The Women’s Tennis Association has landed a blockbuster deal with Mercedes-Benz, one that could rewrite the record books for women’s sport. 

The luxury car giant is stepping in as the WTA’s premier partner, ready to pump US$50 million (£37.5m) into the tour every year for as long as a decade. Add it all up, and the partnership could soar to around half a billion dollars (£375m).

To put that in perspective, the National Women’s Soccer League struck a US$240m (£180m) media agreement in late 2023, and Nike has poured US$350m (£262m) into women’s football projects around the world. This new WTA deal sits comfortably at the top of the table.

Unveiled on Wednesday (December 10) at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Germany, the partnership will fuel the push for equal prize money, an ambition deeply rooted in the tour’s origins back in 1973. The target is equal payouts at joint men’s and women’s events by 2027, and at standalone tournaments by 2033.

The Mercedes-Benz agreement towers over the tour’s previous major deal with Hologic, which has been contributing $20m (£15m) a year. Mercedes-Benz isn’t new to tennis, either; it backed the ATP Tour from 1996 to 2008 and remains an official sponsor of the US Open.