August 26, 2024

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Good morning! College football kicked off over the weekend, and the NFL returns next week. But today, the spotlight shifts to the US Open, which is poised for another record-breaking year with soaring attendance and revenue. Let’s break it down.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]], and Colin Salao [[link removed]]

Everything About the US Open Is Big, and It’s Not Slowing Down [[link removed]]

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

There is now a roof on Arthur Ashe Stadium, the centerpiece venue for the US Open. But there is seemingly no ceiling on what is already the largest event in tennis.

The main draw for the sport’s final major of 2024 begins Monday, and the event is poised for across-the-board increases in key business metrics, even after posting record-setting results last year. The prize pool for the US Open this year is up by 15% from last year to $75 million, the largest sum for any individual event in tennis history, while the men’s and women’s champions will each receive $3.6 million, up by 20% from 2023.

Event organizers, meanwhile, are targeting one million in total attendance for the entire three-week run, including the US Open Fan Week that precedes the tournament. Such a figure would also be unprecedented in tennis history and, if achieved, would mark at least a 4.5% bump from last year’s record total of 957,837 [[link removed]].

“[2023] was extraordinary for us. It was record-breaking in so many ways, in almost every possible regard,” said Lew Sherr, United States Tennis Association CEO and executive director. “We saw the highest number of fans on-site we had ever experienced. We saw the highest broadcast viewership. We saw the highest digital engagement. We are absolutely expecting that trend to continue.”

The US Open’s operating revenue figure of $514.1 million in 2023, which grew by 8.9% from the year before, is also set for further lift. The overall attendance trends, of course, are a key driver in that. But tournament organizers also saw earlier-than-ever sellouts for much of the US Open premium-level inventory such as suites. Overall hospitality sales for this year’s US Open are also up by 27% compared to last year, according to Elevate, which works with the USTA on this part of the tournament.

Event organizers are also seeing a growing link between the Fan Week—which includes tournament qualifying and practices, and a series of family events—and fans then returning for the main draw.

Built for This

The US Open is specifically designed to boost the accessibility of tennis to mass audiences, with a 23,859-seat Arthur Ashe Stadium, the sport’s largest facility, sitting at the center of an event that carries a rather different vibe than many other tournaments.

But there will be some notable tweaks this year to the US Open’s notoriously long-running night sessions [[link removed]]—which have been a defining tournament feature since 1975 but have stretched to nearly 3 a.m. local time in recent years, frustrating players and fans alike. Now, if the second match of the night at Arthur Ashe Stadium or the last match at adjacent Louis Armstrong Stadium hasn’t started by 11:15 p.m., referees will have the ability to move those matches to another available court.

“That’s [still] going to depend on many variables, like do we have the broadcast team ready, do we have a ball crew, [and] so forth,” said Stacey Allaster, US Open tournament director. “But we’re defining that it’s a possibility.”

Grand Payouts

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The prize money for all four Grand Slams increased in 2024, with the largest year-over-year rise of 15% coming from the US Open. The final slam on the calendar already had the largest purse last year.

The Australian Open has the smallest payout of the four, but it’s close to surpassing the French Open after a 13% increase this year compared to just 8% from Roland-Garros.

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The US Open’s $10 Million Signature Cocktail Is Back, and More Expensive [[link removed]]

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The start of the US Open brings the return of the tournament’s most sought-after adult beverage, which is getting even more expensive this year.

For fans at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center over the next two weeks, the popular Honey Deuce cocktail will cost $23, one more dollar than it did 12 months ago. During the 2023 tournament, more than 450,000 Honey Deuces were sold at $22 a pop [[link removed]]—good for nearly $10 million in sales.

That record total was an 11% increase over Honey Deuce sales in 2022. And with this year’s expected record attendance, it should be bottoms up for cocktail connoisseurs enjoying the final Grand Slam of the year in person.

As part of Grey Goose’s sponsorship deal with the US Open, the Honey Deuce is officially the tournament’s signature cocktail, made with vodka, lemonade, raspberry liqueur, and honeydew melon balls, all inside a commemorative cup.

Cocktail Wars?

Grey Goose has been placing the Honey Deuce on hundreds of restaurant and bar menus throughout New York City, according to its website [[link removed]], in a likely effort to push the drink’s demand even higher. But it has a challenger at the US Open.

If vodka isn’t your liquor of choice, Maestro Dobel Tequila is bringing back its Ace Paloma, which debuted last year. Like its vodka counterpart, the tequila cocktail costs one more dollar than it did last year, now running $21. Sales figures from 2023 weren’t released.

Maestro Dobel is selling $69.99 at-home kits of the Ace Paloma, which is made of tequila, lime, grapefruit soda, a dehydrated grapefruit slice, and a black-salt rim, also in a US Open souvenir cup.

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS TODAY How College Football Is Changing Today’s NFL

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The NFL is starting to see the effects of college’s name, image, and likeness era. ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller joins the show to discuss how starting rookie quarterbacks are here to stay, the implications of players like Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr. entering the league with established brand relationships, and why Deion Sanders is likely serious about controlling the draft fates of Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter.

Plus, we hear about the rise and future of pickleball with PPA CEO and commissioner Connor Pardoe and get you ready for the US Open.

Watch, listen, and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Spotify [[link removed]], and YouTube [[link removed]].

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Have you ever paid $23 for a cocktail at a sporting event?

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Friday’s result: 46% of respondents said they would like to see more college football teams play games on Week 0.

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