Wimbledon 2025 crowned new champions in spectacular fashion—Jannik Sinner clinched his maiden Wimbledon men’s title by defeating Carlos Alcaraz in a gripping four-set final, while Iga Swiatek steamrolled Amanda Anisimova with a flawless 6-0, 6-0 win to seize her first crown at the All England Club. Both stars were awarded $4 million in prize money each. But there’s a financial twist behind the triumph: a significant chunk of those winnings won’t end up in their bank accounts.
The hidden slice of taxation
While the $4 million headline prize sounds monumental, taxation laws in the United Kingdom will see a large portion shaved off before it even touches the winners' hands. According to top international tax consultants, Wimbledon prize money is subject to complex tax layers, including a 20% withholding tax and additional UK income taxes that can climb up to 45%, depending on deductions and endorsements involved during the tournament.
Sean Packard, Tax Director at OFS Wealth, explained that after all standard deductions and tax calculations, players can expect an effective tax rate of approximately 36.52%. That figure slashes the $4 million prize down to around $2.5 million—a significant drop for both Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner.
Iga Swiatek’s Polish tax adds another blow
While Sinner avoids further taxation due to his residency in Monaco—a country famously known for not levying personal income tax—Swiatek isn’t as lucky. As a Polish citizen, she will likely owe an additional 4% tax to her home country, cutting another $162,000 from her net prize. That would reduce her take-home amount to just under $2.4 million.
Jannik Sinner’s Monaco advantage
Jannik Sinner, on the other hand, benefits from Monaco’s tax-free regime. Though he must pay UK taxes on his Wimbledon earnings, he will not face any additional taxation in Italy or elsewhere due to his official residency in the principality. This allows him to retain the maximum possible portion of his prize—about $2.5 million—after British deductions.
This tax-free residency advantage is why many elite athletes—tennis stars like Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev, Holger Rune, and Stefanos Tsitsipas, and F1 drivers like Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc—choose to call Monaco home.
Record prize pool, reduced rewards
Despite Wimbledon offering a record $72.2 million total prize pool this year—a 7% increase from 2024—many players will walk away with significantly less than advertised. Runners-up like Amanda Anisimova and Carlos Alcaraz, who earned $2 million each, may take home just around $1.2 million after similar tax deductions.
A perfect win, a not-so-perfect payout
Iga Swiatek’s stunning 57-minute demolition of Anisimova will go down in history as the most dominant women’s final in the Open Era, marking the first “double bagel” Grand Slam final since 1968. Meanwhile, Jannik Sinner’s victory over Alcaraz solidified his growing legacy with a fourth Grand Slam title. But even in glory, the fine print of prize money taxation serves as a reminder that not all that glitters is gold—at least, not after the IRS and HMRC take their share.