How much does Alex Eala really earn?

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FIERCE. The Philippines' Alexandra Eala reacts during her first round match against Czech Republic's Barbora Krejcikova in the 2025 Wimbledon Championships.

Alex Eala has earned more in the last seven months than in her last four years of playing in the pro tennis tour

MANILA, Philippines – Alex Eala was 15 years old, still four months away from turning 16, when she won her first title in the pro tour. In clinching the International Tennis Federation (ITF) W15 Manacor in Spain in 2021, Eala earned $2,352, which was around P112,000 that time.

Fast forward to the 2025 Wimbledon Championships where Eala was given an automatic spot in the women’s singles main draw by virtue of her surge in the world rankings — she got rewarded with £66,000, around P5 million, despite a first-round exit after dropping a three-setter to defending champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic.

This is the lucrative world of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) that Eala has stepped into.

According to Forbes Magazine, the top earning female athlete for 2024 was Coco Gauff, who banked an estimated $34.4 million from her winnings on the tour and endorsements. This was the second straight year that the 21-year-old American topped the list.

Seven out of the top 10 highest paid sportswomen were all tennis players, including second on the list Iga Swiatek of Poland with earnings of $23.8 million. China’s Qinwen Zheng who ranked fourth, and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus at fifth.

The world’s No. 1 female golfer, Nelly Korda of the United States, was merely eighth in the list. American superstar gymnast Simone Biles ranked 10th. Freestyle skier Eileen Gu of China was listed at third, while the biggest name in women’s basketball, Caitlyn Clark of the Indiana Fever, ranked 11th.

There are three levels of competition in the women’s pro tour, each one differentiated by the number of points and prize money offered.

The lowest level is the ITF Women’s World Tennis Tour, considered the developmental circuit where players typically start their careers. The prize money for champions in this level of competition ranges from as low as $956 for W15 events to as high as $15,000 for W100 events.

The second-tier tournaments called the WTA 125 Series, or sometimes known as Challenger events, offer $16,700 and up.

The highest level, of course, is the WTA Tour which includes the four Grand Slam events and the money-rich year-end WTA Finals exclusively for the top eight players in the world, plus the WTA 1000, WTA 500, and WTA 250 tournaments.

Eala’s previous biggest windfalls happened in two tournaments in 2024. In May, she made €30,255 (at least P2 million) for reaching the second round of the WTA 1000 Mutua Madrid Open.

Three months later, she emerged champion of the ITF W100 Vitoria-Gasteiz in Spain, in the process taking home around $15,000 (or roughly P850,000).

Then came 2025.

She kicked off her season with a semifinal finish in the WTA 125 Workday Canberra International in January. In reaching her first Challenger final four, she pocketed $9,955 (around P560,000).

After a string of early exits in her next six tournaments, she finally broke through in the WTA 1000 Miami Open. She defeated three Grand Slam champions on her way to the semifinals, her best ever finish in the WTA tour.

Not only did Eala make history as the first ever Filipino to reach the singles semifinals of a pro tour event in the Open era, she also gained $332,000 or around P19 million.

Eala followed it up with a second-round appearance in the WTA 1000 Madrid Open, which translated to earnings of €30,895 (P2.05 million).

Prior to Wimbledon, she added to her long list of records when she made the finals of the WTA 250 Eastbourne Open, making her the first Filipino to reach the singles finals in the tour. Her runner-up finish came with a cash prize of £57,369 (around P4.4 million).

The 20-year-old Eala has so far earned more in seven months in 2025 than in her four years of playing in the pro tour from 2021-2024. She has amassed $659,467 (P37.6 million) in 2025 alone, making up for more than half of her career earnings, which now total $1,117,888 (P63.7 million).

All these, however, are still gross earnings. The prize money of tennis players is taxed, the rate of which will depend on the country where the tournament is held. Wimbledon prize money is reportedly taxed as much as 40-45%. The Madrid Open earnings are said to be taxed between 19-24%.

Players also have to pay the members of their team. Compared to the established stars of the game who employ five to six people, Eala still has a lean team made up of coaches Sandro Viaene and Joan Bosch, plus fitness/medical doctor Lluc Bauza.

The cost to travel to numerous tournaments in different countries, often three to four times a month, especially with a team in tow, can also be exorbitant, eating into the earnings of the players.

WTA events typically provide free accommodations and meals for players, but the other members of the team are not covered, hence, the cost will be an out-of-pocket expense for Eala.

The top line numbers from the prize money earned may look good, but there are necessary costs in the life of a professional tennis player like Eala.

It helps that she has sponsors who can help defray her expenses. But overall, it still is a profitable venture for Eala, whose earnings will continue to grow this year especially since the season has now shifted to her favorite hardcourt surface. – Rappler.com

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