Tennis champion Coco Gauff is giving back in a big way, donating $100,000 to the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to support tennis scholarships at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
The contribution will fund the Coco Gauff Scholarship Program, aimed at helping student-athletes pursue higher education while excelling in tennis.
Though Gauff, 20, hasn’t attended college, her family has deep HBCU ties.
“My family has a deep-rooted history with HBCUs, going all the way back to my great-great-grandfather. Supporting UNCF in creating opportunities for student-athletes in tennis means a lot to me,” Gauff shared in a statement. “As a young Black athlete, I understand how impactful it is to see people who look like me thriving in both sports and education.”
This marks Gauff’s second major sports-related donation this year.
In January, she joined the investment group behind Unrivaled, a new women’s basketball 3-on-3 league.
Gauff, the highest-paid female athlete of 2024, earned $30.4 million through prize money and endorsements, becoming the third woman in sports history—after Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka—to surpass $30 million in annual earnings.
