ATP’s $33.5M Bonus Pool Breakthrough: A New Era Of Profit Sharing In Tennis

ATP has announced an unprecedented additional $12.2 million Bonus Pool distribution to players, generated through a new 50-50 profit-sharing formula on the ATP Tour. The game-changing initiative, which aligns the financial interests of players and tournaments, raises the total ATP Bonus Pool to a record $33.5 million for 2023.

The profit-sharing formula is a central pillar of ATP’s OneVision strategy, first conceptualised in 2020 with the election of Andrea Gaudenzi as chairman. The $12.2 million distribution, announced today, represents players’ share of the profits generated across the ATP Masters 1000 events in 2022. It will be distributed to players who participated at the ATP Masters 1000s, based on performance, in addition to on-site prize money already earned at those events.

Under the new formula, the nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments undergo three separate financial audits each season. For the first time ever, this provides player auditors with full visibility on the economics of the Tour’s biggest events – building unprecedented trust and transparency. Collective profits generated by the tournaments above on-site prize money are then shared equally, on a 50-50 basis, with the players. This is aimed at aligning interests and giving both parties a shared stake in the sport’s success.

Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP Chairman, said: “It’s hard to overstate what a seismic shift this represents for the business of tennis. It means greater trust and transparency between players and tournaments, and aligned incentives, for the first time ever. The fact we’re able to distribute $12.2 million to players already in year one is a huge success. This is just the start, and we aim to continue expanding this figure as we grow the economics of the sport in parallel with the expansion of our top tier events. I would like to thank the ATP Board, councils, and members for their trust and support in reaching this landmark moment for tennis.”

Following a record increase of $37.5 million in player compensation from 2022 to 2023, the additional $12.2 million announced today means ATP’s OneVision strategy has delivered an uplift of approximately $50 million in player compensation this year.

This strong financial growth and introduction of the profit-sharing formula are directly linked to the expansion of the ATP Tour’s premium event calendar, with seven of the nine ATP Masters 1000 events set to take place as 12-day events from 2025. Governance, Rights Aggregation and Category Terms round out the reforms introduced under OneVision’s ambitious first phase.

Steps have also been taken to expand the profit-sharing formula to other levels of the Tour. ATP 500 events have adopted the same financial auditing requirements in 2023, in anticipation that the formula will kick in as the events’ financial performance allows.

For more information on the mechanics and details of the ATP Tour’s landmark profit-sharing formula initiative, please refer to our Q&A document here.