Carlos Alcaraz takes over Federer’s highest-paid tennis participant mantle with $42.3m earnings in 2024

Novak Djokovic has all the trophies in tennis, but a few things have also evaded him. With Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal present, he was never the most loved or famous player. Unfortunately for his fans, despite Federer retiring and Nadal almost reaching the end of his career, Djokovic is still not the one on top. He’s still met with boos from time to time, and despite having won the most prize money for any player in tennis history, he’s just found himself as the highest-paid tennis player in a year just once.

First Federer, now Alcaraz

That was last year after Federer retired a year prior at the Laver Cup in 2022. He’s been dethroned by a new nemesis, Carlos Alcaraz. The 21-year-old prodigy has taken tennis by storm, already surpassing Sir Andy Murray’s Grand Slam tally. Federer held the title of being the highest-paid tennis player from 2007 to 2022. Two weeks before Federer retired, Alcaraz won his first slam at Flushing Meadows. It was as if the tennis gods were saying, we’re taking one great from you and handing you the next.

Alcaraz has lived up to those expectations. Just 6 years into his career, the 4-time grand slam champion is outearning Djokovic, who started a year after Alcaraz was born. The numbers are for 2023, when the Serb won three out of the four slams while Alcaraz won the other one. The 24-time grand slam champions raked in $2 million more than the young Spaniard in prize money but got themselves $7 million more in off-the-court earnings.

Highest-paid tennis players in 2024