The 2019 French Open: When is it, who are the defending champions, TV channels, prize money

French Open
French Open Roland Garros logo

The 2019 French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year, is upon us as the red dirt tournament gets underway on Sunday May 26. We give you a quick lowdown of the important things to remember.

When is the French Open?
The 2019 event takes place from May 26 until June 9.

It remains the only Grand Slam to start on a Sunday with 12 singles matches taking place on the opening day.

Where does the French Open take place?
Stade Roland Garros has been the venue since 1928 with the three main courts Court Philippe-Chatrier (15,500 capacity), Court Suzanne-Lenglen (10,068) and Court Simonne-Mathieu (5,000).

Who are the defending champions?
Rafael Nadal is the men’s defending champion and he will be gunning for a 12th title while Simona Halep won her maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros last year.
Rafael Nadal Roland Garros French Open trophy

French duo Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut won the men’s doubles crown in 2018 with the women’s doubles title going to Czech pair Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova.

Latisha Chan and Ivan Dodig were the mixed doubles champions last year.

What about the seeds for this year’s event?
The seeds for the 2019 tournament will only be confirmed once the ATP and WTA release their final rankings on Monday May 20.

The French Open, though, usually sticks to the rankings and world number ones Novak Djokovic and Naomi Osaka are expected to be top seeds.

When does qualifying take place?
Qualifying kicks off on Monday May 20 and finishes on Friday May 24.

When is the draw?
The main draw for the men’s and women’s tournament takes place on Thursday May 23 and starts 7pm local time (6pm BST).
Roland Garros French Open Suzanne Lenglen Court

Which TV channels will broadcast the French Open?
Eurosport will be broadcasting qualifying LIVE from 9am each day, but Thursday’s draw won’t be screened live on television in the UK. However, the official Roland Garros Facebook page and YouTube page usually have live streaming.

As for the tournament itself, Eurosport and ITV4 will cover the 2019 French Open.

What is the prize money?
The men’s and women’s singles champions will each walk away with a winner’s cheque of €2.3m (£2.0m) while the runners-up will receive €1.18m.

Round Men’s singles Women’s singles  Men’s doubles Women’s doubles Mixed doubles  Legends  Wheelchair 
Winners €2.2m €2.2m €560,000 €560,000 €120,000 €40,000 €22,000
Runners-up
 €1.12m €1.12m €280,000 €280,000 €60 500 €28,000 €11,000
Semi-finalists  €560,000 €560,000 €139,000 €139,000 €30,000 €22,000 €6,000
Quarter-finalists  €380,000 €380,000 €76,000 €76,000 €17,000 €18,000 €3,500
Fourth round €222,000 €222,000 €41,000 €41,000 €9,500
Third round  €130,000 €130,000 €22,000 €22,000 €4,750
Second round  €79,000 €79,000 €11,000 €11,000
First round  €40,000 €40,000

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