The World’s Five Highest-Paid Tennis Players 2024

Forbes

Novak Djokovic got his Olympic gold, but he isn’t number one among the top 10 players, who collectively earned $246 million over the last 12 months.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brettknight/2024/08/23/the-worlds-highest-paid-tennis-players-2024/  Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00Tennis' 10 highest-paid players earned an estimated $246 million over the last 12 months.

00:08That is well off the record of $343 million from 2020, when the now-retired Roger Federer

00:13and Serena Williams accounted for $142 million between them.

00:18But the total represents a 26% increase from 2023's $196 million.

00:24No one is yet approaching the financial stratosphere of Federer, who was the sport's top earner

00:29from 2007 until his retirement in 2022, and was still collecting an estimated $90 million

00:35annually when he hung up his racket.

00:37But in a promising sign for the state of the game, the average age of this year's top

00:4210 is 26, with only Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in their 30s.

00:47And four women are among the top 10, down slightly from 5 in 2023.

00:52But another reminder that tennis is the only major professional sport in which male and

00:56female athletes are on comparable financial footing.

00:59Here are the five highest-earning tennis players of 2024.

01:03At number five, Yannick Sinner.

01:06Sinner's rollercoaster year took a dip this month when it was revealed he tested positive

01:10for a banned steroid in March and had to forfeit the prize money and ranking points he had

01:15earned at the Indian Wells Tournament.

01:17But the International Tennis Integrity Agency found that the low levels in his system were

01:22the result of contamination, and he was not forced to miss any time on tour.

01:27Among his happier moments this year, his victory at the Australian Open in January was the

01:31first Grand Slam title for an Italian man in 48 years.

01:35He launched himself to number one in the singles rankings in June, and he won the Cincinnati

01:39Open in August.

01:41Off the court, he picked up endorsements with skincare line La Roche-Posay and DiCicco Pasta

01:45alongside existing sponsors like Gucci, Lavazza Coffee, and Rolex.

01:52At number four, Iga Svjantic.

01:55After prevailing at the French Open for a fourth time in June, Svjantic nabbed a bronze

01:59medal at the Paris Olympics, securing a $50,000 bonus from her native Poland on top of nearly

02:05$11.7 million in prize money over the last 12 months.

02:10Only Novak Djokovic tops that figure, and by less than $300,000.

02:14No small feat, considering that the prize money available to women still lags behind

02:19the men's at some tournaments beyond the four majors.

02:22Svjantic stays busy off the court, too, signing partner deals this year with Lego and Lancôme.

02:28At number three, Coco Gauff.

02:30Gauff's major breakthrough in singles at the 2023 US Open and her follow-up in doubles

02:36at this year's French Open gave marketers one more reason to chase the young American

02:40star.

02:41Gauff now has 11 long-term partnerships with hair care line Carol's Daughter, naked brand

02:46Juices and Fanatics, the most recent additions, and she's behind a new fashion collective

02:51with American Eagle.

02:53At the Paris Olympics opening ceremony in July, she served as Team USA's flag bearer

02:58alongside LeBron James, and she will be appearing on a limited edition box of Wheaties.

03:04At number two, Novak Djokovic.

03:07Djokovic was the ATP Tour's year-end number one player for an unprecedented eighth season

03:12in 2023 and became the oldest number one in the history of the Tour's computerized

03:17singles rankings in April.

03:19He ended up extending his record for most weeks at number one to 428 and then filled

03:23in the lone hole in his singular resume with an Olympic gold medal in Paris, an accomplishment

03:28that also earned him a $218,000 bonus from his native Serbia.

03:33Djokovic maintains a lucrative endorsement portfolio that includes Asics, Hublot, and

03:38Lacoste.

03:39With his sponsor Waterdrop, he recently launched a line of electrolyte hydration cubes called

03:43Sela.

03:44And at number one, Carlos Alcaraz.

03:47Alcaraz captured an Olympic silver medal in singles and won the French Open and Wimbledon

03:51this year.

03:52Now, third in the world's rankings, he's the betting favorite at the US Open, which he

03:57previously won in 2022 and which would give him five major titles at age 21.

04:03Off the court, Alcaraz earns an estimated $32 million, coming from his endorsements

04:07as well as his jam-packed schedule of appearances and exhibitions that are believed to pay him

04:12$1 million or even $2 million just for showing up.

04:16And Netflix plans to release a docuseries about him next year.

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