Sport

Net gains: Wimbledon must increase prize pot due to weak pound

All England club set to reveal steep rise in prize money following Brexit vote

Serena Williams won £2 million for winning Wimbledon last summer. Photograph: Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images

Alice Ross
Mon May 1 2017 - 17:40

Wimbledon will announce a steep rise in prize money for this year’s tennis champions as the tournament seeks to counter the pound’s fall in value against the dollar following the Brexit vote, reports suggest.

In 2016, champions Andy Murray and Serena Williams each took home £2 million, from a total pot of £28 million. This was a 6.4 per cent rise on 2015's prize money. But this year the increase could be significantly larger as the All England Club aims to compensate for the falling pound, according to reports in the Times of London.

The amounts are expected to be announced on Wednesday, and prize money would have to be £2.25 million to maintain its dollar value compared to previous years.

Last year’s tournament took place weeks after the referendum’s shock result, which sent the pound tumbling against the dollar. By the time Andy Murray lifted the trophy on Centre Court on July 10th, £1 was worth $1.29, down from $1.48 on June 23rd – before the referendum’s result was announced. This means his £2 million prize was worth $2.6 million – $380,000 less than it would have been on the eve of the referendum.

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The pound is currently at its post-referendum level again.

The All England Club would have to announce a significant increase to match the US Open, which in 2016 gave $3.5 million (currently £2.7 million) apiece to its singles champions. This year the Australian Open offered $3.7 million Australian dollars ($2.8 million US), which at current sterling values (£2.2 million) would push Wimbledon’s top prizes into third place among the Grand Slam rankings. The French Open’s top prize is €2.1 million (£1.8 million).

In 2017 both the Australian and French Opens made significant increases in their total prize pots, with the Melbourne tournament announcing a 14 per cent rise, with much of the increase going to those bumped out in early rounds, and the Paris tournament’s fund rising by 12 per cent.

Nobody from the All England Club was available to confirm the reports to the Guardian on Monday morning.

A spokeswoman for Wimbledon told the Times of London: “The All England Lawn Tennis Club always takes into account the business and economic context of tennis worldwide, including any currency fluctuations, when determining prize money for each year’s championships.”

(Guardian service)

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