ATP Proposes US$350 Million Player Pay Overhaul for 2028

Men's tennis has put a very big number on the table.

In an open letter published on 15 October, ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi proposed raising total player pay outside the Grand Slams to around US$350 million (roughly A$508 million) a year from 2028, in the most sweeping financial and structural reset the tour has floated in years.

Nothing is locked in yet.

The proposals remain subject to consultation, with the aim of bringing a final package to the ATP's year-end meetings in Turin next month, and they land in a season when the crowded calendar has dominated the conversation and players are also pursuing an antitrust case against the tours in the US.

ATP 2028 Player Pay: Where the Money Goes

The ATP's own central investment in players would rise to more than US$100 million a year, about A$145 million, on top of on-site prize money and tournament profit-sharing, and it would be split three ways.

The biggest piece is the ATP Bonus Pool, which pays players for committing to the tour's top events and would more than double from US$21.5 million to US$50 million, or around A$73 million.

That money is aimed squarely at the elite, a group that includes Alex de Minaur, a fixture of the top 10 this season. A further US$25 million would go to year-end career support for players finishing inside the top 250, and that arguably matters more.

Below the top 100, careers are often a financial tightrope strung between flights, hotels and physio bills, which is exactly where a number of Australian players spend their seasons, moving between tour-level events and the Challenger circuit.

The third strand is a bigger pension. The ATP already funds a plan covering 300 players, and the proposal would set the annual contribution at roughly US$30 million.

Saudi Masters 1000 and a Reshaped ATP Calendar

The overhaul also lines up with Saudi Arabia's new Masters 1000 event, already announced for 2028, which will be the first addition to that top-tier series since it began in 1990.

Saudi money has already made its mark on the sport through the Six Kings Slam, the lucrative exhibition that has drawn the game's biggest names.

Around it, the calendar would be grouped into dedicated weeks for each tournament category, making seasons easier for players to plan, with fewer ATP 250 events overall.

The letter doesn't say which 250s would go, a detail Australian fans will watch closely given that Brisbane and Adelaide, two key lead-ins to the Australian Open, are both ATP 250 events.

ATP Rankings Overhaul 2028: What Changes

The rankings would also be reweighted so that results at the biggest events count for more across a season, easing the pressure to cram in extra tournaments after a poor week just to chase or defend points.

The first of three guiding principles Gaudenzi set out in the letter is that "rewards should follow where fans engage most", although no point values have been released yet. 

The Grand Slams, the Australian Open included, sit outside the package entirely, so none of this changes what is on offer at Melbourne Park.

Whether the blueprint becomes the shape of the tour from 2028 now rests on the discussions in Turin next month.

If you are wondering how much Australian Open winners earn by comparison, that prize pool sits apart from any of this.

With Melbourne Park still the summer's main event for Australian fans, it is worth keeping an eye on the early men's markets if you are planning to bet on the Australian Open.