The WTA Tour’s financial outlook is likely to remain a major talking point as 2027 approaches, with reports raising questions about how the organisation will sustain itself in the years ahead.

According to a report in England’s Daily Telegraph, the WTA may face operating losses after its agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund ends. That deal had been lucrative, but its expiration has already led to the WTA Finals moving from the Arab kingdom to America.

The tour’s budget has also been stretched by higher prize money and television deals that are believed to be less valuable than those secured by the men’s ATP Tour. Even so, women’s tennis remains in a strong commercial position, helped by several of the biggest names in sport.

Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka and Alex Eala are drawing major global attention, and Gauff has been ranked by Forbes as the highest-paid female sports star in the world over the past two years. The numbers underline that strength. Four of the five highest-paid athletes in the world compete on the WTA Tour, with Gauff said to have earned an estimated $33million from prize money and sponsorship in 2025, while Sabalenka is reported to have earned $30million over the same period.

Six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek is estimated to have earned $25.1million last year, and Eala is expected to move into that level soon after her rise as the new standout figure in women’s tennis this year.

The financial questions may prompt renewed discussion about whether the women’s and men’s tours should work more closely together. Ideas about a merger have surfaced many times, but they have repeatedly failed to progress.

Former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski believes a solution will be found that keeps women’s tennis sustainable.

“If you look at the highest paid female athletes in the world, there’s usually two or three tennis players on the list,” said Rusedski, in an episode of his Off Court podcast that will be released on Monday.

“The WTA will find sponsors, but they have to find the right brands and right partners and they have a lot of upsides.

“Eala has been huge for them. Every time she plays, it’s sold out. Sabalenka is a great character, Elena Rybakina the new world No 1.

“They have to find a way to push it forward and get the right sponsors in.

“Combining the two tours? It has been spoken in the about in the past, but it never becomes a reality.

“Everyone needs to sit in a room together and work out how this can be financially viable. If you combine the men’s and women’s game, you might be able to increase revenue for both.

“It’s all about personality and names. If Eala played every match, the WTA could charge big money, but it can’t work like that.”

The issue is set to keep running through 2027, with the hope throughout tennis that the women’s game stays financially secure while the on-court product continues to thrive.

Alex Eala’s first win at the US Open marked a defining step in the rise of one of the WTA Tour’s most watchable young players.

On a lively Grandstand court, the 2022 US Open junior girls’ singles champion and world No 70 became the first Filipina to appear in the women’s singles draw at Flushing Meadows. She did it in dramatic fashion, recovering from a double break down in the third set to beat No 14 seed Clara Tauson and set off scenes of celebration.

That result underlined Eala’s growing appeal, although her campaign was stopped in the next round by Cristina Bucsa. Any thought that she might immediately push deep into the second week disappeared with that defeat, but the broader picture has still changed sharply.

A year ago, Eala was still very much a player in development, with her education under coach Joan Bosch at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca only in its early stages. Now, she has reached the third round at the US Open for the first time, and the difference is obvious.

The biggest gains have come in her serve. It was a clear weakness only months ago, especially for a player of her size and build, but she has added pace and improved her placement. Her second serve now carries more threat in key moments, and rivals who used to expose that part of her game are having a harder time doing so.

Her backhand has also become more complete. Already a lively shot, it now comes with more variation and sharper angles, making it particularly effective on return. Top players have been pushed onto the defensive quickly, while lower-ranked opponents have also struggled to absorb the pace from both wings.

In her second-round win over Oleksandra Oliynykova, Eala showed further signs of maturity by stepping inside the court and taking the ball early. That approach neutralised a looping tactic designed to disrupt her rhythm.

“What I think she has improved on is adding pace to her game,” declared former British No 1 Laura Robson on Sky Sports.

“She has always been able to take the ball early, but I think especially on the forehand side she is ripping it more than ever and it’s made the biggest difference on the faster surfaces. It’s a bit more lively, and she gets a bit more purchase on it.”

Eala is still at an early point in her career, and there is more to add. Even so, she already has enough tools to trouble the best players in the game, and her progress has made her one of the more compelling stories of the tournament.

The NCAA has agreed to a proposed $2.02 million federal class-action settlement that removes prior limits on prize money for athletes before college enrollment. The settlement, led by co-plaintiffs Reese Brantmeier and Maya Joint, will allow athletes in all sports to accept prize earnings without the previous restrictions that once capped tennis players at retaining $10,000.

Brantmeier first filed an antitrust claim in 2024 after losing most of the $48,913 she earned at the 2021 US Open and missing the 2022 fall season when the NCAA questioned certain expenses she submitted from that tournament. Joint likewise lost most of the $147,000 she earned from a second-round showing at the 2024 US Open ahead of entering the University of Texas. The plaintiffs say Joint followed protocols and later turned professional in December.

The settlement was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. It contains injunctive relief that the plaintiffs say will benefit future generations of student-athletes across all sports by striking down restrictive prize-money rules that applied prior to enrollment.

“The proposed settlement is an extraordinary outcome for the Classes and the injunctive relief obtained will positively impact future generations of student-athletes,” the plaintiffs declared in a brief.

For college tennis specifically, the change ends a longstanding barrier for players navigating the transition from junior and professional circuits into collegiate competition. The agreement represents a notable revision to NCAA policy that affects how incoming student-athletes may manage earnings earned before they become enrolled.