RIYADH, November 8, 2025 (WTA Media Release)
Champion Elena Rybakina won the the biggest prize money payout in women’s sporting history today following her spectacular championship run at the WTA Finals Riyadh presented by PIF.
After going undefeated across her five matches at the tournament — posting a perfect 3-0 record in the group stage, a semifinal victory over Jessica Pegula and now a stunning win in today’s title match over PIF WTA World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, Rybakina has landed an unprecedented $5.235m. This landmark amount of prize money is also a record across both the men’s and women’s professional tennis Tours.
CHAMPION in Riyadh!
Elena Rybakina captures the WTA Finals title, defeating Sabalenka 6-3, 7-6(0) #WTAFinalsRiyadh pic.twitter.com/jYP48SWTBh
— wta (@WTA) November 8, 2025
“Today was such a tough battle,” Rybakina said in her post-match speech. “It was an amazing atmosphere to play here. I’m enjoying it the second year in a row, and it’s really amazing to be here.”
Today also saw No. 4 seeds Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens crowned doubles champions at the 2025 WTA Finals, which was their second title at the prestigious season-ending tournament following their triumph together in 2022.
It was Rybakina’s third appearance at the WTA Finals and she defeated Sabalenka 6-3 7-6(0) in a pulsating championship match to lift the Billie Jean King Trophy for the first time in her career, in doing so becoming the first player from Kazakhstan to win the WTA Finals in either singles or doubles.
Kudermetova and Mertens were presented with the Martina Navratilova Doubles Trophy following their defeat of Timea Babos and Luisa Stefani in the final, and walk away with $1.067m.
Off the court, the second edition of the WTA Finals Riyadh saw the continued development of tennis throughout the year in the region across several aspects of the game. This included the Champions of Tomorrow presented by PIF program which provided inspirational and educational experiences to young women tennis players, the first WTA Coaches Conference in Riyadh which also saw the launch of the first Middle East Coach Inclusion initiative, a continued partnership with Special Olympics and numerous WTA Legends returning to the tennis family to take part in clinics and fan engagement opportunities.
Women’s tennis once again served as a driver for positive change through WTA Foundation’s ACEing Cancer presented by Hologic campaign, turning every ace served during the tournament into a powerful form of giving. In total $200k was raised during the WTA Finals Riyadh, with the funds being used to support women’s cancer research, prevention and treatment. The WTA Foundation also held a women’s leadership panel series, numerous community tennis clinics and staged the second WTA Foundation Women’s Health Summit.
Portia Archer, WTA CEO, said: “The second edition of the WTA Finals Riyadh presented by PIF has delivered exceptional tennis and intense competition from the world’s greatest players. Congratulations to Elena Rybakina for her first WTA Finals singles title, our new doubles champions Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens, and all the athletes who contributed to the premier event of our season. We are once again grateful to our Saudi hosts and partners for their warm hospitality and support in staging a world-class event for players and fans.
“After the success of last year’s event, we returned to continue building the event and growing the sport of tennis in this country and the wider region. It has been great to see 20 percent growth in attendance across the week, including sell-out crowds for the last two days and I know that our players have appreciated the vocal fan engagement and support.
“An important part of our presence here is the opportunity to use the WTA platform to have a positive impact at the community level and inspire more people to get involved in tennis. Women’s participation in tennis across Saudi Arabia has grown by 24 percent in the 12 months since the first edition of the WTA Finals Riyadh, and we continue to deliver community programs with the Saudi Tennis Federation, including support for women in the workforce through training 100 school PE teachers and a series of workshops for nearly 25 coaches. We’re committed to continuing this work and growing our impact as we look forward to the third edition of the WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia next year.”
