Wimbledon prize money rises amid Brexit fallout

The Wimbledon tennis tournament’s prize pool rose to another new high this year, though Brexit’s downward pressure on the pound continues to weigh on the purse when compared to the sport’s other major tournaments.

Players at this year’s tournament, which runs from July 2 to July 15, are competing for a total prize pool of 34 million pounds, or roughly $44.7 million. The winners of the men’s and women’s singles tournaments, the flagship portion of Wimbledon, will each earn 2.25 million pounds, $2.95 million.

The 2018 purse is up more than 7% compared to last year’s Wimbledon tournament, where players competed for 31.6 million pounds. However, Britain’s 2016 exit from the European Union in a decision known as “Brexit” erased 12% off that year’s pool in terms of U.S. dollars, according to Reuters. The pound has remained under pressure ever since.

“The value of sterling has always been one of the factors we take into account when setting prize money and this year is no different,” the All England Lawn Tennis Club said in a statement to Reuters. “We feel this year’s offering reflects our competitive positioning.”

All England Club chairman Philip Brook said last year that exchange rates are “taken into account” by Wimbledon organizers as they set the final prize pool.

Wimbledon will likely rank third among tennis’ four major tournament in terms of payouts, behind the U.S. Open, which is expected to award prizes in excess of $50 million, and the French Open, which earlier this year boasted a prize pool worth nearly $46 million.