Novak Djokovic has been overtaken by Carlos Alcaraz in the tennis wealth list. The Serbian has endured one of the toughest years of his tennis career, but he has managed to turn things around, winning his first gold medal in the Olympic Games.
Nevertheless, his lack of success in any of the Grand Slams this year has seen him be bypassed by Alcaraz. The young Spaniard earned more money than any other tennis star this year, pocketing an enormous £32m.
He overtook the Serb, who topped the financial table last year in dominant fashion earning £5.3m more than Alcaraz. While focus is paid to those with the biggest bank accounts, many may not have realised that women’s star Coco Guaff managed to take No 3 on the list ahead of the likes of Rafael Nadal and Jannik Sinner.
According to Forbes, Alcaraz ruled the roost this year by earning a staggering $42.3million (£32m). His on-court earnings were a spectacular $10.3m (£7.8m) while his off-court earnings topped up his piggy bank with a further $32m (£24.23m) – not bad for a 21-year-old.
Meanwhile, as has been the case for the majority of the year, Djokovic was second best to this year’s French Open and Wimbledon winner. While Djokovic’s on-court earnings of $12.2m (£9.24m) were slightly more than his Spanish counterpart, his off-court earnings were much less at (£18.9m), leaving him £4m short of his new rival.
Considering Alcaraz’s superior campaign to the Serbian, many may not have been surprised by these figures. Yet, tennis fans will be shocked to hear that Gauff was the third-highest earner in the sport.
The American earned a spectacular $27.1m (£20.52m) over the course of this year. Her fortune includes $7.1m (£5.38m) in on-court earnings and a further $20m (£15.14m) in off-court earnings.
Gauff has emerged as one of the most talented and marketable stars in the sport. In 2023, her stock began rising when she stamped her mark on the sport by winning the 2023 US Open.
She has 11 long-term partnerships with brands such as hair care company Carol’s Daughter, Naked Brand Juices and Fanatics, as well as with fashion collection companies such as American Eagle. This popularity also saw her serve as the USA’s flag-bearer alongside LeBron James.
Gauff is currently the World No.3 in singles and the World No.15 in doubles. Considering her recent displays and the financial might she is beginning to garner away from the court, expect her ranking to soar.
Her earnings this year saw her eclipse rivals Aryna Sabalenka, Naomi Osaka and world No 1 Iga Swiatek, who all made the top-10 list, but also top male players Nadal, Sinner, Daniil Medvedev and Casper Ruud.
After the top three, Swiatek came out in fourth with $26.7million (£20m), Sinner in fifth with $26.6million (£20m), Nadal sixth having pocketed $23.3million (£17.6m), Medvedev seventh with earnings of $20.3million (£15.3m), Osaka in eighth with $14.6million (£11m), Ruud ninth with $13.9million (£10.5m) in the bank and Sabalenka just behind in 10th with $13.7million (£10.4m).
