French Open 2026 produced no shortage of drama in its opening week in Paris, but few episodes generated as much debate as the controversy involving Paraguayan player Adolfo Daniel Vallejo. His fiery post-match comments aimed at the chair umpire following a second-round defeat quickly escalated into one of the tournament’s biggest talking points, drawing accusations of sexism. As the backlash intensified, organisers handed Vallejo one of the heaviest financial penalties seen at a Grand Slam.
Vallejo claimed one of the reasons behind his second-round loss to teenage wildcard Moise Kouame — a five-set marathon lasting four hours and 56 minutes — was the fact that the match was officiated by a woman.
Speaking to Clay magazine, he said: “This sort of match needs to be umpired by a man. It’s very difficult for a woman to do it. It has to be refereed by a man because it’s a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd.”
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The 2026 French Open was only Vallejo’s second appearance in a Grand Slam main draw. His previous outing came at the Australian Open, where he also reached the second round.
French Open organisers described the remarks as “unacceptable” and fined the Paraguayan player $65,000 (£48,283).
Tournament director Amélie Mauresmo told reporters: “This is clearly something that is unacceptable to us, to the tournament and to the federation beyond the tournament. This kind of language has no place here.”
The federation added in an official statement: “The competence of an umpire is not determined by gender, but by professionalism and the ability to officiate at the highest level. The outcome of a sporting event, whether positive or negative, can never justify or excuse such remarks.”
Last Friday, Vallejo attempted to push back against the criticism, arguing that his comments had been taken out of context.
“I never spoke about women in general. I spoke about the referee specifically, who didn’t handle the crowd at any point during the match,” he wrote on social media before later deleting the post.
The penalty was more than three times the $17,000 fine imposed on Serena Williams following her infamous outburst during the 2018 US Open final, when she called the chair umpire a “liar” and a “thief.”
It also exceeded the punishment handed to Daniil Medvedev at the 2025 US Open. Following his shock first-round defeat to Benjamin Bonzi, Medvedev was fined $30,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct and a further $12,500 for racket abuse.
