Wimbledon record prize money increase fails to end dispute with top tennis stars

Wimbledon has announced a record increase in its prize money pot, boosting it by £10.7 million to a staggering £64.2 million for this year’s championships.

While leading players have welcomed the 20 per cent uplift as a “genuine and significant step forward”, they insist that fundamental issues regarding their share of the tournament’s vast revenues remain unresolved.

The All England Club’s announcement on Thursday marks the largest single-year increase in the tournament’s history.

However, representatives for players from the ATP and WTA Tours highlight that this new figure still only represents 14.4 per cent of projected revenues, falling short of the 14.9 per cent allocated for prize money in 2015.

Players had advocated for an interim rise to 16 per cent, equating to £71.2 million, as a stepping stone towards their ultimate goal of 22 per cent by 2030, aligning with other major tour events.

Wimbledon organisers have countered that a 22 per cent allocation is unrealistic, citing their extensive responsibilities to invest in facilities and the broader development of the sport, unlike tour events. Despite this, a collective statement from leading players underscored their appreciation for the increase while reiterating their broader concerns.

The statement read: “Leading players from the ATP and WTA Tours welcome Wimbledon’s 2026 prize money announcement as a genuine and significant step forward — the 20 per cent increase is the largest single-year uplift in the tournament’s history and a meaningful signal of intent.

“Players want to see Wimbledon continue to thrive and support the investment the tournament makes in the game. The question has never been whether those investments are valuable, but whether the athletes whose performances drive the event’s global success should receive a fair share of its tremendous financial growth.

“Our goal is not to diminish that success, it is to ensure that its continued growth benefits equitably everyone who contributes to it.

“At the same time, players are clear that (Thursday’s) announcement, while genuinely welcomed, does not yet resolve the structural issues they have been raising with the grand slams for the past year. Progress on those issues remains outstanding.”

These include calls for grand slam tournaments to directly contribute to a player welfare fund, covering long-term health, pension, and maternity protections. They also seek a “fair and transparent revenue-sharing formula” and the establishment of a player council to “give players a meaningful voice in decisions that affect them”, matters which they say “remain outstanding and without a formal reply”.

This follows a pre-tournament protest at the French Open last month, where media activities were limited after a 9.5 per cent prize money increase, representing around 15 per cent of Roland Garros’s revenue.

Responding to the ongoing debate, All England Club chair Debbie Jevans stated on Thursday: “We have always been clear that we’re on the side of the players. Certainly we want to have a fantastic Wimbledon for them, but using revenue to determine prize money, it just makes no sense. We have said that to (players’ representative) Larry Scott.

“Revenue does not take into account the investment we have made. We are non-profit, we are very different to a Masters 1000 event and everything goes back into the sport. I am frustrated that message has not got across.”