Explained: Women's tennis attempts at equal prize money with restructuring

Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), the governing body for ladies tennis, announced on Tuesday (27 June) that it was revising its calendar with an aim of achieving equal prize money with the men. At the core of this restructuring is to ensure equal prize money between the ATP and WTA tours. At the moment, the four Grand Slams pay the men and women equally but the disparity exists at the rest of the tournaments. Even if a tournament promises equal prize money for the winners, it may not be same for the rest of the field or the bonuses vary. The gap between the two tours has widened significantly since the coronavirus pandemic. At the recent Italian Open in Rome, an event that is played at the same time for ATP and WTA, the men’s tournament had a total purse of $8,637,966 (roughly £6.75m) while the women’s tournament was $3,572,618 (roughly £2.75m). What is the restructure in WTA calendar? WTA says the increase in prize money will happen over time to ensure the changes are sustainable for players and tournaments in the long term. WTA 1000 events (tournaments with 1000 ranking points for winner and the highest level) will attain equal prize money by 2027 and single-week WTA 1000 and WTA 500 tournaments by 2033. The new revised WTA calendar will also see the number of WTA 1000 events increase from nine to 10 and majority of those will be played across two weeks. Four new WTA 500 tournaments will also be introduced into the calendar, with tournaments in Monterrey, Seoul and Strasbourg getting an upgrade. This will take the count of WTA 500 tournaments to 17 (Abu Dhabi, Adelaide, Berlin, Brisbane, Charleston, Eastbourne, Monterrey, San Diego, Seoul, Strasbourg, Stuttgart, Tokyo, United Cup, Washington, Zhengzhou and two yet-to-be-named events). Meanwhile, at the WTA 250 level, tournaments will have a stronger regional focus to aid players of tomorrow. And at the lowest level, WTA 125, tournaments will be expanded to 40 in number. Where’s the money coming from? WTA has formed a new partnership with CVC Capital Partners, a private equity firm that bought a 20% stake in the women’s tennis organisation for $150 million. Additionally, WTA have ended their boycott of tournaments in China . The 16-month boycott of events in China, that started in solidarity with Peng Shuai, came at a cost for the women’s tennis tour. China has represented a large share of the WTA’s revenue in the last 10 years and the organisation has suffered deep financial losses since Chinese tournaments were initially cancelled due to Covid-19 in 2020. As an example of China’s mammoth offering, the 2019 WTA Finals in Shenzhen had $4.7 million on offer for the winner. It was more than the US Open that year. Year-on-year it was a jump from $7 million to $14 million in total kitty. How has this been received? “Every generation contributes to preserving the future of their sport, striving to leave it in a better state for the next. I take pride in being a part of this evolution and fully support the WTA’s commitment to progress,” said WTA Players Council member Sloane Stephens. “This game-changing moment for the WTA Tour will align both tournament and player interests and help current and future generations of female tennis players,” WTA Players Council member Donna Vekic said. “We are incredibly proud to be part of these developments and the legacy it will have on equal prize money.” What is the new look of the WTA after restructuring? WTA 1000 tournaments: Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Rome, Beijing, Toronto/Montreal, Cincinnati, Doha, Dubai, one more to be disclosed. WTA 500 tournaments: Abu Dhabi, Adelaide, Berlin, Brisbane, Charleston, Eastbourne, Monterrey, San Diego, Seoul, Strasbourg, Stuttgart, Tokyo, United Cup, Washington, Zhengzhou, and two yet to be named events. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News ,  India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.