61.7 million (RM283 million) lags well behind the other three Grand Slams despite a 9.5 per cent increase for 2026.<\/p>\n
Aryna Sabalenka and other leading players expressed their \u201cdeep disappointment\u201d to organisers in a statement this week and have said a boycott is possible if the gap is not closed to the Australian Open, the US Open and Wimbledon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe commend and fully support the players for stepping up and fighting for what they deserve: a fair share of the revenues they help create,\u201d the PTPA advocacy group said in a statement to Reuters.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are deep structural changes desperately needed in tennis.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Australian Open offered an improved prize pot of A$111.5 million (RM316 million) in January while the US Open paid out US$90 million (RM353 million) and Wimbledon \u00a353.5 million (RM284 million) in 2025.<\/p>\n
Reuters has sought comment from the organisers of the French Open, which \u200cbegins on May 24.<\/p>\n
Help players<\/p>\n
The tournament said last month that it had committed to supporting the qualifying tournament and early \u2060rounds of the main draw with bigger prize money increases to \u2060help those players who needed it the most to finance their season.<\/p>\n
Grand Slams operate \u2060under different financial models from the ATP \u2060and WTA Tours, with prize \u2060money set independently rather than through a centralised framework.<\/p>\n
Sabalenka said players undoubtedly put the spotlight on the sport\u2019s biggest tournaments and deserved a greater share of the revenues, backing calls for a 22 per cent allocation in line with what the ATP and WTA offer \u2060at combined 1000-level events.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like the show is on us,\u201d the four-times Grand Slam champion said in Rome ahead of this week\u2019s Italian Open.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like without us there wouldn\u2019t be a tournament and there wouldn\u2019t be that entertainment. We definitely deserve to be paid more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Broader concerns<\/p>\n
While the latest standoff has been driven by leading names, players in the lower rungs have long maintained that prize money structures affect their ability to cover travel, coaching and medical costs across a crowded calendar \u2060that lasts 11 months.<\/p>\n
It has also brought the focus on other pressing concerns, with players saying this week that their welfare proposals had gone unanswered and there was no meaningful progress towards fair representation in Grand Slam \u2060decision-making.<\/p>\n
The grievances mirror issues under legal scrutiny in a class-action lawsuit filed last year by the PTPA, co-founded in 2020 by Novak \u2060Djokovic and Vasek \u2060Pospisil with the intention of being the voice of the players and the catalyst for change.<\/p>\n
\u201cTennis is falling behind other global sports on every meaningful metric because of its structure,\u201d the PTPA added.<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil that is addressed directly and comprehensively, progress will remain incremental, and players will remain \u200cstuck in the same cycle, pushing for more prize money season after season.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is exactly what the PTPA and the lawsuit against the Grand Slams and the ATP and WTA Tours are designed to change.\u201d \u2014 Reuters<\/p>\n
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