Rome–at the highest place Arina Sabalenka He believes that if tennis players do not start getting a larger share of tournament revenues at Grand Slams they should organize a boycott – and so on. coco goff, elena rybakina And Jasmine Paolini Also ready to protest.
Sabalenka and partner number 1 Janic Sinner Among the leading players were – most of them ranked in the top 10 – Joe issued a statement Expressed “deep disappointment” over the French Open prize money on Monday.
“Without us there wouldn’t be a tournament and it wouldn’t be entertainment. I think certainly we deserve to be paid a higher percentage,” four-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka said at the Italian Open on Tuesday.
“I think at some point we will boycott it. I think that will be the only way to fight for our rights,” Sabalenka said on her 28th birthday.
Players are also demanding better representation, health options and pensions from the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
French Open organizers announced last month that they are Increase overall prize money An increase of almost 10% for a total pot of 61.7 million euros ($72.1 million), the total amount being 5.3 million euros more than last year. But “the underlying figures tell a very different story,” the players’ statement said, claiming they would receive a smaller share of the tournament’s revenue.
Players claim their share of Roland Garros’s revenue is set to drop from 15.5% in 2024 to an estimated 14.9% in 2026.
Gauff, the reigning French Open champion, cited a historic new WNBA collective bargaining agreement reached in March as an example of the benefits of working together.
“Things I’ve seen with other sports, generally to make massive progress and things like that, there needs to be a union,” Gough said. “We have to unionize somehow…we can definitely go further as a collective.”
Regarding the boycott, Gough said, “If everyone comes together and cooperates, then yes, I can see it 100%.” But he said he had not heard of any discussions about a walkout.
“I certainly think there’s a consensus that this needs to be addressed for all players at all levels, especially the lower level players,” Gough said. “I want to leave the game better than I found it. If I can say I played my part when I retire, that’s something I can be proud of.”
Rybakina, a two-time Grand Slam champion who won the Australian Open this year, will follow the other players.
“If the majority says we’re boycotting, we’re not playing, then of course I’m ready for that,” Rybakina said. “It’s not just on the Grand Slams and it’s not just about increasing the prize money. A lot of people don’t realize that the taxes are huge. You also earn more prize money, but you’re paying it all in taxes.”
Italian Paolini, who will reach the French Open and Wimbledon finals in 2024, also believed in the boycott option.
“If we all agree, and I think we are — men and women are united right now — then it’s something we can do,” Paolini said.
Paolini said the WTA and ATP Tours – which organize all the other tournaments – have done more than the Grand Slams to provide players with benefits such as maternity leave and retirement plans.
“There are a lot of things that the Slams are not doing, that the WTA and I think the ATP are doing,” Paolini said.
inga swiatek“The most important thing is to have proper communication and discussion with the governing bodies so that we have some room to talk and maybe negotiate,” said the four-time French Open champion.
“Hopefully there will be an opportunity to have these types of meetings before Roland Garros and we’ll see how they go,” Swiatek said. “But boycotting the tournament, that’s a bit extreme.”
The players’ statement said Roland Garros generated revenues of 395 million euros in 2025, an increase of 14% year-on-year, yet prize money increased by only 5.4%, reducing the players’ revenue share to 14.3%.
“With projected revenues of more than 400 million euros for this year’s tournament, prize money as a percentage of revenue will still be less than 15%, much lower than the 22% that players have requested to bring the Grand Slams in line with ATP and WTA combined Top 1000 events,” the players said.
French Open organizers did not respond to a request for comment after the players released their statement.
The Australian Open increased player compensation by 16% this year, and the US Open increased prize money by 20% last year.
The French Open starts on May 24 and the singles champions will each get 2.8 million euros and the runners-up 1.4 million euros. Semifinalists earn 750,000 euros and first-round losers receive 87,000 euros.
