Sports have always fascinated people worldwide, acting as both a source of pleasure and a strong economic engine. In terms of economics, tennis is recognised as one of the world’s richest sports. It has long been linked with money and luxury. Dating back to its early days as a hobby for European aristocrats in the nineteenth century. This stunning racquet has seen significant evolution throughout the years.
Some were well-accepted by the public, while others drew criticism. Speaking of suffering backlash, recently Aussie star Nick Kyrgios sought advice from the PTPA after seeing a horrific statistic about tennis. Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil, a Canadian tennis star, co-founded the PTPA in 2021. Its fundamental objective is to raise player voices, advocate for player health and well-being, and create on- and off-court opportunities.
It promotes an equitable and sustainable competitive tennis environment. The second tenet of the PTPA Principles is primarily concerned with securing players’ fair share of the tennis industry and terms of participation via seven major channels. A recent Instagram post highlighted the difference in income sharing among major sports. The English Premier League and Bundesliga generated the most money (61% and 53%, respectively) for their players.
Kyrgios’s bold call to the PTPA
The NBA (50%), NHL (50%), NFL (47%), and MLB (47%) were closely followed. With the AFL (28%) and men’s golf (22.6%) ranking lower. According to Principle 2a: Shared Success, tennis players have the right to a fair part of the economic activity and wealth that tennis has generated, which is supported by fair and just compensation and working conditions. Even though tennis players are at the heart of the sport.
They only receive 17.5% of their revenue in prize money. According to the PTPA, all players should receive a fair part of the wealth that they contribute to the sport. Nick Kyrgios said, “Tennis is a sport where you pay for everything, you subsidize for your coaches, travel, your parents, your physios, whereas most sports, it’s all subsidized by the governing body.”
