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Tennis Players Dominate 2025 World Highest-Paid Female Athlete List

Four of the five world's highest-paid female athletes in 2025 are tennis players.
Pat Benson|
Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka top the list of world's highest-paid female athletes.
Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka top the list of world's highest-paid female athletes. | IMAGO / Newspix

It is almost the end of another year, which means it is time for one of our favorite traditions: poring over Sportico's list of the highest-paid female athletes of 2025.

For the third consecutive year, Coco Gauff remains the top-paid athlete with $31 million. Additionally, tennis players dominated the list. Four of the top five and ten out of the top 15 earners were tennis players.

However, there were major shakeups. Most notably, our wish for Aryna Sabalenka to get paid more has come true. Sabalenka soared from fifth to a close second, making $30 million.

2025 Highest-Paid Female Athletes

Sabalenka leaped over Iga Swiatek and Qinwen Zheng, both of whom made less money in tournament prize money this year. Skiing legend Eileen Gu remains the only non-tennis player in the top five, but slid from second to fourth.

As Sportico pointed out in its reporting, tennis remains the only major professional sport where women's pay is comparable to that of their male counterparts. While the WTA Tour still trails the ATP at many tournaments, prize money is the same at the Grand Slams and Masters 1000 events.

Additionally, women are doing better with sponsorships. Six women earned at least $10 million off the court, compared to four active men at $10 million-plus.

Changes From 2024 List

There were other notable shakeups in this year's list. Elena Rybakina and Madison Keys made major gains, while Naomi Osaka tumbled in the rankings. Emma Raducanu and Jasmine Paolini fell off the list altogether.

Of course, Raducanu has lost key sponsorships over the past year. In April, it was reported that Raducanu lost Vodafone as a sponsor after "demanding too much money." The top-ranked British star lost Porsche the previous year.

Sportico provided plenty of data for business-minded tennis fans to scour for insights. But the main takeaway is that female athletes continue to make great strides from a financial perspective.

The 2026 ATP and WTA seasons will be here in less a month. Stay locked into Sports Illustrated's Serve On SI for all of your tennis news from the court and beyond.

More Tennis News

Preparation for the 2026 season starts soon for Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek.

Interview: Nick Kyrgios reflects on his 2025 season and looks ahead to 2026.

Emma Raducanu is not sympathetic to players complaining about the WTA Tour schedule.

Novak Djokovic wants to "reconstruct" his body this off-season.

Ranking the 25 most iconic kits of the 2025 season.

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Pat Benson
PAT BENSON

Pat Benson covers professional tennis for Serve on Sports Illustrated, reporting on ATP and WTA events worldwide. From Challenger tournaments to Grand Slams, he brings readers in-depth coverage, daily recaps, and exclusive interviews with some of the biggest names in the sport. With a decade of experience in sports journalism, Pat is recognized as a trusted voice in tennis media. You can contact him at 1989patbenson@gmail.com.

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