It’s about prize money
“The only way”: Tennis star thinks about boycott
May 5, 2026 – 6:22 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
The top stars in the tennis industry are among the highest-earning athletes. But money remains a topic of debate – even before the French Open.
In the tug of war for higher prize money at Grand Slam tournaments, tennis star Aryna Sabalenka is also considering a boycott. “We run the show. Without us there would be no tournaments, without us there would be no entertainment. I have the feeling that we definitely deserve a bigger share,” said Sabalenka before the start of the WTA 1000 tournament in Rome: “I think at some point there will be a boycott. I have the feeling that that will be the only way to fight for our rights.”
As early as April 2025, prominent players on the ATP and WTA tours had jointly written to the organizers of the four Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open) demanding that professionals share in the revenue of 22 percent.
On Monday, almost three weeks before the start of the French Open (May 24th), they repeated their claims to the public after the prize money for the clay court highlight was published. In a letter signed by, among others, Sabalenka, world number one Jannik Sinner and Germany’s star player Alexander Zverev, the professionals expressed their “deep disappointment”.
A total of 61.7 million euros will be distributed in the French capital, and the winners of the individual competitions for men and women will each receive 2.8 million euros. However, the professionals pointed out that their share would probably be less than 15 percent of the total revenue.
Apparently not all players want to go as far as Sabalenka. Four-time French Open winner Iga Świątek from Poland considers a boycott of tournaments to be “a bit extreme”. The most important thing is good communication and discussions with the umbrella organizations, said Świątek: “Hopefully there will be an opportunity for such meetings before Roland Garros and we will see how they go.”
