Cori “Coco” Gauff needs no introduction at this point, but we’ll give one to you anyway since it’s so freakin’ iconic. Growing up, the professional athlete became interested in tennis after she saw Serena Williams win the 2009 Australian Open on television. Coco then picked up the sport at the tender age of six while people like me were out here picking our random knee scabs, and she relocated to Delray Beach, Florida with her parents to train under coach Gerard Loglo, according to Celebrity Net Worth. By the time she was 10, Coco began training at the Mouratoglou Academy in France under Patrick Mouratoglou, who just so happened to be the longtime coach of Serena in a truly Full Circle Moment™️.
It didn’t take long before Coco won the USTA Clay Court National 12-and-under title at 10 years old, making her the youngest winner in that tournament’s history. Coco then catapulted to international stardom at the age of 15 (!) after she won against Venus Williams at the 2019 Wimbledon tournament. Later that year, she also won her first WTA singles title at the Linz Open, making her the youngest person to win a WTA singles title since 2004. Since then, the tennis pro has continued to make major strides in the sport, which has no doubt resulted in equally major $$. Let’s get into it, shall we?
Coco’s Tennis Earnings Can Best Be Summed Up as: 📈 📈 📈
Before we get into how much moneyCoco makes from playing dominating her sport, let’s get into some quick facts:
Cool-cool-cool, so now that that‘s out of the way, let’s get to the money! Going into the 2019 Wimbledon tournament, Coco’s total career earnings were $75,000, according to Celebrity Net Worth. But after her amazing win (and a subsequent one right after), she “guaranteed herself at least $140,000,” according to the outlet.
Her earnings have only gone up from there, since she has been—to put it mildly—kicking serious ass during her competitions. Like, as of July 2023, the 19-year-old sits at fourth in the doubles rankings and seventh on the singles side of things. And if you wanna know her all-time, career-high rankings, that would be number 4 in singles and number 1 in doubles. Currently, Coco’s WTA profile notes she’s won $7,409,006 in her career, with over $1.8 million of that being earned in 2023 alone. Damn.
Both Her Endorsements and Acting Portfolio Are *Chef’s Kiss*
Getting your first real paycheck is kind of a canon event. And while most of us were out here making our first couple of bucks working at our local Aéropostale (I wasn’t offered the job, so can’t relate) or babysitting, Coco did things a bit differently.
The athlete recalled the story ahead of the 2022 U.S. Open, when she was asked about the first time she met Serena Williams: “I first met Serena, she definitely doesn’t know this, I think I was nine or ten years old,” Coco recalled, according to WTA. “They needed a stunt double to play a young version of her, just the neck down. I think it was for a Delta commercial.”
After shooting, the Georgia native passed by Serena’s trailer and scored a picture with the renowned athlete in a truly iconic move—but that’s not all she left with. “I don’t think they ever used [the commercial], but that was the first check I ever got as a kid,” Coco revealed before adding, “[Serena] doesn’t know this, but the first money I ever made for myself was because of her doing a commercial.”
As though this memory isn’t 🥺 enough, it’s incredible that Serena was not only responsible for Coco’s first paycheck, but she’s also one of the main reasons she decided to pursue her career in the first place.
“I grew up watching her,” Coco confessed during an interview. “I mean that’s the reason why I play tennis. Tennis being a predominantly white sport, [watching Serena] definitely helped a lot. Because I saw somebody who looked like me dominating the game. It made me believe that I could dominate, too,” she added.
To say the athlete has been dominating throughout her career is a massive understatement—so much so that other brands have taken note. In 2014, Coco signed her first contract with New Balance. Fast-forward to October 2022, and she inked a “long-term extension” with the Boston-based brand, according to Forbes. To celebrate the official signing, the brand launched a new colorway of Coco’s signature Coco CG1 tennis shoes dubbed “All in the Family.”
“I couldn’t ask for a more committed team that is forward-thinking in their approach and match my love for the game with their passion for quality and creativity,” Coco gushed about the project. “New Balance has supported me since my junior tennis years and has been by my side for the biggest moments of my career. The team feels like family, so it was an easy decision to extend with a team that has embraced me as a person and genuinely works to help bring out my best.”
In March 2019, the athlete also signed a multi-year contract with pasta company Barilla, which also just so happens to sponsor Roger Federer. “Passion, dedication and fair play are values that inspire Barilla’s way of working. They are also fundamental qualities that we also look for in a sports personality,” said Vice Chairman of the Barilla Group Luca Barilla at the time. “We extend our warm welcome to Cori, an emerging star of American tennis, and we hope that she will be able to continue to interpret this spirit in the best possible way.”
Honestly? If you would have told me that becoming a professional tennis player might net me a decent supply of free pasta, I would have never begged my mom to quit my lessons. 😭 Hindsight = 20/20.
Aside from New Balance and Barilla, Coco also has a deal with racquet maker Head and even teamed up with Microsoft to refresh a computer lab and build two additional ones at Delray Beach’s Achievement Centers for Children & Families.
“Maybe this can give a kid the opportunity to find their own passions,” Coco said at an event, during which she surprised kids from ACCF. “Make your dreams as big as possible, because you never know how far they will go.”
So what is Coco Gauff’s net worth, in total?
That would be a whopping $3.5 million, according Celebrity Net Worth. That said, other outlets have reported the figure is as high as $6 million, which honestly wouldn’t be surprising either. Now excuse me while I take my sister (who didn’t quit her tennis lessons like I did) up on her offer to play with me so I can refine develop my 🎾 skills.
Assistant news editor
Gretty Garcia is the assistant news editor at Cosmopolitan, where she covers all things news, entertainment, and pop culture. Before joining Cosmo, Gretty was a social strategist for Mrs. Dow Jones and a features and special projects editor at Editorialist. She holds an MS from the Columbia Journalism School and studied art history at Harvard College.