Tennis Australia announces $10m prizemoney pool increase for Australian Open

Tennis Australia has boosted the prize pool for the Australian Open grand slam tournament to a historic AU$86.5 million, a substantial AU$10 million increase.

The pool marks a remarkable 13 percent increase from the 2023 total, with a particular emphasis on elevating earnings for players eliminated in the early rounds of the upcoming tournament scheduled from January 14 to 28 at Melbourne Park.

For players reaching the first round of qualifiers, the winnings have risen to AU$31,250 from last year’s AU$26,000, while those entering the main draw but exiting in the first round will now receive AU$120,000. Quarter-finalists will be awarded AU$600,000, semi-finalists AU$990,000, runners-up AU$1.725 million and the champions a substantial AU$3.15 million – AU$175,000 more than the 2023 winners, Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka.

Tournament director Craig Tiley emphasised the importance of appropriately compensating the world’s best players.

“It is critical to the continued success of the Australian Open that we ensure that the best players in the world are compensated appropriately, as we know this allows players to invest in their own careers and in many cases helps set them up for success throughout the year,” Tiley said.

“We want to ensure Australia remains the launch pad for the global tennis season and the players and their teams have everything they need to help them perform at their best.”

Despite the impressive increase, the overall prizemoney for the AO has more than doubled since 2015 but is still AU$1 million less than the pre-pandemic 2020 edition, won by Djokovic and Sofia Kenin.

Comparatively, the US Open led the pack in 2023 with a prize purse of $65 million, while Wimbledon offered £44.6 million and the French Open had a total prize pool of €49.6 million.

This announcement follows Australian public-service broadcaster ABC securing domestic audio rights to the AO, providing live and ad-free coverage via the ABC local radio network and ABC Listen digital platform. Nine Network will handle live domestic television rights through 2025, following a long-term renewal with Tennis Australia in the previous year.

The AO in 2023 set a grand slam attendance record with 902,312 visitors to Melbourne Park over three weeks. Tournament director Craig Tiley expressed aspirations of attracting one million attendees in the future by extending the festivities leading up to the tournament.