John McEnroe’s lavish Wimbledon wages from the BBC are revealed
Tennis legend John McEnroe is one of the star performers for the BBC at Wimbledon, yet the size of his pay cheque for the two-week event has become a major talking point.
McEnroe has been a key voice on the BBC for several years, with his role expanding as he has taken centre stage as a compare for key moments like the parade of champions on Middle Sunday last year.
Now it has been confirmed that the three-time Wimbledon champion is paid over £200,000 for his two week’s work at The Championships by the BBC.
The annual release of the BBC wages to their high-profile stars has created a major talking point in the UK, with former footballer Gary Lineker confirmed as their highest paid on-air talent for the sixth consecutive year and the only star to earn more than £1 million in the year 2022/2023.
While there are four women in the top 10 list of highest earners, none of them has broken the £1 million threshold.
Pundit Lineker was paid between £1,350,000 and £1,354,999 for work including Match Of The Day, coverage of the World Cup 2023 and Sports Personality Of The Year.
Lineker first topped the list for 2017/18 with a pay bracket of £1,750,000 to £1,759,999, and in 2020 it was announced he had taken a voluntary pay cut.
Former footballer Alan Shearer is also on the list, as he is paid £450,000-£454,999 for his role as a football pundit, yet eyebrows have been raised over the amount of public money spent to hire McEnroe for the two weeks of Wimbledon.
McEnroe is listed as earning £205,000 – £209,999 from his Wimbledon appearances for the BBC last year and if he is earning the higher end of that figure, it means he is paid almost £15,000-per-day for his contributions.
This is on top of his work with the American network ESPN at Wimbledon, ensuring the American great is pulling in a huge financial sum for his two weeks in London.
The BBC’s former Wimbledon presenter Sue Barker also appears on the wages list for 2022/23, collecting £185,000 – £189,999 for her work as the broadcast lead for the Queen’s Club tournament and the two weeks at the All England Club.
Clare Balding has now replaced Barker in that role, so her BBC salary of £178,000 – £184,999 is certain to leap next year.
Balding spoke about her new position at the BBC an in interview published in the LTA’s programme for the Queen’s Club tournament.
“It is an amazing role and comes with a huge amount of responsibility,” said Balding.
“You have a responsibility to the audience and the players to fairly represent what they do and share with the audience greater insight and to tell stories that make people care about players.
“I have always across any sport wanted to do that, whether it is horse racing, swimming or cycling at the Olympics or the Boat Race.
“I want to try and to make sure the audience knows more about the technicalities of what they are watching and that will be down to the experts like John McEnroe, Tim Henman, Martina Navratilova and the rest working around me.
“I just never thought this would happen and I’m delighted and very proud and honoured. I will try to do the role justice.
“Sue Bakers’s career was just outstanding. It was really one of the first examples of someone in Britain going from a professional career into a highly professional broadcasting career. Her sporting knowledge was so impressive.
“You could see that from the way she hosted A Question of Sport, but I know it from quizzing each other and being competitive with each other. She would always know the most random of sporting facts and it was just such an honour to work alongside her and to observe how much she contributes to the coverage.
“It is a huge privilege to fill that role, but no one individual replaces Sue. It is very much a team effort and I won’t be able to do the things Sue has done as she played tennis at the highest level.”
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