Explosive accusation: Serena Williams’ former coach brands Roland‑Garros prize money a scandal
· Yahoo Sports
A dispute over prize money has become a major topic of conversation in tennis lately.
On Monday, several ATP and WTA players expressed their unhappiness with the prize money at this year’s Roland Garros.
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Aryna Sabalenka, Jannik Sinner and others put out a statement pointing out that while the total prize fund is set to rise for the 2026 French Open, the players’ percentage of tournament revenue will actually fall from 15.5% to around 14.9%.
Sabalenka also suggested that players might consider boycotting Grand Slams if there aren’t changes to how prize money is distributed at the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
Patrick Mouratoglou, who used to coach Serena Williams, spoke about how an increase in revenue share could help lower-ranked players earn more.
This isn’t the first time France’s approach to tennis payments has been criticised. Novak Djokovic has also previously called out how things are handled in France compared to other countries like Australia or England.
Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA/AFP via Getty ImagesPatrick Mouratoglou weighs in on the prize money row
In a post on Instagram, Mouratoglou said: “This year, the winner of Roland Garros will win €2.8m. The one who loses in the first round, €87,000.
“It’s difficult to understand for the fans that players who make so much money want more. And I can get that. The real question is not how much money they make. The real question is how is the money distributed.
“What the players complain about is the fact that the governing bodies are not giving back a high percentage of the money they make.
“On tour, you have the Grand Slams and the rest of the tour, ATP and WTA. Grand Slams give back to the players between 13 and 15 percent of what they make. ATP and WTA, around 22 percent.
“So there is a big gap between what ATP, WTA give back and the Grand Slams. And what ATP and WTA are giving is way less than in other sports.
“That’s why the players are not happy. The problem that I see also is that most of the money that the governing bodies are giving back is going to a very, very small proportion of players.
“It’s not normal that in a sport like tennis, a guy who’s ranked 150 in the world cannot make a living. This is completely a scandal.”
Mouratoglou has previously highlighted his belief that it’s unfair for someone ranked around 150th in tennis to struggle financially, pointing out that it doesn’t happen nearly as often in other sports at similar levels. It’s an issue he feels tennis needs to address soon rather than later.
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