WTA's Stacey Allaster Leads All Tennis Execs In Pay For '13 With $1.4M Salary

WTA Chair & CEO Stacey Allaster earned more than $1.4M in '13, "likely marking the first time the circuit’s leader earned more than any other executive in tennis," according to tax returns cited by Daniel Kaplan of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. Total WTA compensation last year rose 25% to $11.2M, "bringing it nearly to the same level as the ATP," despite having $30M less in revenue. Allaster’s pay, up 27% from the previous year, "included a bonus of $508,643 and an $800,000 base salary." Under Allaster, the WTA has "signed a lucrative deal to place the season-ending championships in Singapore, brought on new sponsor and media deals, and has invested in branding and marketing initiatives."  The Tour has "not yet found a new lead sponsor since Sony exited" after '12. The WTA’s total revenue, which "comes from sponsorship, TV, tournament fees and the season-ending championship, rose slightly" to $63.3M, "resulting in a net surplus" of $2.8M. Meanwhile, USTA Exec Dir Gordon Smith was the organization's highest-paid exec with a salary of $1.3M, which "includes some deferred pay." At the ATP, "compensation stayed flat." ATP CEO Brad Drewett died in '13, and the tax return shows the ATP "paid him $447,657." ATP Commercial Dir and ATP Europe CEO Laurent Delanney, who earned $684,028, was the association's "highest-paid executive last year" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 12/1 issue).

SERVING AN ACE: TENNIS.com's Steve Kappes noted USTA BOD Chair, CEO & President Katrina Adams becomes the fourth woman behind Judy Levering, Jane Brown Grimes and Lucy Garvin, to "hold the USTA’s top leadership position." Adams, who has served on the USTA’s BOD since '05, also will become the "first African-American president in the USTA’s 134-year history," and the "significance is not lost on her." Adams said, “It’s a giant step in the sport. ... I know that a lot of people are going to be looking at me and that I will stand for something.” Kappes wrote Adams’ "greatest challenge will not only be growing the game at the grassroots level, but also shoring up American talent in the pro game." It has been "more than a decade since an American man (Andy Roddick in 2003) has won the U.S. Open." She said, "I think we have to re-imagine the sport." Adams said that she will focus on "keeping young adults -- players who may have been competed in juniors, high school and college -- still active in the game." Adams also wants to "find ways to attract more seniors to tennis." Adams: "We need to promote the game as a whole" (TENNIS.com, 11/30).