The Rolex Shanghai Masters has unfolded like a script no one could have written. Why? Because Arthur Rinderknech will face his cousin Valentin Vacherot for the title, a story Rinderknech perfectly called “The Dream Undreamable.” Over the past ten days, the tournament has delivered twists worthy of legend, none bigger than qualifier Vacherot stunning an ailing Novak Djokovic to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 final. Now, as the cousins prepare for a historic family showdown, one question rises above the rest: What is the 2025 Rolex Shanghai Masters prize money? And more precisely: how much will Arthur Rinderknech or Valentin Vacherot actually take home after taxes?

What is the total prize money for the 2025 Shanghai Masters?

The 2025 Rolex Shanghai Masters, running from 1 to 12 October at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, boasts a total prize money pool of US $9,193,540, reflecting a 2.20% increase from last year. As one of the ATP Tour’s prestigious Masters 1000 tournaments, it continues to attract the world’s best players to Shanghai, China. Since its inception in 2009, the event has been a key fixture in the tennis calendar, combining elite competition with a vibrant atmosphere and top-tier facilities.

The champion in Shanghai this year will receive US $1,124,380, marking a 2.22% rise from 2024, along with 1,000 ATP ranking points, which are vital for end-of-season standings. The runner-up will earn US $597,890 and 600 ranking points, while semifinalists take home 400 points and US $332,160. 

Quarterfinalists will gain 200 points, with decreasing points and prize money awarded through earlier rounds, maintaining the structure typical of Masters 1000 events. This tier ensures that even early-round participants are financially rewarded and gain valuable ranking momentum.

While the ATP event in Shanghai does not have a WTA counterpart, players competing in equivalent WTA 1000 tournaments receive a similar distribution of points, 1,000 for the winner, 650 for the finalist, and 390 for semifinalists, underlining the parallel prestige between the men’s and women’s tours. The Rolex Shanghai Masters thus remains a cornerstone of professional tennis, blending rich prize money, ranking significance, and global appeal in one of Asia’s premier tennis destinations.

How much will the Winner, Finalist, and other rounds earn in the 2025 Shanghai Masters?

How are tennis prize money winnings taxed in general?

In the global tennis arena, victory on the court often comes with a silent opponent: taxation. In most countries, when a player lifts the trophy and collects their winnings, the local tax authority strikes first, applying a withholding tax or tax “at source” before the champion even sees the full sum. Tournament organizers act as tax gatekeepers, slicing a fixed percentage off the top. At Wimbledon, 20 % is withheld from the core prize money. 

Across the Atlantic, the US enforces a 30 % withholding on U.S.-source income for nonresident athletes, unless softened by a tax treaty. Even the ATP mandates that prize payouts come only after all applicable taxes are carved out.

Yet, the story doesn’t end there. Once the applause fades, players face a second round, this time from their home country’s tax laws. Many nations tax residents on their worldwide income, but to avoid crushing double taxation, they grant a foreign tax credit for levies already paid abroad. A French-resident player, for example, must still declare overseas winnings, though France offsets the taxes settled on foreign soil.

At the French Open, champions face nearly 30 % local taxation, while Wimbledon’s winners, beyond the 20 % withheld upfront, may owe up to 45 % after final UK assessments. This double-edged reality, withholding abroad, taxation at home, credits as shields, is the untold rhythm of professional tennis finance, where every serve, smash, and triumph carries a fiscal echo long after match point.

How much Arthur Rinderknech or Valentin Vacherot takes home after taxes in the Shanghai Masters 2025?

At the 2025 Rolex Shanghai Masters, the scoreboard isn’t the only thing that counts; taxes play their own quiet game. China enforces a 20% withholding tax on all foreign athletes’ prize money before it even reaches their accounts. If Arthur Rinderknech or Valentin Vacherot pocketed US $100,000 in gross winnings, the Chinese taxman would instantly slice away US $20,000, leaving a clean $80,000 to carry home. Victory comes with applause and a receipt.

For Arthur Rinderknech, though, the match continues beyond Shanghai. As a French resident, he faces his nation’s iron fiscal rules, which tax citizens on worldwide income. France, however, does offer a foreign tax credit to soften the blow, acknowledging the 20% China has already taken. Yet with France’s top marginal rate crossing 45%, Rinderknech may still watch his net earnings shrink once Paris’s tax authority adds his Shanghai gains to his annual tally. The French system always wants its final serve.

Valentin Vacherot, on the other hand, lives beneath Monaco’s golden sun, a land of no personal income tax. For him, the story ends the moment China’s 20% is paid. His $80,000 stays intact, untouchable, and unburdened. It’s the pure, unfiltered joy of earning in Monaco’s fiscal paradise, where victory truly pays.

As Winner

As Runner-up

No one could have scripted a Rinderknech-Vacherot showdown in Shanghai, yet the cousins are writing their own destiny. “We deserve it. If we’re here, we deserve it,” Vacherot declared, his voice pulsing with pride. “To be honest right now I don’t even want to think about it. I just want to enjoy the moment, that we’re playing each other.” 

The last time they met was back in 2018, when Rinderknech claimed victory in straight sets. Now, on one of tennis’s grandest stages, the stage is set again: blood, pride, and glory collide as family faces family for Masters 1000 immortality.