Beyond tour-level titles, Grand Slams, and rankings, tennis also recognizes a range of year-end benchmarks that reflect a player’s broader impact on the sport. Coco Gauff has already checked all the conventional boxes, but she also secured a notable off-court distinction, shining on global media giant Forbes’ top-paid athletes’ list for the second straight year.
In fact, she was also named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the sports category a few days ago. In the wake of these achievements, she recently featured on the cover of the media giant.
Coco Gauff Features on the Forbes Cover After Reaching Two of Its Major Milestones
Gauff has firmly established herself as one of the sport’s fastest-rising stars, with her authority and versatility on court translating seamlessly into off-court success at a remarkably young age. In the 2025 season alone, she earned nearly $8 million in prize money, a substantial portion of her estimated total income of $33 million.
The remainder was driven by lucrative endorsements with global brands such as Rolex, Bose, New Balance, and Mercedes-Benz, among others.
Gauff’s rise was also underlined a few weeks ago when she led Sportico’s list of the highest-paid women in sports. In fact, her project earnings for 2025 place her fourth on the all-time single-year list for female athletes, behind four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.
Recently, Forbes unveiled its list of the world’s 20 highest-paid female athletes for 2025, with WTA stars claiming half of the spots. For the second straight year, the American topped the rankings, while WTA World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka followed closely at No. 2, earning an estimated $30 million over the year.
Apart from that, Gauff was also a part of the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, recognizing 30 influential young people (under 30) in 20 different industries.
With that, she was also featured on the Forbes cover and recently reacted to this achievement on her Instagram story.
But apart from this success, Gauff has another prime aim as a player. The American wants her legacy to extend beyond tennis, stressing the importance of being remembered as a good person who positively influences lives.
“I always say it’s important for me to be remembered like as a good human and someone that impact people’s lives like not just from them watching me play tennis, but actually impact their lives. And that’s the main thing. I always tell my dad and my mom that, that’s what I want for my life. Because sometimes you can get, or now that I’m in this career, I can see how you can get lost in the sauce and lose yourself in it. And I just don’t want to lose myself,” she said in an interview with Forbes.
MORE: Coco Gauff Reacts As Alexandra Eala Can’t Hide Her Happiness About SEA Games Glory
Gauff emphasized her determination to stay true to herself, crediting her close circle for keeping her grounded. She hopes that when her career ends, she will be remembered not only for victories but also for the positive influence she had through her words and actions.
“So I’ll never, wanna make sure never do that. And so I’m glad that I have the people around me that I do to make sure I’m staying on that path. And hopefully when this is all over I can be like I did my best and some people, their only memory of me wouldn’t be winning, but also how I impact them in some type of way whether it’s something I say or did,” she added.
Despite a topsy-turvy season, Gauff made sure she took home two titles, a Grand Slam at Roland Garros and a WTA 1000 title in Wuhan. The 21-year-old finished the season as the World No. 3 and with a 48-16 win-loss record.Â
