Google News Patrick Mouratoglou mentions Roger Federer's proposal as way to end gender pay gap
by DZEVAD MESIC | VIEW 2853
Coach Patrick Mouratoglou says he would like to see WTA players being paid the same as ATP players but also explained why it is not still happening in tennis. At the Grand Slams, WTA players are being paid the same as their male colleagues.
But outside those four Grand Slam events, it's a completely different story in the way ATP and WTA players are being paid. In 2020 April, Roger Federer said "maybe now is really the time" to merge the ATP and WTA. Now, Mouratoglou says merging the ATP and WTA could lead to equal pay in tennis.
Mouratoglou explains the gender pay gap in tennis
"I think we all would like men and women to be paid the same. The thing that people need to understand is that you have two entities – you have the ATP and you have the WTA.
ATP makes a certain amount in terms of business and WTA makes a certain amount. The amount the ATP makes is much much much bigger than the amount the WTA makes. The TV rights sometimes it’s on the same event it’s ten times more for men than for women; ten times more.
Even if the WTA would want to pay women player the same amount as ATP would pay men player I don’t think they would be able to do it. They can’t afford it. To consider that women should be paid the same percentage as men makes sense.
And this would be an equal way to treat both. We can also say that it was in the plans to merge ATP and WTA. It would become possible to pay men and women the same amount and until they are merged I don’t think it will be possible because just WTA doesn’t have enough money to pay women as much as men," Mouratoglou said, per Sportskeeda.
In a recent interview, WTA CEO Steve Simon confirmed the WTA is working on bridging the gender pay gap. But the issue is that the WTA still isn't getting the same money opportunities as the ATP does.