Wimbledon respond to ATP as Djokovic, Nadal and co battle for record amount of prize money

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Wimbledon has announced that they will be handing out a record total prize money fund of £40,350,000 at The Championships this year. It means the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal can win £2,000,000 by lifting the title. The announcement comes after the ATP confirmed they would be removing all ranking points on offer at the tournament to deter players from competing in response to the All England Club’s ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes.

Wimbledon announced their record prize money pot on Thursday, with the tournament now just 18 days away. The £40.35 million up 11.1 per cent on last year’s overall prize money and 5.4 per cent on the money offered in 2019 – the last time the event was held in pre-pandemic conditions.

The men’s and women’s singles champions will receive a £2,000,000 prize money cheque – a hefty incentive despite the lack of 2,000 ranking points on offer for the winners this year. It means the likes of Djokovic could boost his overall career prize money record with a win. And the All England Club has also ensured more money has been invested into earlier rounds to support lower-ranked players.

The qualifying prize fund is up 26 per cent on 2021 and 48.1 per cent on 2019, with £11,000 awarded for the first round of qualifying, £19,000 for the second round and £32,000 for the final round. The record prize money pot also includes the doubles and wheelchair competitions.

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Both the wheelchair and quad wheelchair events will see a 19.8 per cent increase from 2021 and a 40.1 per cent increase from 2019. The men’s and women’s doubles prize pot has been boosted by 9.6 per cent from last year, while the mixed doubles competition receives a 17.4 per cent rise.

The record prize money pot will likely incentivise players to compete at The Championships this year, despite the “exhibition” feel of the tournament without any ranking points on offer. Following the prize money announcement, AELTC Chairman Ian Hewitt said: “From the first round of the Qualifying Competition to the Champions being crowned, this year’s prize money distribution aims to reflect just how important the players are to The Championships as we look to continue to deliver one of the world’s leading sporting events. and with a particularly special tournament ahead of us as we celebrate 100 years of Centre Court on Church Road.” 

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The ATP had slammed the All England Club for banning Russian and Belarusian players in response to the war in Ukraine, saying:  “The ability for players of any nationality to enter tournaments based on merit, and without discrimination, is fundamental to our Tour.

“The decision by Wimbledon to ban Russian and Belarusian players from competing in the UK this summer undermines this principle and the integrity of the ATP Ranking system. It is also inconsistent with our Rankings agreement. Absent a change in circumstances, it is with great regret and reluctance that we see no option but to remove ATP Ranking points from Wimbledon for 2022.”

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