ROME — Top Rank’s Aryna Sabalenka believes tennis players should organize a boycott if they don’t start receiving a bigger share of tournament revenues at Grand Slam tournaments, and Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina, Jasmine Paolini and others are also prepared to protest.
Sabalenka and fellow world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, who is among the favorites, most of whom are ranked in the top 10, issued a statement on Monday expressing his “deep disappointment” with the prize money at Roland Garros.
“If it wasn’t for us, we wouldn’t have the tournament, we wouldn’t have that entertainment. We definitely feel like we should receive a higher percentage,” four-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka said at the Italian Open on Tuesday.
Sabalenka added on her 28th birthday: “I think one day I will boycott. I think that will be the only way to fight for our rights.”
Players are also demanding better representation rights, health options and pensions at the four Grand Slam tournaments: Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
French Open organizers announced last month that the total prize money would be increased by about 10% to a total pot of 61.7 million euros (about $72.1 million), a total of 5.3 million euros more than last year. But a statement from the players said “the underlying numbers tell a completely different story” and insisted they would receive a smaller percentage of the tournament’s revenue.
The players claim their share of Roland Garros’ revenue has fallen from 15.5% in 2024 to an expected 14.9% in 2026.
Gauff, the defending French Open champion, cited the groundbreaking new WNBA collective bargaining agreement reached in March as an example of the benefits of working together.
“From what I’ve seen in other sports, it usually takes unity to make great strides in something like this,” Gauff said. “We have to unionize somehow. … We can definitely do more as a collective.”
“If we all come together and work together, then yes, I agree 100%,” Gauff said of the boycott. But she added that she had not heard any discussion of a strike.
“I think there’s definitely a consensus that this issue needs to be addressed for all players at all levels, especially the lower ranked players,” Gauff added. “I want to leave this sport in better shape than I did during my playing days. If I can say I did my part when I retire, that will make me proud.”
Rybakina, a two-time Grand Slam champion who won this year’s Australian Open, will also follow in the footsteps of others.
“If the majority says we are boycotting, we are not playing, then of course I agree with that,” Rybakina said. “It’s not just about the Grand Slams, it’s not just about increasing the prize money. A lot of people don’t realize that there’s a lot of tax. Even if the prize money goes up even more, it’s all going into taxes.”
Paolini, an Italian player who reached the finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2024, also believed in the boycott option.
“If we all agree, and we think we do – men and women are united now – then that’s something we can do,” Paolini said.
Paolini added that the WTA Tour and ATP Tour, which organizes all other tournaments, are more committed than the Grand Slams to providing players with benefits such as maternity leave and retirement plans.
“There are a lot of things that the slam tournaments aren’t doing,” Paolini said. “The WTA and I think the ATP are doing it.”
Four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek said: “The most important thing is to have proper communication and discussions with the governing body and to have the space to discuss and perhaps negotiate.”
“I hope that this kind of meeting will take place before Roland Garros, but we will see how it goes,” Swiatek added. “But boycotting the tournament is a bit of an extreme situation.”
According to a statement from the players, Roland Garros generated revenue of 395 million euros in 2025, an increase of 14% year-on-year, but prize money increased by only 5.4% and the players’ share of revenue decreased to 14.3%.
“Estimated revenue for this year’s tournament is more than €400 million, but prize money as a percentage of revenue is likely to still be less than 15%, far short of the 22% demanded by the players for the Grand Slam to be held in conjunction with the ATP and WTA Combined 1000 events,” the players said.
French Open organizers did not respond to requests for comment after the players issued their statements.
Player pay at this year’s Australian Open was increased by 16%, and prize money at last year’s US Open was increased by 20%.
The French Open starts on May 24th, with singles winners receiving 2.8 million euros each and runners-up 1.4 million euros. The prize money for the semi-finalists is 750,000 euros and decreases from there, with the first round losers receiving 87,000 euros.
