Ex-tennis star who won one Grand Slam worth more than Djokovic, Nadal and Federer combined
Ion Tiriac is one of the richest sportspeople in the world.
The Tiriac Open is taking place this week in Bucharest, with Francisco Cerundolo and Sebastian Korda among those fighting it out for the ATP 250 title. The tournament is named after Romanian tennis legend Ion Tiriac, who is now better known for his business exploits. Despite winning just one Grand Slam doubles title, the billionaire is worth more than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer combined.
While Tiriac might not be the most well-known name in the sporting world, he’s one of the richest. According to Forbes, the 84-year-old has a real-time net worth of a staggering £1.7 billion ($2.1 billion). In comparison, Djokovic, Nadal and Federer have a combined net worth of £136m ($169.6m).
The Romanian only won around £150k during his playing career. His best result came at the 1970 French Open where he partnered with countryman Ilie Nastase to lift the trophy. But Tiriac enjoyed even more success when he retired from tennis and focused on other roles in the sport.
He turned his hand to coaching and managing other players after hanging up his racket, including Goran Ivanisevic and Marat Safin. Most notably, Tiriac took a young Boris Becker under his wing and was his agent from 1984 to 1993.
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Tiriac also owned and ran multiple tennis tournaments, though his portfolio has depleted in recent years. He ran the ATP Finals when they were staged in Hanover and developed the Madrid Open but sold it to IMG for around £334 million in 2021.
The Tiriac Open in Bucharest was revived this year, being staged for the first time since 2016. However, most of his money has come from his business exploits. He founded Romania’s first private bank - the Tiriac Bank - following the fall of communism in the country.
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He also owns retail, airline, auto dealership and insurance businesses. An avid car collector, the 84-year-old has more than 400 vehicles in the Tiriac Collection, including displays previously owned by the likes of Sir Elton John and Al Capone.
Tiriac became the first Romanian to enter Forbes' list of billionaires in 2007 and he remains one of the richest men in sports.