2023 US Open hold all the attendance ‘aces’

Article posted by Coliseum, September 15^th, 2023

Image: Rossetti

For the past several weeks, the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York (US) was at the center of attention for international sports. Again, the US Open delivered an experience of exceptional value for fans and players.

‘ROSSETTI’ stated that even more impressive: This year, the US Open broke an attendance record by welcoming 957,387 fans over the 20 days. This beats attendance records held by the other Grand Slam tennis tournaments: The Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Additionally, both the Men’s and Women’s Singles Championship sessions, held at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York were the highest-attended in the US Open history.

The 14,000-capacity USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center is a stadium complex within Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, New York City, United States.

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The Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, often referred to as Flushing Meadows Park, or simply Flushing Meadows, is a public park in the Northern part of Queens, New York City, United States. It is bounded by I-678 on the East, Grand Central Parkway on the West, Flushing Bay on the North, and Union Turnpike on the South.

The US Open Tennis Championships, commonly called the US Open, is a hard court tennis tournament held annually in Queens, New York. Since 1987, the US Open has been chronologically the fourth and final Grand Slam tournament of the year.

The 2023 edition of the US Open got off to a start on August 28^th and concluded on September 10^th.

The Arthur Ashe Stadium is a tennis arena at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, New York City (US). Part of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, it is the main stadium of the US Open tennis tournament and has a capacity of 23,771, making it the largest tennis stadium in the world.

‘ROSSETTI’ further stated that the architecture and design firm ROSSETTI partnered with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) in 2010 to reimagine the entire campus to increase open space, enhance fan experience and provide more diverse corporate partnership opportunities. The renewal included the strategic shifting of the property line, modification of practice courts, two new stadiums, and the addition of a retractable roof over the Arthur Ashe Stadium. Over time, the US Open transformed into a “sports spectacle” to provide passionate fans, athletes and sponsors alike with defining moments of wonder and creativity within a fantastical context.

New York (US)-based the United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100 percent of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, from the grassroots to the professional levels.

ROSSETTI is an architectural design and planning firm headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, US. It is a collective of studios with expertise in planning, architecture, interiors, and analytics. ROSSETTI is known globally for its expertise in the design of sports and entertainment venues. However, their location in Detroit allows the design firm to have a strong impact on the local culture and economic vitality.

The success of the reimagination is due to ROSSETTI’s recognition of tennis as a unique sport and the culture of American sporting events. The tennis tournaments are not single events, fans do not come to the event for a few hours, they come for a whole day or multiple days. Specifically in America, fans are coming to the sporting events to also enjoy the social aspect of the sport. The National Tennis Center fulfills these needs by providing retail, restaurants, bars, and lounge areas. Not only do these amenities increase attendance, but they also attract corporate partnerships, driving up the tournament’s revenue. ROSSETTI incorporated all of this in into making the US Open the most sought-after event and inspires further growth in the future.

Attendance Figures

‘us open’ stated that the US Open smashed single-session and daily attendance records in 2023, becoming the first Grand Slam to welcome more than 950,000 spectators over a three-week period.

The US Open welcomed 957,387 fans over the 20 days encompassing both the main draw and the US Open Fan Week, a nearly eight percent increase over 2022. The tournament’s 2023 main-draw attendance was a US Open record 799,402, including sellouts in all 25 sessions in the Arthur Ashe Stadium for the second year in a row.

‘us open’ further stated that both the men’s (28,804) and women’s championship (28,143) sessions were the highest-attended championship sessions in the US Open history.

To start the second week, the tournament set a new Labor Day (September 4^th) weekend record in attendance, with 201,787 fans coming to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center over three days – the first time that the holiday weekend crowd topped the 200,000 mark.

The number came after the first week of the main draw saw an overall attendance of 502,385, marking the first time that Week 1 eclipsed 500,000 fans.

On Day 3, the tournament eclipsed 73,000 in single-day attendance for the first time in the event history, as 73,007 fans came through the gates at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

This all followed a historic Fan Week, where more than 150,000 fans came through the grounds from August 22^nd through August 27^th. The US Open Fan Week attendance rose 41 percent overall from 2022, where a then-record 111,924 fans enjoyed the free events and entertainment on offer, including the US Open Qualifying Tournament.

The Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day on August 27^th also set an all-time attendance record of 40,868, breaking the previous high of 35,525 set in 2022.

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