According to Bloomberg, tennis represents 1.3% of the worth of worldwide sports activities tv rights. A derisory share for a sport that’s however considered one of the hottest on the planet, which tends to annoy the gamers of the skilled circuit.
Some, together with world #1 Novak Djokovic, have subsequently organized themselves to form the Professional Tennis Players Association in August (PTPA), which brings collectively gamers pissed off by the financial administration of sport.
This affiliation is considered with a dim view by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the group supposed to signify, as its identify suggests, skilled gamers. But the construction is exclusive in that it’s made up of gamers and organizers equally: the PTPA subsequently goals to develop into the first union made up completely of the former.
His foremost grievance considerations the remuneration of the gamers. The PTPA considers that the ATP favors in sharing the cake the organizers of the tournaments, who’ve the means and political weight, to the detriment of the gamers.
This weak point in the system is much more noticeable for gamers who are usually not a part of the high 50. Because if the stars win fortunes in partnerships and sponsorship contracts, the all-comer should be glad with the “Prize money”, the majority of which works to the winners. Now this “Prize money” is taken into account largely inadequate – and, furthermore, tends to lower.
For decrease rating gamers, particularly ladies, these meager earnings are typically barely sufficient to cowl journey prices, and never sufficient to earn a dwelling from sport.
Divided trade
The downside for the discontented is that the tennis trade, which generates some 1.95 billion euros annually, is unstructured. 60% of this windfall comes from Grand Slam tournaments, and every is organized independently by nationwide federations, and even by a personal membership in the case of Wimbledon.
TV rights, “Prize money”, group of matches, so every part is negotiated individually and the trade is split into dozens of entities and sub-entities which make the state of affairs chaotic.
Especially since the gamers nearly systematically balk at making frequent trigger with the gamers (no lady amongst the founders of the PTPA). “Nobody trusts nobody, summarizes Etienne de Villier, ATP president from 2005 to 2008. It’s a real mess.“
For some, a extra unified group would make it attainable to negotiate extra successfully internally, but in addition permit tennis to occupy a way more vital place in the media.
The new ATP president, Andrea Gaudenzi, is getting ready a plan to annex the “Prize money” on rising event income and aggregating Grand Slam tv rights.
The plan was however delayed by the pandemic, and nobody is saying that will probably be sufficient to stifle the organizational tendencies of disenchanted gamers.
