Monthly Archives: August 2021

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams, who will not play at the US Open in New York this year, topped the list of highest paid tennis players for 2021. Here’s how much the highest paid tennis stars have won in the past year.

While sports stars can make millions by winning tournaments, every athlete on Forbes’ list of the top five highest paid tennis players made more money on the court than last year. The biggest names in the sport have used their fame to land lucrative sponsorship deals and collaborations with brands such as Nike and Lacoste.

Here are the five highest-paid tennis stars in 2021 and how they made their fortune, according to Forbes.

5. Rafael Nadal

Nicknamed the “King of the Clay” for his exceptional performance when playing on clay courts, Rafael Nadal, 35, is considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time. His success has allowed him to amass an estimated net worth of $ 200 million.

The Spanish superstar, who is currently ranked No.5 in the world by the Association of Tennis Professionals, won $ 4 million in tournament prizes and $ 23 million off court last year, bringing his total winnings to $ 27 million. dollars.

4. Novak Djokovic

Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic tied Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal when he won his 20th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in July.

Currently ranked world number 1, the 34-year-old currently has an estimated net worth of $ 220 million. He has reportedly received $ 8 million in on-court winnings and $ 30 million off-court over the past 12 months, for a total of $ 38 million.

3. Serena Williams

Holding the record for most Grand Slam wins at 23 championships, tennis icon Serena Williams has amassed a staggering fortune during her career and is now worth around $ 210 million.

The 39-year-old added to her already massive wealth $ 1.8 million in field earnings and $ 40 million in out-of-court transactions, or $ 41.8 million in total.

2. Naomi Osaka

With an estimated net worth of $ 25 million, Naomi Osaka has made explosive strides in recent years to become one of the most famous and highest paid tennis players in the world at just 23 years old. Despite her third round loss at the Tokyo Olympics, she was the face of the Games’ marketing efforts.

Osaka has won $ 5.1 million from tournaments and $ 55 million from off court deals over the past year, for a total of $ 60.1 million.

1. Roger Federer

Topping the list of the world’s highest paid tennis players in 2021 is Roger Federer, whose net worth is estimated at $ 450 million.

In the past year alone, the 40-year-old tennis legend has won a total of $ 90.6 million, where on-court earnings were only $ 0.6 million and the $ 90 million came from sponsorship agreements.

Roger Federer and Serena Williams turn 40 later this year and are looking to challenge age by seeking a ninth men’s title at Wimbledon and tying Margaret Court’s women’s Grand Slam record of 24 respectively. Photo: POOL / TOM LOVELOCK

The US Open is in full swing, with the stands being filled to 100% of their capacity. Masks are optional. Fans must prove that they have received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine, while many players choose not to be vaccinated.

Ben Rothenberg, a freelance reporter covering the tournament for the New York Times, says athletes in various sports have been slow to get vaccinated. “But tennis players are on a whole new level. Only about 50% of the men and women at the US Open, in terms of players, will have been vaccinated by now, according to statistics provided by both the men’s and women’s tours.

He explains the skepticism and disinterest of tennis players: “Some of them just think they are healthy young athletes and don’t need them, and why would they take something they think of as being risky aimlessly? … Some had real reasons for being slower to get it, whether it was travel, you know, tennis players are very nomadic, going from different cities every week, from different countries. And so if… one of the vaccines requires different doses at different intervals, it can be difficult to do. “

At the same time, he points out that tournaments are increasingly offering on-site vaccines for players, but vaccination delays are a major source of frustration for sports administrators.

Positive cases have emerged among American Coco Gauff (who missed the Olympics) and Briton Johanna Konta (missed the Olympics and Wimbledon). Frenchman Gilles Simon, who is not vaccinated, had to quarantine himself for 10 days in his hotel room because his trainer tested positive.

Meanwhile, Rothenberg says Novak Djokovic has dominated the sport, having won three Grand Slams this year and beating Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros. “[There are] a lot of high expectations for him, and we’ll see how he handles the pressure in the future.

On the women’s side, 2021 Wimbledon winner Ash Barty also has a good chance of winning the US Open title, Rothenberg predicts.

“She has been very solid this year, accumulating the titles. She won the Cincinnati tournament just a few weeks ago. And so I think she’s becoming … the most reliable number one, in terms of bankable to win titles and compete week after week. … It’s a very open field, but I think Barty would be the favorite at this point.

He says that in general he looks forward to the US Open being himself again.

“It was really a shell in itself last year. And see what the crowds bring [this year] – the type of energy. … We haven’t had our first night game yet – it’s always a special scene here. And having Naomi Osaka, I think, playing in Monday’s opening session is pretty cool, especially since it’s her first Grand Slam since her problems at Roland Garros. She retired from this tournament with mental health issues and anxiety about giving press conferences. I think she will be warmly welcomed here.

Three of the sport’s aces will miss the US Open with injuries but will remain a hit with marketers, raising a top ten that has grossed $ 320 million in the past 12 months.

TThis year’s US Open will miss some of its most famous faces, including veterans Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams, as well as Dominic Thiem, 27, last year’s men’s champion. But it doesn’t matter who wins the tournament – and its top prize of $ 2.5 million – it won’t mean much to the top ranks of the highest-paid tennis players, who more than make up for any drop in prices with their. wages of endorsements.

Federer, who will miss the Open with a knee injury, reclaims first place this year with a pre-tax profit of $ 90.6 million in the past 12 months in Forbes’ count, less than a million dollars from real tennis. Naomi Osaka added to her 2021 record to claim second place with $ 60.1 million, more than 90% off the court. Williams, who is healing a hamstring tear, takes third place with $ 41.8 million, followed by Novak Djokovic with $ 38 million. Nadal completes the top five with $ 27 million, despite a foot disease that puts him out of action until 2022.

Collectively, the ten highest-paid players in tennis have earned $ 320 million in the past 12 months, down 6% from last year’s total of $ 340 million, in large part because of the pandemic eliminated opportunities for players to collect both cash prizes and appearance fees, which can run into the millions for superstars eager to show up at smaller shows and tournaments. The slowdown was eased off the pitch, where all ten players earned $ 281 million, a 4% increase from last year despite cutting spending from many brands as Covid-19 took a rough turn. testing their budgets.

It’s a luxury that not everyone has in sports. Tennis players basically work as independent entrepreneurs, without a paycheck – neither a team or a league – to get them through tough times. And the pain caused by event cancellations over the past 18 months goes beyond the missed prizes. With the exception of a few of the biggest stars, including Federer and Williams, tennis player sponsorship deals typically include discounts if they don’t meet minimum playing requirements.

This difficult reality has led the United States Tennis Association to change the distribution of prize money at the US Open this year to help lower ranked players who may be in trouble. As the total prize pool hits a record $ 57.5 million, the payout for each singles champion has been reduced to $ 2.5 million, down 17% from last year and by 35% from 2019. Meanwhile, players who lose in the first round will take home $ 75,000, up from $ 61,000 last year, and second-round losers will receive a raise of $ 15,000, to $ 115,000.

The change comes at an important time of transition for the sport, with some of its brightest stars nearing retirement. While Djokovic remains dominant, with three Grand Slam titles already in 2021, Federer, 40, has only played five events since February 2020 and recently said on Instagram that he would need surgery and be missing ” many months, ”suggesting that he might never return to competitive tennis. Williams turns 40 next month and Nadal, 35, has played a total of 14 events in the past two years, down from 2019 alone. This year’s Open is the first Grand Slam event without any of the three in the singles main draw since 1997, as tennis writer Ben Rothenberg noted on Twitter.

The competition will remain lively off the court, however, as tennis mainstays join forces with Andy Murray to build their businesses. Murray, 34, once considered one of the Big Four of men’s tennis, alongside Djokovic, Federer and Nadal, has spent the last few years compiling equity deals off the pitch, despite being largely sidelined by injuries.

Here are the ten highest-paid tennis players for 2021 as the US Open main draw begins today.

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic tied Roger Federer’s record with 20 Grand Slam singles titles, but Federer remains the unanimous GOAT with the sponsors, having raised nearly $ 900 million in the field throughout his career to accompany its $ 131 million in prize money. He became the sixth active athlete to achieve $ 1 billion in career income (before taxes and agent fees) this year. And a big payday is yet to come: Federer owns a stake in Swiss running shoe company On, which is about to go public. It’s no surprise, then, that Federer is the highest-paid tennis player in tennis for the sixteenth consecutive year.

Naomi Osaka withdrew from this year’s French Open and skipped Wimbledon, citing her sanity, but sponsors like Nike have backed her, and she continues to add partners to a portfolio of sponsors that includes over 20, the latest being Panasonic. The 23-year-old, who suffered a disappointing third round loss at the Tokyo Olympics but has been one of the faces of marketing efforts around the Games, has also been the model for a Barbie doll who’s is sold a few hours after its release this summer.

Serena Williams has been unable to improve her Open Era record of 23 Grand Slam singles titles since winning the 2017 Australian Open, and she sits at No.22 in the standings, with another drop ready to come at the end of the US Open. But she, like Roger Federer, remains a safe bet with sponsors, with nearly 20 partners, and she now ranks among the richest self-made women in America. Its Serena Ventures fund has invested in 66 startups.

Novak Djokovic’s loss in the Olympic semi-final ended his bid for the first Golden Slam in men’s tennis history, but he remains on track for his first Grand Slam of a calendar year since Rod Laver accomplished the feat in 1969. A victory at the Open, of course, would also have pushed the 34-year-old ahead of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to own the record for men’s Grand Slam singles titles with 21. Djokovic a added partnerships with Raiffeisen Bank, Lemero Printer Cartridges, and Hublot Watches this year, and its total prize money would be even higher if it weren’t for its flaw at the year’s US Open last for inadvertently hitting a linesman with a tennis ball; the disqualification meant he lost every $ 250,000 he would have earned to make it to the fourth round.

Rafael Nadal is taking time off work as he manages a rare condition known as Müller-Weiss disease, or Müller-Weiss syndrome, in which a bone along the arch of the foot begins to deteriorate. He hopes to return to the field in 2022, and if his health and the Covid-19 situation permits, he may once again seek to order $ 1 million per appearance at exhibitions and small events. Its list of sponsors includes Nike, Babolat, Richard Mille and, new for 2021, Amstel.

Even though he has fallen to 56th place in the table, Kei Nishikori retains his place among the highest paid tennis players due to the lucrative sponsorship deals he signed ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, as Japanese sponsors sidelined. expected it to be one of the main draws of the Games. . The 31-year-old has more than a dozen partners, but the question now is what happens when some of those deals expire in the next year or so.

A spectacular three-year streak has carried Daniil Medvedev to number 2 in the table, but he remains in search of his first Grand Slam title. Exclude the 25-year-old in New York: he finished second at the US Open in 2019 and reached the Australian Open final in February, where he lost to Novak Djokovic. Success on the pitch is paying off with lucrative approval deal renegotiations, and a first major win could push it even higher next year. Its partners include Lacoste, Bovet watches and Tinkoff Bank, and it announced a deal with gaming equipment company HyperX last week.

A wrist injury suffered at the Mallorca Open in June has derailed Dominic Thiem’s ​​momentum since winning the US Open last year to break through the Djokovic-Nadal-Federer gauntlet and become the sole player male currently in his twenties with a Grand Slam singles title. Thiem, 27, counts Adidas, Babolat and Red Bull among his partners and has new agreements with Technogym and NEOH chocolate bars.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has jumped to No.3 in the table from No.6 last year, is the only new member to the highest-paid list, toppling Simona Halep. The 23-year-old, who first reached a Grand Slam final in June at Roland Garros, is associated with brands like Wilson, Adidas and Rolex and has a captivating personality which industry experts say , could catapult him ahead of Daniil Medvedev and Dominic Thiem in the long-term marketing hierarchy. Yet he recently created minor controversy when he expressed his reluctance to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

After a career year in 2019 with $ 11.3 million in prize money – the second highest total on the WTA Tour ever – Ashleigh Barty has only played four events in 2020, taking an extended hiatus amid the pandemic and keeping its No.1 ranking only because the tour temporarily adjusted its point system. She came back strong in 2021, with five singles titles, including Wimbledon, and a solid prize of $ 3.8 million, the best score in women’s tennis this year. Yet while all Grand Slam tournaments offer equal prizes for men and women – the US Open lined up its awards in 1973, and Wimbledon became the last of four majors to do so in 2007 – the victory de Barty this month at the Western & Southern Open outside Cincinnati once again reminded us that a gender pay gap persists. The 25-year-old won $ 255,220 for her title; Meanwhile, men’s champion Alexander Zverev raised $ 654,815.

Methodology

Field earnings figures reflect cash prizes collected over the past 12 months, dating back to the 2020 US Open. Off-field revenue estimates reflect revenue from endorsements, appearances, licenses and memorabilia , as well as cash returns from all businesses operated by the player. Forbes does not include investment income such as interest payments or dividends and does not deduct taxes or agent fees.

Forbes Featured Stories

MORE FORBESThe Ultimate Guide to Covid-19 Travel Restrictions: Masks, Tests, Vaccination Warrants, and MoreThrough Suzanne Rowan Kelleher
MORE FORBESDo you have crates of milk? Why people do # stupid and dangerous viral challengesThrough Katie jennings
MORE FORBESChelsea Manning is back and hacker again, this time only for a Bitcoin-based privacy startupThrough Michel del Castillo
MORE FORBESLeBron James net worth revealed – and, spoiler, he’s not a billionaireThrough Dawn Chmielewski
MORE FORBESData in the dark: How Big Tech secretly secured $ 800 million in data center tax breaksThrough Jean David

See more featured stories

Andy Murray believes the large number of unvaccinated players in tennis locker rooms is becoming an increasingly serious problem – and one that could threaten the health of the communities they pass through.

Murray himself has been vaccinated and also has first-hand experience of the severity of the virus, having contracted Covid himself earlier this year. He expects the separation between vaxxers and anti-vaxxers to intensify at the upcoming Australian Open in January, where the two sides will likely be treated in different ways.

“I can see this is going to become a problem over the next few months,” said Murray, who is set to face third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas at the US Open on Monday.

“Conversations regarding the Australian Open are already taking place. Players who have been vaccinated are going to have very different conditions from players who are not vaccinated.

“Much of the tour is unvaccinated,” Murray added. “They [Tennis Australia] are going to allow players who have been vaccinated to practice and move freely between the hotel, without potentially having to quarantine themselves and things like that.

This is not just a selfishly pragmatic question. As Murray pointed out, “The reason we all get vaccinated is to watch out for the general public. We have a responsibility, as players who travel the world, to look after everyone as well. “

Those close to the tour believe that no more than half of the players have now been vaccinated, despite tennis authorities’ best efforts to encourage a higher turnout, and also to make jabs available at tournaments. Tsitsipas recently expressed a widely held opinion when he said that “the vaccine has not been sufficiently tested, it is new, it has side effects”, before adding that he did not think it was. important that young people receive the vaccine. .

Britain’s No.1 Johanna Konta – who missed both Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics due to a contract with Covid – again said yesterday that she had not had the vaccine, but refused to ” explain the reasons for their decision.

Over the next fortnight, the US Open will require spectators to show proof of vaccination, which only underscores the fact that players and those around them don’t have to.

“It’s going to take a lot of pretty long and difficult conversations with the circuit and all the players involved to try to find a solution,” Murray said on Saturday. “Even here in New York you have the situation with the gyms and everything, you have to be vaccinated. Eating in restaurants and the like must obviously be vaccinated.

“I feel like I’m living a pretty normal life, whereas for players who haven’t, it’s different. I’m sure they’ll be frustrated by this. I am happy to be vaccinated. Hopefully more players will choose to have it in the coming months.

The US Open will have new additions as the US Tennis Association (USTA) places more emphasis on player mental health.

The last major tennis tournament of the year will provide mental health care providers for tennis players as well as ‘quiet rooms’.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

“The medical services program for the 2021 tournament will include licensed mental health providers, giving players access to mental health services for the duration of the event,” USTA said in a statement. In addition, quiet rooms and other support services will be provided. The US Open will work closely with WTA and ATP scientific and medical staff on site to ensure that players understand the enhanced medical services available and how to access those health offerings when needed. ”

The focus comes after Naomi Osaka dropped out of the French Open when she received criticism for avoiding press availability. She opened up about her bouts of depression and stayed away from the sport until last month when she appeared at the Olympics for Japan.

SERENA WILLIAMS WITHDRAWALS FROM US OPENING OVER DEVASTING INJURY

“The USTA and US Open are always looking for ways to work in conjunction with other Grand Slam events, ATP, WTA and ITF to provide the highest level of support to our competition.” USTA CEO and Executive Director Mike Dowse said in a statement. “We recognize that ensuring the mental health of players is an area that needed to be addressed, and we are taking formative steps to empower athletes to compete at the highest level.”

USTA Executive Director Stacey Allaster added: “The issue of mental health awareness has come to the fore during the global pandemic as many people, gamers included, have struggled with stress. and emotions resulting from COVID. -19.

“In addition to the multidimensional pressures within professional sport, this new reality has highlighted the need to provide additional resources to support all aspects of athlete health, including their mental health and well-being. We look forward to seeing how the initiatives implemented at the tournament, and in the months to come, will impact player well-being, and continue to look for ways to improve and adapt as We move forward.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The US Open is scheduled to start on August 30. Players like Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Sofia Kenin have all dropped out of the tournament.

By Terry Boehmker
sports journalist NKyTribune

St. Henry High School graduate Emmy Kaiser is one of three American wheelchair tennis players scheduled to compete in the Paralympic Games which kick off Tuesday in Tokyo.

This is the third time that Kaiser, 31, has qualified for the World Games for Athletes with Disabilities which take place after the Olympics. She played in singles and doubles at the London 2012 Paralympic Games and the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Games.

According to the Paralympic Games online media, Kaiser’s first singles match this week will be against China’s Jimlian Huang, but the date and time have not been set. Kaiser is not listed in the double parenthesis.

Born with spina bifida, Kaiser began playing wheelchair tennis as a child. She began participating in the international wheelchair tour in 2004 and was a member of the USA team for the World Cup from 2009 to 2016.

In the last International Tennis Foundation World rankings, Kaiser finished 27th in singles and 28th in doubles based on points awarded in wheelchair matches this year.

Kaiser won a gold in doubles and a silver in singles at the 2011 Parapan Am Games in Mexico. A year later, she qualified for the round of 16 in singles and doubles at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. At the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, she qualified for the round of 16 in singles and lost her first match in doubles.

After graduating from Thomas More College in 2011, Kaiser earned a master’s degree in sports and exercise psychology from Ball State University in Indiana. She coaches wheelchair and able-bodied tennis players at the Blue Ash Recreation Center in Ohio and with the Cincinnati Tennis Foundation. She also worked as a substitute teacher at St. Henry.

The USTA said in a statement that tennis players will benefit from a “comprehensive medical services program” at the Flushing Meadows complex, which will include access to mental health professionals and “quiet rooms.”

“Raising awareness of the issue of mental health has become a priority in the context of the global pandemic, with so many people, including gamers, suffering from their emotions, due to Covid-19,” said the US Open Director Stacey Allister.

Japanese world number 2 Naomi Osaka spoke about the importance of the subject in May, when she gave up her Roland Garros tournament after making her debut. She declined to participate in post-match press conferences, saying she felt the pressure. The organization threatened her with a fine and eventually Osaka gave up continuing the competition. Shortly after, it was revealed that the tennis player had suffered from depression for years. The organization of Roland Garros said, after the episode, that it could have done better concerning the mental health of the athletes. Naomi Osaka will play the US Open.

At the Tokyo Olympics, American gymnast Simone Biles withdrew from some tests, saying she was focusing on her mental health.

USTA vice president and professor of neuroscience at Indiana University and New York University Brian Heinlein said he hopes the program being implemented at the US Open will increase l ‘access to mental health support.