French Open pay protest to include interview refusals

The world’s top tennis stars reportedly will voice their displeasure with the French Open prize pool by remaining silent.

Players selected to participate in Friday’s opening press conferences at Roland Garros in Paris will walk out after 15 minutes to protest the 15% average allocation of revenues toward the prize money at the Grand Slams, newspapers L’Equipe and The Guardian reported Wednesday.

Other players in the ATP and WTA draws will refuse to conduct additional interviews with the French Open’s primary media partners, TNT Sports and Eurosport, per the reports.

The French Open announced last month that the prize pool was increasing about 10% this year to $72.1 million.

World No. 1 players Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner and others expressed their disappointment on May 4, arguing that the percentage of total revenue at Roland Garros had declined from 15.5% in 2024 to 14.9% in 2026.

“With estimated revenues of over 400 million euros for this year’s tournament, prize money as a percentage of revenue will likely still be less than 15%, far short of the 22% that players have requested to bring the Grand Slams into line with the ATP and WTA Combined 1000 events,” the players said.

Players are also seeking better representation, health options and pensions from the four Grand Slam events.

–Field Level Media