Moïse Kouamé left Roland-Garros with more than a victory. The 17-year-old French player beat Adolfo Daniel Vallejo in a near five-hour match on Thursday and moved into the third round, but the win also put nearly $220,000 in prize money into legal limbo because he is not yet 18.
That is why people are searching for kouame tennis now. His run in Paris guarantees him €187,000, a sum that is already larger than his career earnings of $175,637, and the question is no longer whether he earned it but who, if anyone, can receive it now.
Mike Hayden put the issue bluntly: “He can’t even collect his winnings cause he’s not 18 yet.” He added, “There’s a French law that you can’t collect the prize money until you turn 18.” Andy Roddick went further, saying, “He better be getting a fucking interest rate while the government keeps that bag.”
But the legal picture is not that simple. Daryl Monfils called the report about Kouamé not being able to collect his winnings “wrong information” in an email to Front Office Sports, even as French law experts said the teenager probably cannot directly receive the money unless he has legal emancipation from his parents or parental authority. The French Civil Code bars minors below 18 from managing their assets, and Article 382 says legal administration belongs to the parents.
Claire Germain said Kouamé’s case may instead fall under Article L. 7124-9 of the French Labor Code, which she said “governs the financial protection of minors who work in the entertainment, modeling, advertising, audiovisual, and digital content industries.” Under that framework, winnings would be placed in a special savings account under the minor’s name, with legal representatives able to access it for living or career expenses and any surplus kept as a nest egg, then deposited with the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations and blocked until emancipation or age 18.
Another lawyer, Alban Bennacer, said tennis prize money is “not a sum received in exchange for the performance of an employment contract.” In his view, the money due to Kouamé should go to his parents as the holders of parental authority, who could use it for his maintenance and education, with any surplus returning to him when he reaches majority. He also said it is unclear how French authorities calculate those costs and that the laws do not set specific thresholds.
For Kouamé, who turns 18 on March 6, 2027, the practical answer still depends on which rule applies and who controls the account before then. Legal experts said the same framework would govern prize money earned both in and out of France, which means the teenager’s next opponent may be on court, but his bigger match is with the paperwork.
