Federer wants 2 million euros to play Basel next year.

[Achilles82]

Federer wants 2 million dollars to play Basel next year.

http://www.iol.co.za/sport/tennis/federer-slammed-by-swiss-1.1415695#.UJRqanXA_YE

Over the past four years, Federer got 500,000 dollars per edition of the tournament, tax free, beyond the official prize money. Tournament sources told dpa that he is now seeking to multiply that premium by four, to 2 million dollars per year, although Swiss media are reporting 1-1.5 million dollars.

“On the court he plays like he is out of this world, but outside he is more earthly than we would like to admit. Somewhat imperfect and very human,” the Swiss daily Tages Anzeiger recently wrote.

“We are not Qatar,” Rene Stammbach, president of the Swiss Tennis Federation, recently warned.

What do you think about this?

I understand him asking 500 000$, but 2 mill is a bit too much don't you think?

 

[TheCheese]

Seems unreasonable. What does he need extra money for? Let's be honest.

Hard to believe.

 

[InspectorRacquet]

2 million is a pretty big jump from the half million he was getting. I can understand a demand as high as one million due to his age, and because of that, the inability to continually have a reason to play Basel in the middle of a densely packed indoor season.

There must be a reason he wants so much. Maybe by wanting so much, Basel will negotiate as high as possible to start with.

 

[15_ounce]

I begin to dislike him for being money minded and not helping his mates.

Stuff all those charities he made... it is all just for tax purpose.... after all money is what matters most.

 

[Achilles82]

Seems unreasonable. What does he need extra money for? Let's be honest.

You can't go by that logic "What does he need extra money for" . I understand him asking some money, because tournament is going to have a lot more viewers all over the world... but 2 mill? That's a bit greedy.

 

[NadalDramaQueen]

Maybe he doesn't want to play there next year, so he is asking for a price that is too high. :lol:

 

[Bartelby]

Its interesting that when your negotiating partner doesn't like what you're asking for they rat you out in the media to try to pressure you to stay.

Its obviously not a priority for him to play Basel so he's pricing himself out of the event.

 

[tennisaddict]

To watch a GOD in action, I think many people in the world would like to shell out that money.

At the end of the day, it is demand and supply.

If Nole and Murray are going to play Basel, there will not be anyone to fill the stands.

So either pay up or shut up.

 

[Sid_Vicious]

Pretty unreasonable by Federer, but not surprising. Federer does a lot for money. His facebook account is used almost completely for promoting the various companies he sponsors.

 

[The Bawss]

No reason to demand that. Getting as money-hungry as Nadal.

 

[jwbarrientos]

How much any top 4 not named RF collect in every big tournament?

 

[Sid_Vicious]

I begin to dislike him for being money minded and not helping his mates.

Stuff all those charities he made... it is all just for tax purpose.... after all money is what matters most.

I think you are being ridiculously narrow-minded. Just because he has a lot of money, you immediately assume, quite cynically, that all his charity work is driven by his greed. It is possible to have a lot of money and do charity work for the benefit of humanity as well.

 

[Goosehead]

the fedster needs more money..

the price of big furry dice hanging down the middle of his windsreen on his mercedes convertable has gone right up you know..so yes, clearly, he needs more.

..and he needs some more 'roger luvs mirka' banner strips to go along the top of the windscreen.

 

[kishnabe]

How could you ask for extra money to play in your home event?

Instead of asking.....just don't play. Nadal goes out of his way to play Barcelona. I bet they don't give 500K euros extra to Nadal. Djokovic won't beg Belgrade.....

Then again Nadal is way more attractive than Federer....so he gets more dough.

Federer should go play Kremlin cup.....he will get 10 million plus.

 

[Sid_Vicious]

How much any top 4 not named RF collect in every big tournament?

Nadal got payed well over a million dollars for playing Thailand in 2010.

Also, Nadal got payed a TON for playing Halle this year. I forgot the amount, but it was over a million.

 

[sonicare]

Guys, I am a self proclaimed ******* but this is not on.

Infact, even the 500k he gets now is too much.

If I had a home tournament where they let me ballboy, practice at the facilities and gave me a bunh of wildcards when I was up and coming, I would never ask them for a appearance fee especially when I have 150 million dollars + in lifetime earnings like federer.

Very surprised by this news. Is this 100% legit source?

 

[tennisaddict]

So all Fed haters, since you know your idols can never reach his records or match his class , you dont have any option but to talk about his earnings and davis cup commitment, etc.,

Fed can even demand money for playing Davis Cup.

Tennis is an Individual sport and he will command whatever he feels he is entitled for.

Live with it.

 

[NadalDramaQueen]

Guys, I am a self proclaimed ******* but this is not on.

Infact, even the 500k he gets now is too much.

If I had a home tournament where they let me ballboy, practice at the facilities and gave me a bunh of wildcards when I was up and coming, I would never ask them for a appearance fee especially when I have 150 million dollars + in lifetime earnings like federer.

Very surprised by this news. Is this 100% legit source?

I have seen a few stories about this, but they all seem to be from the same source, so it is hard to say.

Apparently, Wawrinka "really can't understand him" about this issue along with Federer not wanting the Davis Cup tie to be held in Basel.

Federer is being a very bad boy, possibly.

 

[Deleted member 307496]

Federer isn't that nice of a guy after all.

 

[sonicare]

I have seen a few stories about this, but they all seem to be from the same source, so it is hard to say.

Apparently, Wawrinka "really can't understand him" about this issue and Federer not wanting the Davis Cup tie to be held in Basel.

Federer is being a very bad boy, possibly.

Honestly, it all reads too fake to me. The language used by the supposed tournament organizers and federer is weird.

I hope it is false because this would really bring federer down a notch or two in my eyes.

it would like asking an old friend you grew up with to get in line for an autograph. it is just not on. One must never forget where they came from.

Is the Basel tournament in any way related to the swiss tennis program where Roger came through? Does anyone know how many wildcards they gave him when he was younger?

 

[Crisstti]

I have seen a few stories about this, but they all seem to be from the same source, so it is hard to say.

Apparently, Wawrinka "really can't understand him" about this issue along with Federer not wanting the Davis Cup tie to be held in Basel.

Federer is being a very bad boy, possibly.

It does seem to be the same source. The article that was on a Chilean newspaper recently was the same one (with some Nadal comparisons which don't seem to be on this one).

They do quote Swiss newspapers, so something is going on. It does seem that the owners of the tournament are mad and leaking this to the press, I guess.

 

[Achilles82]

Nadal got payed well over a million dollars for playing Thailand in 2010.

Also, Nadal got payed a TON for playing Halle this year. I forgot the amount, but it was over a million.

First of all, Thailand isn't Nadal's home tournament.

For Halle, same storry, and it's 750k for three years.


Two mill is a bit too much.

 

[Sid_Vicious]

First of all, Thailand isn't Nadal's home tournament.

For Halle, same storry, and it's 750k for three years.


Two mill is a bit too much.

I know. I was just responding to that guy who wanted to know if others in the top 4 get huge appearance fees

 

[NadalDramaQueen]

It does seem to be the same source. The article that was on a Chilean newspaper recently was the same one (with some Nadal comparisons which don't seem to be on this one).

They do quote Swiss newspapers, so something is going on. It does seem that the owners of the tournament are mad and leaking this to the press, I guess.

Right, I find it hard to believe that it is completely made up, but of course it may be an exaggeration. I'm sure we'll find out soon enough.

From the articles I have read, it certainly isn't ridiculous for Federer to demand more money from a tournament where he is the big draw, but doing such a thing when you're already very wealthy is always a sensitive issue with the public. Especially when it is your hometown tournament, and perhaps part of an organization that helped you get to where you are currently.

I tend to think of this as more of a way to get out of playing the tournament, but no matter what the motive, it does seem rather unpleasant of Federer, to say the least. It is not going to hurt his chances in a major, so I wish he would suck it up and play for his hometown.

I do hope there are more details that make it seem less like the way it seems right now.

I draw the line at killing puppies for no good reason as my moral cutoff for being a fan of an athlete, however, so I'll still root for him either way.

 

[DragonBlaze]

Either Federer really is super greedy, or he simply does not want to play Basel and is asking for an unreasonable price. I'm thinking it's the latter, surely a weird way to go about it though.

Having said that, I feel something is getting lost in the translation somewhere.

 

[DragonBlaze]

Right, I find it hard to believe that it is completely made up, but of course it may be an exaggeration. I'm sure we'll find out soon enough.

From the articles I have read, it certainly isn't ridiculous for Federer to demand more money from a tournament where he is the big draw, but doing such a thing when you're already very wealthy is always a sensitive issue with the public. Especially when it is your hometown tournament, and perhaps part of an organization that helped you get to where you are currently.

I tend to think of this as more of a way to get out of playing the tournament, but no matter what the motive, it does seem rather unpleasant of Federer, to say the least. It is not going to hurt his chances in a major, so I wish he would suck it up and play for his hometown.

I do hope there are more details that make it seem less like the way it seems right now.

Pretty much what I was thinking. I guess the next question is, did Basel actually help Fed's early tennis career or not? I honestly don't know so would be interesting if someone here did.

 

[Achilles82]

I would never ask them for a appearance fee especially when I have 150 million dollars + in lifetime earnings like federer.

Forbes estimates that Federer made around 52 million dollars in 2011. So I think it's more like 300, and 300 more to come at least in the next 10 years.

Very surprised by this news. Is this 100% legit source?

I first saw this news on Serbian website (it's a very popular and legit website of Serbian TV station). Then I looked up on the internet, I just searched "Roger criticized by Swiss", and I found tons of articles. And since there are quotes from couple of people in the article, I'd say it's legit.

 

[roundiesee]

There are always two sides to the same story; let's give the man the benefit of the doubt and possibly hear his side of it in the coming weeks before drawing conclusions,

 

[Sartorius]

2 million euros... I wonder if I'm ever going to see that much money.

Fed's own comments are more interesting to me, apparently he says this is not a money issue and he would go play in Asia if it was.. So does he think the price is reasonable or that the tournament can actually pay the amount?.. Also says since he has helped the tournament a lot (which I guess is true) the "onus" is on Bernwald... Well, at least I learned a new word, had to look up on onus.

I find the DC whining quite hilarious though, as always. I hope Federer keeps avoiding it.

 

[LaneMyer]

Fed has agents and a manager. They negotiate his deals. They're in the business to negotiate the best deal possible. Let's also not forget that the tourney director is also using the media as a negotiating ploy himself with releasing this info. I have no idea how much this Basel tournament rakes in, but that's a factor too. I'm sure Fed's reps know exactly how much Fed brings in to the tourney between tickets sold and merchandise moved. Another factor is what is expected of Fed at Basel...appearances, promotional requirements, ads etc. I'm sure they ask quite a bit of him at this tournament. I've seen somewhere...not sure if it's true or not, that they wanted Fed to commit to a four year deal...which seems unrealistic given his age. Regardless, I'm guessing this has more to do with external components than his appearance fee. Who knows, maybe this guy irked Fed for something we'll never know about. Going public with this isn't going to help matters as we all know Fed likes to keep things out of the press.

From his post match interview

Federer suggested after the semi-final: "I hope that I will play again. That is the goal of all involved. But right now I'm focusing on the end of the season, then we'll see. "

When asked whether it was the question of the money, Federer replied: "I think the money is not the problem. If I was running only after money, I would have made many other decisions, played throughout Asia. I have always given priority to Basel. "He confirmed that there had been negotiations. "I have already helped a lot of tournaments. Because of that the onus is more on him than on me. "

 

[Achilles82]

From the articles I have read, it certainly isn't ridiculous for Federer to demand more money from a tournament where he is the big draw

Agree 100%. I understand top players (especially Roger since he is such a big name in world of sport) asking additional money for playing, because tournament is going to have A LOT more TV viewers, and attendance.

Especially when it is your hometown tournament, and perhaps part of an organization that helped you get to where you are currently.

This is what strikes me. It's his home tournament, and Roger said himself, he is the first, sort of "product of swiss tennis". They invested in him, they gave him wild cards. I mean at least you can give them some discount.


I only think that it's probably not 2 million his asking. Because that is speculation by the news, so it's normal for them to exaggerate so they would make a bigger news.... but let's say it's half of that. I say it's still unreal amount of money.

 

[sonicare]

Pretty much what I was thinking. I guess the next question is, did Basel actually help Fed's early tennis career or not? I honestly don't know so would be interesting if someone here did.

This is very important. Look at fed here in 98 against agassi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BblximO3LdM

That has to be wildcard. He was ranked outside 300 in 98

Also

“We are not Qatar,” Rene Stammbach, president of the Swiss Tennis Federation, recently warned.

This is coming from the swiss tennis federation who I am 99% sure created the program that roger went through as a junior.

Forbes estimates that Federer made around 52 million dollars in 2011. So I think it's more like 300, and 300 more to come at least in the next 10 years.

Yep.

I first saw this news on Serbian website (it's a very popular and legit website of Serbian TV station). Then I looked up on the internet, I just searched "Roger criticized by Swiss", and I found tons of articles. And since there are quotes from couple of people in the article, I'd say it's legit.

http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/sport/tennis/Federer-und-das-liebe-Geld/story/19229745
http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/sport/tennis/Die-Basler-Liebe-wird-strapaziert/story/21918464

Yeah. Source seems legit.

Not good Roger, not good

 

[Crisstti]

Right, I find it hard to believe that it is completely made up, but of course it may be an exaggeration. I'm sure we'll find out soon enough.

From the articles I have read, it certainly isn't ridiculous for Federer to demand more money from a tournament where he is the big draw, but doing such a thing when you're already very wealthy is always a sensitive issue with the public. Especially when it is your hometown tournament, and perhaps part of an organization that helped you get to where you are currently.

I tend to think of this as more of a way to get out of playing the tournament, but no matter what the motive, it does seem rather unpleasant of Federer, to say the least. It is not going to hurt his chances in a major, so I wish he would suck it up and play for his hometown.

I do hope there are more details that make it seem less like the way it seems right now.

I draw the line at killing puppies for no good reason as my moral cutoff for being a fan of an athlete, however, so I'll still root for him either way.

Maybe it is. It is an odd way of going about it though. It surely would hurt his rep less if he just said for scheduling reasons he doesn't want to go on playing it. I remember Rafa did that in 2010 Barcelona and no one seemed upset about it.

I draw the the same line, so I wouldn't stop being a fan of Fed if it was pure greed indeed (if I ever was a fan of course, hehe).

 

[10is]

Federer isn't that nice of a guy after all.

So? I am a fan of Tennis and care not one whit for "personalities". Federer might very well be the vilest, most loathsome degenerate sodomite on the planet put I will still adore him because of his game, the aesthetics of his immense talent and the sublime artistry that he displays on the tennis court. On the other hand Nadal might very well be the "man of my dreams" and a kindred soul in terms of his persona but his brutal (albeit unique and effective) style of tennis, uncouth on court mannerisms and gamesmanship will always be off-putting to my eyes and I will dislike him for it as a player of the sport.

In essence, if this story is true and Federer does indeed want more money to play Basel, I don't give a ****, let alone begrudge something that by all rights is his prerogative.

 

[Sartorius]

Fed has agents and a manager. They negotiate his deals. They're in the business to negotiate the best deal possible. Let's also not forget that the tourney director is also using the media as a negotiating ploy himself with releasing this info. I have no idea how much this Basel tournament rakes in, but that's a factor too. I'm sure Fed's reps know exactly how much Fed brings in to the tourney between tickets sold and merchandise moved. Another factor is what is expected of Fed at Basel...appearances, promotional requirements, ads etc. I'm sure they ask quite a bit of him at this tournament.

Well put, this is what I'm also wondering about after reading Federer's comments.

 

[DragonBlaze]

2 million euros... I wonder if I'm ever going to see that much money.

Fed's own comments are more interesting to me, apparently he says this is not a money issue and he would go play in Asia if it was.. So does he think the price is reasonable or that the tournament can actually pay the amount?.. Also says since he has helped the tournament a lot (which I guess is true) the "onus" is on Bernwald... Well, at least I learned a new word, had to look up on onus.

I find the DC whining quite hilarious though, as always. I hope Federer keeps avoiding it.

The funny thing is, in the last two years he has gone out of his way to play (last year Australia after US Open, netherlands this year). It's just that they still keep losing :lol:.

People expect so much out of Fed, that even his detractors assume that if he was to "commit" to Davis Cup, he would have been successful atleast once. Fact is, many times in his career he committed and yet they still lost. Since Federer down, everyone else sucks (yes even Wawrinka, he's a headcase, friggin Troicki has a better W:L ratio in DC!).

So you are correct, the DC whining is hilarious, just people talking out of their behind as usual.

 

[NadalDramaQueen]

Fed has agents and a manager. They negotiate his deals. They're in the business to negotiate the best deal possible. Let's also not forget that the tourney director is also using the media as a negotiating ploy himself with releasing this info. I have no idea how much this Basel tournament rakes in, but that's a factor too. I'm sure Fed's reps know exactly how much Fed brings in to the tourney between tickets sold and merchandise moved. Another factor is what is expected of Fed at Basel...appearances, promotional requirements, ads etc. I'm sure they ask quite a bit of him at this tournament. I've seen somewhere...not sure if it's true or not, that they wanted Fed to commit to a four year deal...which seems unrealistic given his age. Regardless, I'm guessing this has more to do with external components than his appearance fee. Who knows, maybe this guy irked Fed for something we'll never know about. Going public with this isn't going to help matters as we all know Fed likes to keep things out of the press.

From his post match interview

Federer suggested after the semi-final: "I hope that I will play again. That is the goal of all involved. But right now I'm focusing on the end of the season, then we'll see. "

When asked whether it was the question of the money, Federer replied: "I think the money is not the problem. If I was running only after money, I would have made many other decisions, played throughout Asia. I have always given priority to Basel. "He confirmed that there had been negotiations. "I have already helped a lot of tournaments. Because of that the onus is more on him than on me. "

I understand this. That is why even if everything I have read is completely true, it really isn't such a terrible thing.

If Federer is bringing in millions upon millions of revenue to the tournament then it wouldn't be unreasonable to ask for a raise. I don't know the actual numbers, so I am not sure if his asking price is reasonable or not. I also understand that there are a lot of people riding Fed's gravy train, so he isn't coming up with this all by himself.

Maybe it is. It is an odd way of going about it though. It surely would hurt his rep less if he just said for scheduling reasons he doesn't want to go on playing it. I remember Rafa did that in 2010 Barcelona and no one seemed upset about it.

I draw the the same line, so I wouldn't stop being a fan of Fed if it was pure greed indeed (if I ever was a fan of course, hehe).

True, I'm definitely not suggesting it was the right way to go about it. In fact, it seems like the worst way.

I know that you want to be a fan. Fed is a good guy, although that may be changing, so you must become a fan before it is too late. :lol:

 

[helloworld]

2 Million Dollars!?!? Is Federer trying to rob his own country?? This is very sad....

 

[NadalDramaQueen]

2 Million Dollars!?!? Is Federer trying to rob his own country?? This is very sad....

Please, helloworld. There has been a semi-rational discussion about this that has involved Fed fans, Nadal fans, and Djokovic fans, among others.

No need to spoil it.

 

[DragonBlaze]

Please, helloworld. There has been a semi-rational discussion about this that has involved Fed fans, Nadal fans, and Djokovic fans, among others.

No need to spoil it.

True that.

Also one must mention, how this information was clearly "leaked" to the press. Certainly makes me think something else is going on.

 

[pkshooter]

I would think that he's just asking too much for this tourney because he doesn't wanna play, but its his home country... So what's up fed

 

[LaneMyer]

I understand this. That is why even if everything I have read is completely true, it really isn't such a terrible thing.

If Federer is bringing in millions upon millions of revenue to the tournament then it wouldn't be unreasonable to ask for a raise. I don't know the actual numbers, so I am not sure if his asking price is reasonable or not. I also understand that there are a lot of people riding Fed's gravy train, so he isn't coming up with this all by himself.

It's just funny to me that some people are under the impression that this isn't a business. As if the person or people who own this tournament aren't involved with this tourney to make money. I mean the crowd isn't lined with underprivileged kids who were given free tickets. Why would anyone want to see a business make money off of their likeness and just because it's his hometown tourney he's supposed to just roll over for these owners? Chances are Fed wasn't even the guy who threw out that alleged $2 million fee anyway. Maybe these guys low-balled Fed and that irked him or his reps. Maybe they pressured him into some last minute appearance that interfered with his family responsibilities. Who knows, but I'm sure it's not all on Fed. All of those involved are in this to make money after all.

 

[absurdo]

apparently he asked the swiss federation to move the davis cup tie agains czech republic to geneva, instead of basel...

 

[BauerAlmeida]

It's very disappointing.

 

[Mustard]

http://www.iol.co.za/sport/tennis/federer-slammed-by-swiss-1.1415695#.UJRqanXA_YE

What do you think about this?

I understand him asking 500 000$, but 2 mill is a bit too much don't you think?

Yeah, it was mentioned in the Nadal News Thread. I talked about how some of the Federer fans went nuts when Nadal reluctantly decided to play at Halle this year instead of at Queen's Club, where Nadal cited the chance of losing money due to tax bureaucracy if he lost before the quarter finals at Queen's Club. Double standards?

 

[roundiesee]

The funny thing is, in the last two years he has gone out of his way to play (last year Australia after US Open, netherlands this year). It's just that they still keep losing :lol:.

People expect so much out of Fed, that even his detractors assume that if he was to "commit" to Davis Cup, he would have been successful atleast once. Fact is, many times in his career he committed and yet they still lost. Since Federer down, everyone else sucks (yes even Wawrinka, he's a headcase, friggin Troicki has a better W:L ratio in DC!).

So you are correct, the DC whining is hilarious, just people talking out of their behind as usual.

Good point; Roger has committed in the past and played well in singles, but he and Allegro/Wawrinka kept losing in doubles, so they could not win that crucial third point; very frustrating,

 

[NadalDramaQueen]

Yeah, it was mentioned in the Nadal News Thread. I talked about how some of the Federer fans went nuts when Nadal reluctantly decided to play at Halle this year instead of at Queen's Club, where Nadal cited the chance of losing money due to tax bureaucracy if he lost before the quarter finals at Queen's Club. Double standards?

Did you read this thread? Many Fed fans have been critical of Federer.

 

[Rjtennis]

I doubt he is doing that to his hometown.

 

[Bartelby]

If negotiations aren't confidential they're not going to succeed so these stories have a hint of sour grapes from the organizers.

The fact is that he doesn't want to play Basel, and the organizers don't like it and are leaking to the media.

This year and next he basically has to choose Basel or Paris, and Paris is more attractive from the record book point of view now he's out of contract with Basel.

 

[Clarky21]

Did you read this thread? Many Fed fans have been critical of Federer.

Except for 10is,who is doing her usual Fed bootlicking. Hypocrite comes to mind when I read through her hero worshipping post. Fed could be a murderer and she would still defend him.