Queen's Club Women's Prize Money Jumps 35 Percent as LTA Pledges Equal Pay by 2029

Prize money for the women’s tournament at Queen's Club will increase by 35% this year, as organisers continue efforts to bring payouts closer to the men’s competition.

The total purse for the women’s event in June will rise to $1.915 million, an increase of roughly half a million dollars compared with last season. The move is part of a longer-term commitment by the Lawn Tennis Association to achieve equal prize money between the women’s and men’s tournaments held at Queen’s by 2029 at the latest.

Even with the increase, however, a considerable difference remains. The men’s event this year will offer a prize fund worth €2.583 million, meaning organisers still have several years — and a fair amount of accounting creativity — ahead of them before the numbers finally align.

Still, the women’s tournament is now comfortably above the minimum financial requirements for a WTA 500 event. According to the LTA, it will offer the second-highest prize pool on the women’s tour this season for a tournament at that level.

The debate over equal pay in tennis has long extended beyond the Grand Slams, where prize money parity has largely become standard. Standalone men’s and women’s events often operate under very different commercial conditions, sponsorship structures and television agreements, which has historically created large discrepancies in payouts.

The Women's Tennis Association has set a target for equal prize money at major combined tournaments by 2027, while standalone events have until 2033 to close the gap.

One benchmark frequently cited is the Charleston Open in the United States, where the women’s event offered $2.5 million earlier this year — matching the minimum level for ATP 500 tournaments. That event is owned by American businessman Ben Navarro, whose daughter, Emma Navarro, reached the semi-finals of the 2024 US Open.

Interest in the revived women’s tournament at Queen’s appears strong. Organisers say more than 90% of tickets have already been sold ahead of the competition, which begins on 8 June.

Last year marked the return of women’s tennis to Queen’s Club for the first time since 1973. German player Tatjana Maria won the title in what was widely seen as a successful comeback for the event on the WTA calendar.

The increase in prize money is not limited to Queen’s. Organisers of the women’s event in Eastbourne announced a 28% rise in payouts ahead of this year’s tournament, bringing the total purse to nearly half a million dollars in the week before Wimbledon.

For British tennis officials, the growing financial investment reflects both rising demand and a broader shift in how women’s tournaments are positioned commercially. Grass-court season may still be short, but it is becoming increasingly expensive — in a good way — for organisers hoping to keep pace with the sport’s evolving expectations.