What is Björn Borg’s net worth?
| Net Worth: | $80 Million |
|---|---|
| Age: | 66 |
| Born: | June 6, 1956 |
| Gender: | Male |
| Height: | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Country of Origin: | Sweden |
| Source of Wealth: | Professional Tennis Player |
| Last Updated: | March 8, 2023 |
Introduction
Björn Borg is the Swedish former World No. 1 tennis player, regarded by many as one of the best of all time.
He holds many Open Era records, including winning 41% of the Grand Slam singles tournaments he entered and 90% of those matches.
As of March 2023, Björn Borg’s net worth is estimated to be $80 Million.
Björn Borg Facts
- Borg won the Italian Open in 1974, a few months before turning 18 and earning his first professional victory in top-level tennis.
- At 26, Borg is one of the youngest tennis players to retire when he announced his intention to stop playing in January 1983.
- He made news headlines in 1989 when reports of a drug overdose surfaced, which he said was caused by food poisoning and sleeping medications.
- In December 2014, Dagens Nyheter ranked him as Sweden’s greatest athlete of all time.
- Despite being the World No. 1 tennis player for 109 weeks, Borg has never won the US Open or the Australian Open.
Early Life
Björn Rune Borg was born June 6, 1956, in Stockholm, Sweden.
His parents, Rune and Margaretha Borg, raised Borg in Södertälje and he became interested, as a boy, in table tennis, since his father had won a tennis racket at a competition.
When Borg was a young child, his father gave him the tennis racquet, which launched his tennis aspirations.
Borg was a skilled player even when he was young – with a muscular and incredibly athletic body, he moved quickly around the court.
By the time he was 13, he had a powerful two-handed backhand and was defeating the top under-18 players in Sweden.
Borg played for Sweden in the 1972 Davis Cup at the age of 15, winning his first singles match and then winning the junior singles championship at Wimbledon.
Björn started competing on the professional tour the following year, in 1974, making it into the fourth round of his first French Open.
The following year, at his first Wimbledon Championship, he made it to the quarterfinals and ended the year with a professional men’s singles ranking of number 18.
Career
He won his first singles match of his professional career at the New Zealand Open in 1974 and soon after, won matches in London and San Paulo.
His first major singles victory came in June 1974, when he won the Italian Open at the age of 16 and, two weeks later, won the French Open.
After achieving his first Grand Slam victory in 1974, he defeated Guillermo Vilas the following year, in straight sets, to defend his French Open crown.
Borg won two singles and one doubles match in the Davis Cup final the same year, leading Sweden to a victory over Czechoslovakia.
This started Borg on a Davis Cup winning streak that lasted the duration of his professional career, amassing a 33-match winning run in singles matches.
His career continued to blossom with victories in the 1976 and 1977 Wimbledon tournaments as well as victories in the world championship tennis match.
Borg won his final Grand Slam championship at the French Open in 1981 and only Rafael Nadal has a better record at the French Open than Borg.
He did, however, get defeated by McEnroe at Wimbledon that same year, and he subsequently lacked the motivation to carry on playing the sport.
Borg competed in just one tournament in 1982, the Monte Carlo, when he was defeated by Yannick Noah.
At the age of 26, Borg made an official retirement announcement in 1983, stunning the tennis community, with John McEnroe pleading with him to continue competing.
Borg, on the other hand, was not convinced, despite attempting a return to competition from 1991 to 1993 that was largely unsuccessful.
Bjorn joins Andy Murray, Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, and Jim Courier as one of the best players on both indoor as well as grass and clay courts.
Björn Borg’s Career Earnings
He is the first male professional to win 11 Grand Slam singles titles and, after his retirement, started a successful fashion label.
His Grand Slam titles include six at the French Open and five consecutively at Wimbledon, with Rod Laver equalling this record.
It is difficult to provide an estimated overview of Björn Borg’s annual income as he has not divulged his income since leaving professional tennis.
However, it is reported that he receives an estimated salary of $3 million per year from his various business interests and investments.
Björn’s title wins opened the door for Pete Sampras, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal, who all went on to reach double-digit wins.
Björn Borg’s Net Worth Annually
Björn was the first male tennis player to win more than $1 million in a single year in match fees.
Over the course of his career, Borg earned more than $3.7 million in match fees, a fraction of the amount that current champions are paid.
After retiring from tennis, he went on a spending spree that ended when his financial world fell apart in 2006, resulting in him auctioning off his trophies and selling his assets.
His luxury Swedish home, speed boat, and various million-dollar life insurance policies were sold to cover his debt, including outstanding taxes.
He was also forced to sell two autographed tennis rackets that he used to beat Ilie Nastase in 1976 and John McEnroe in 1980.
Despite his financial setbacks, it is reported that Björn Borg’s annual net worth is approximately $40 million.
His multi-million dollar underwear business has boomed since he first started it and it is now selling in more than 20 markets around the world.
Personal Life
In 1976, Borg started dating professional tennis player Mariana Simionescu from Romania and in July 1980, they got married in Bucharest, Romania.
They were divorced in 1984 after a four-year marriage and Borg then had Robin, a son, in 1985 with Swedish model Jannike Björling.
Later, he started dating Italian singer Loredana Bertè, and the couple eventually got married in 1989 – this marriage did not last either, as they were divorced in 1993.
Borg met and wed Patricia Ostfeld, his third wife, in June 2002, and in 2003, Leo, their son, was born.
You can follow Björn’s official Instagram account or official Twitter account to see what he’s getting up to now.
Awards & Achievements
Between 1977 and 1981, Borg held the top spot in the ATP rankings for six separate periods totaling 109 weeks.
Here are some of the more memorable moments from Björn Borg’s career:
- At age 18, Borg defeated Manuel Orantes to become the youngest player to win the French Open.
- Borg won Wimbledon and the French Open three years in a row, between 1978 and 1980.
- He was Chosen for the Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987.
- Björn won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 1979.
- Borg won his third French title without losing a set, a feat only matched by Rafael Nadal in 2008 and 2010 as well as Illie Nastase in 1973.
Borg received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the British Broadcasting Corporation in December 2006 – Boris Becker presented the award.
The newspaper Dagens Nyheter, named Borg Sweden’s greatest athlete of all time in December 2014.
How Does Björn Borg Spend His Money?
Björn owned a beachfront home in Sands Point, New York, in the 1980s as well as a luxurious home in Sweden.
He established the “Björn Borg” clothing line in 1989 which is one of the top-selling brands in Sweden as well as the rest of the world.
Björn sold World Brand Management, the company’s umbrella owner, and the lifetime full rights to his name trademark in 2006 for $18 million.
Borg has divided his time over the course of the last few decades between a huge waterfront country home in Värmdö, Sweden, and a penthouse apartment in Monaco.
Borg has owned some of the most expensive cars in the world, including a Ferrari 308 QV GTS that was delivered to him in the 1980s.
Highlights
Despite his successes, Borg lost four times in the US Open final and was never able to take home the title.
He also failed to win the Australian Open, a tournament he only entered once as a 17-year-old in 1974.
Here are some of the best highlights of Björn Borg’s career:
- Borg won his first Wimbledon title at the age of 20.
- Between 1977 and 1981, Borg held the number-one spot for 109 weeks.
- In addition, Borg received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the BBC on December 10, 2006. He received the honor from Boris Becker.
- He defeated McEnroe in a five-set match in the 1980 Wimbledon Men’s Singles final, which is frequently regarded as the best Wimbledon final ever played.
- He is the youngest winner of the Italian Open, which he won in 1974.
Arthur Ashe considered Borg to be above the game of tennis as he had dominated the sport to such a degree there was little else for him to do.
Borg was most comfortable on grass courts and saw most of his success there, as opposed to the clay courts in France, for instance.
Favorite Björn Borg Quotes
In 1984, Borg also launched a clothing line that took off quickly, becoming the second largest brand in Sweden, after one of the richest designers in the world, Calvin Klein.
Here are our favorite quotes from Björn Borg:
- “It’s tough when you’re No. 1. You don’t have any private life, you can’t even walk anywhere.” – Björn Borg
- “If you’re afraid of losing, then you daren’t win. ” – Björn Borg
- “My greatest point is my persistence.” – Björn Borg
- “I had a great tennis career. I have no regrets. But to find peace with yourself, and to finally be with your family – I’m probably the happiest guy in the world.” – Björn Borg
- “I’m amazed that years after I stopped playing tennis, people still recognize me in restaurants and ask for my autograph.” – Björn Borg
3 Amazing Lessons From Björn Borg
Tennis experts, journalists, and ex-players singled out Borg’s mental game and footwork as the finest in open-era history.
Now that you know all about Björn Borg’s net worth, here are some of the best success lessons to learn from Björn Borg:
1. Never Give Up
Borg never gave up on a point, let alone a match – fighting with all his might up until the last ball.
A look at his match statistics reveals the large number of matches that he turned from near-irretrievable defeats into stunning victories.
2. Have No Regrets
Björn has no regrets in his life and would do everything he did again without a second thought.
While he enjoyed his tennis and business careers to the hilt, as he got older, he discovered how much he enjoyed the peace of family life.
3. Control Your Finances
Borg’s financial affairs were but peaceful, as he struggled to control his spending after retiring from tennis and traveling the world.
His advice is that young players should put controls in place to manage their spending so that they don’t make the mistakes he made with his money.
Summary
Borg is still regarded as one of the greatest tennis players in history, with his unique playing style and unmatched physical fitness and tenacity.
He could outlast the majority of his rivals and often played with more aggression and dominance, which is a characteristic of modern tennis.
Borg was known for being incredibly composed under pressure, in addition to his physical abilities, earning him the nicknames “Ice Man” or “Ice-Borg.”
As of March 2023, Björn Borg’s net worth is estimated to be $80 Million.
