About 20 top-ranked male and female tennis players limited their pre-French Open media commitments to 15 minutes on May 22 and May 23, 2026, in a coordinated protest over Grand Slam prize money allocations [1, 2, 3]. The 15-minute limit symbolizes the roughly 15% share of total Grand Slam revenue currently allocated to prize money, which the players deem insufficient [1, 4, 5].
Players are demanding an increase to 22% of Grand Slam revenue allocated to prize money by 2030, reflecting rising tournament revenues [1, 6, 7, 2, 5]. They also seek greater influence over Grand Slam scheduling and governance, and improved player welfare provisions including healthcare, maternity leave, and pensions [1, 8, 2, 3].
The French Open total prize money increased by 9.5% this year to about €61.7 million, with winners set to receive €2.8 million [1, 5]. Despite the increase, players say the share of overall revenue going to them remains low. About 20 players participated in the media restriction, though not all top players took part. Novak Djokovic did not join the media time limit but expressed his support for the players’ demands [4, 8].
Tensions have risen after months of player criticism over organizers’ lack of dialogue and unsatisfactory revenue sharing. Andrey Rublev noted, "When you try to communicate for so many years… they don't hear you. They don't answer. When you send the mail in, no one responds to official mail for months" [8]. Taylor Fritz said, "It's about just wanting what's fair. As the tournaments make more money, we obviously want to see the revenue shared back to the players reflect that" [8]. Aryna Sabalenka warned, "At some point, we will have to boycott if that's the only solution to defend our rights" [7].
The French Tennis Federation (FFT) condemned the media limits but pledged direct talks with player representatives [1, 6, 7, 2, 3]. On May 22, 2026, FFT officials including tournament director Amelie Mauresmo met player representatives in what was described as a constructive and transparent discussion. Mauresmo said, "We regret this decision but I’m confident about the discussions that will happen and that we will move forward together" [2, 3, 9, 7].
Meetings with other Grand Slam organizers, including Wimbledon and the US Open, are planned during the Roland Garros fortnight. No meeting with the Australian Open is scheduled yet [1, 2, 3]. The next major prize money announcement is expected from Wimbledon around May 28, 2026, when players aim to apply further pressure during the French Open [1, 5].
