Tennis: It’s All About The Money
Tennis is often called the “royal” sport since for many centuries it remained a game of the “elite”. The first professional tennis match took place in 1926, it was organized by the American entrepreneur Charles Pyle, he also signed the first contract in the history of tennis for $ 75,000 with the French tennis player Suzanne Lenglen.
Billionaires choose tennis
The status of tennis as one of the most prestigious sports is confirmed by the presence of closed elite clubs, such as, for example, the California “La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club”. The complex is owned by American billionaire Peter Kellogg and generates more than $ 51 million in revenue annually.
Tennis fans include many members of the Forbes list, such as the founder of the Virgin Group, Richard Branson. The billionaire loves tennis so much that he decided to buy out an entire island in the Caribbean and build a players’ paradise there.
His choice fell on the island of Necker, which was bought by Branson in 1979 for $ 180,000. Now there are several tennis courts and a hotel, investments in the infrastructure of the island amounted to about $ 30 million. The owner prefers to rent the entire island: paying $ 78,000 per day , you can bring a company of up to 30 people with you or order a 4-day training program with the world’s best tennis coaches.
Charity tennis tournaments are regularly held on the island, the participation fee for which is $ 150,000. The billionaire himself does not earn from the competitions, all funds are sent to charity funds, for example, $ 3 million received during the tournament, in 2016 were sent to the National Tennis Fund helping children from disadvantaged families play tennis.
Ranked tennis players’ earnings
But what determines the income of a modern tennis player? If you calculate the average earnings of 80% of tennis players, you will find that most of them rarely make a profit. In this sport, inequality is the order of the day, since the bulk of the income comes from prize money, and it is almost always taken by top-rated players. Athletes with ratings ranging from top 200 to top 2000 earn almost nothing.
Australian Open director Craig Tiley points out the dramatic gap in prize tiers across tournaments: “From 1980 to 2011, Grand Slam prize money increased by 1,095 percent. At the ATP tournaments — by 216 percent. For Challengers and Futures, this figure was only 15 percent. “
At the same time, out of 128 players who are selected for Grand Slam tournaments, the winners alone take about 18% of the prize pool. Those who failed to advance beyond the first round of the base receive just 0.3%. Of course, this does not include additional sponsorship deals, which almost all ranked players can boast. Of course, those tennis players who managed to demonstrate certain successes at the junior level can count on a successful start in their adult careers. However, they are not immune to risks either. And yet, those who start from scratch have very little chance of achieving anything serious on the court. The only thing that spurs such guys is the hope for successful performances in the future.
How do professional tennis players make a living?
Unlike some other popular sports, tennis does not have multi-year contracts. This is not a team sport, so there are no guaranteed payments to players. A professional tennis player earns money by playing exhibition matches and participating in tournaments of various categories, as well as receiving royalties from sponsors (if any). The current level of an athlete’s well-being depends primarily on his position in the ranking, as well as the success he has managed to achieve over a certain period. The earnings of tennis players are largely determined by their class.
Those at the top of the ranking take most of the prize money, so the difference between the top and the rest can seem shocking. So, from June 2017 to June 2018, the main tennis stars earned 77.2 million USD, and 65 million were paid only within the framework of sponsorship agreements. Thus, only the players of the first hundred of the world ranking can fully support themselves by performing in tournaments. So, if the Masters prize fund can be several million dollars, then small tournaments (for example, Futures) often offer the winner a check within 15 thousand.
Despite the high earnings of athletes, participation in tournaments is associated with large expenses. According to the 127th racket of the world, Nicole Gibbs, the annual expenses of a professional athlete exceed $ 200,000, while income directly depends on success in tournaments and averages about $ 2.5 million.
Most of the tennis players’ income comes from sponsor contracts: of the $ 64 million Roger Federer earned in 2016, $ 58 million came from advertising contracts.
Tennis is attractive to advertisers, as a paying audience is fond of this sport, and the season with the participation of an athlete lasts all year round. However, you can only count on cooperation with corporate tournament partners such as Nike or Rolex if the athlete is in the top 150 best players in the world. For most young tennis players, the only opportunity to go in for professional sports is the support of private sponsors.
Young tennis players take a conscious risk in choosing a career as a professional athlete. This is partly due to the high cost of equipment, as well as constant flights. It is not for nothing that tennis players are compared to gamblers: on the one hand, beginner players are attracted by high earnings, but talent and perseverance alone are not enough to significantly increase their bank account. You need luck.
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