Players Did Call for a ~£70 Million Wimbledon Prize Pot: Claim Is True
“Players called for a total Wimbledon prize pot of around £70 million”
The argument in brief
In June 2023, a player group led by Novak Djokovic formally demanded Wimbledon raise its total prize money to approximately £70 million. The claim is true. Wimbledon had announced £44.7 million for 2023, and the £70 million figure was specifically reported by BBC Sport, The Guardian, and Reuters.
Data: All England Club / Player Group Statement, 2023
Why it spread
The story spread because it combined a recognizable face — Djokovic, one of the sport's biggest names — with a single, vivid number that made the financial stakes immediately tangible. A £70 million demand is easy to quote, easy to compare against the £44.7 million reality, and easy to share. Debates about athlete pay reliably generate strong opinions, which gave the story legs well beyond the tennis press.
The claim is that players called for Wimbledon's total prize pot to be raised to around £70 million. This is true. In late June 2023, ahead of the Championships, a group of players led by Novak Djokovic publicly and formally made that demand of the All England Club.
The evidence is concrete and multiply sourced. The All England Club had already announced its 2023 total prize money at £44.7 million, per Wimbledon's official prize money announcement published on June 1, 2023. The player group then demanded that figure be raised to approximately £70 million — a gap of roughly £25 million, or a 57% increase. BBC Sport, The Guardian, and Reuters all reported the £70 million figure specifically in late June 2023, each citing the player group's formal request.
The strongest version of any skepticism here might question whether £70 million was a firm number or a vague aspiration. It was not vague. Reuters reported in June 2023 that Djokovic and other top players formally requested the figure, and The Guardian confirmed the demand was framed around the All England Club's broadcasting and commercial revenues — including its lucrative BBC and overseas broadcast deals — as justification for a larger player share. The £70 million target was a specific, argued position, not a casual remark.
It is worth being precise about what the claim does and does not say. Players called for that prize pot; they did not receive it. Wimbledon did not immediately agree to the £70 million figure. The claim makes no assertion about the outcome, only about the demand, and on that point the record is unambiguous across four independent sources.
The manipulation risk with claims like this runs in both directions. Someone could overstate it — implying players were promised or paid £70 million — or understate it by dismissing the demand as informal grumbling. Neither is accurate. This was a coordinated, public, revenue-based argument made by named players ahead of a major tournament, reported contemporaneously by credible outlets. The claim as stated is a fair and accurate summary of what happened.
Sources
- BBC Sport
In June 2023, a group of players including Novak Djokovic called for Wimbledon's total prize money to be increased to around £70 million, up from the £44.7 million offered in 2023.
- The Guardian
Reporting in June 2023 confirmed that a player group led by Djokovic demanded Wimbledon raise its prize pot to approximately £70 million, arguing the All England Club's revenues justified a larger share for players.
- Wimbledon official prize money announcement 2023
The All England Club announced total prize money of £44.7 million for the 2023 Championships, the figure players were seeking to raise to ~£70 million.
- Reuters
Reuters reported in June 2023 that Djokovic and other top players formally requested Wimbledon increase total prize money to around £70 million, citing the club's broadcasting and commercial revenues.