For the first time in the tournament’s history, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center saw over a million spectators attend the 2024 US Open.
In a social media post, the tournament officials shared: “THANK YOU to every single one of our fans who made the tournament spectacular this year.”
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Two days after sixth-seeded American Jessica Pegula lost to Belarus’ second-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the women’s final, top-seeded American Taylor Fritz lost to world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the men’s final.
Based on the USTA’s record attendance of 832,640 spectators last year, attendance increased by 8% this year, all thanks to American athletes making it to every singles final. Furthermore, a number of well-known people were sighted at the men’s final, including Taylor Swift, her boyfriend Travis Kelce, and Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs.
The 12th-seeded Fritz became the first American man to go to the final of a Grand Slam event this year since Andy Roddick, who finished second in 2006. He also became the first American man to advance to the final of any major tournament since Roddick’s defeat in the 2009 Wimbledon championship match.
With all the American support and his unfortunate defeat in the finals, the athlete expressed: “I feel like the fans obviously, American fans, been wanting a men’s champion for a long time, and … I’m pretty upset with how I played… I feel like, I don’t know, I feel like I almost let a lot of people down.”
Moreover, with a record $75 million in prize money, Sabalenka and Sinner took home $3.6 million apiece for winning the 2024 US Open.
Source: CNA