Article by David Istrate – Published Tuesday, 14 April 2026, 10:17 / Updated Tuesday, 14 April 2026 10:18
The US Open trophy won by Boris Becker in 1989 was auctioned and sold for $357,456 on Sunday, April 12. The title that year was one of the 6 Grand Slams won in singles by the former German tennis player.
On September 10, 1989, Boris Becker defeated Ivan Lendl in the final of the US Open, 7-6 (2), 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4), and became the first tennis player from Germany to win the Grand Slam title in New York.
At that time, it was the 4th Grand Slam trophy of Becker's careerwho would triumph at the Australian Open twice more, in 1991 and 1996.
More than $350,000 cost to buy the US Open trophy won by Boris Becker in 1989
37 years after that moment, the trophy won by Becker in 1989 at the US Open was put up for auction through The Tennis Auction platform. On Sunday, it was bought on 357,746 dollarsbecoming one of the most expensive collectibles in tennis.
The most expensive tennis object sold at auction is the racket that Novak Djokovic used during the 2012 Australian Open final. It was bought for $540,000.
“It's hard to imagine another Grand Slam trophy hitting the market anytime soon, simply because players don't want to part with their trophies. They are holy grails of their careers”, said Matt Cashin, founder of Prestige Memorabilia and The Tennis Action, quoted by The Athletic.
“It was certainly an unusual circumstance with Becker having to part with the trophy. So we had a rare opportunity,” he added.
The unusual circumstance Cashin refers to is that of Becker's bankruptcy, forced by financial problems to give up the trophies. At the same time, the former world leader was accused of not including some of his assets and trophies in the bankruptcy documents, and this earned him a 30-month prison sentence.
Becker was eventually imprisoned for 8 months, speaking on several occasions about his experiences in prison.
