Category Archives: United States Tennis Association

image@tennis.isport.com

Consistently, we hear tell of under-funded stadiums closing, teams being transferred to more profitable states, and the “bankruptcy” word being thrown around the offices of team owners.

One sporting event consistently delivers in profit, sponsorship, prize money and city revenue. That event is the US Open.

But why? As New Yorkers, we put teams like the Yankees and the Knicks on a pedestal. If you asked a random person on the street which NY sport brought the most money into the city, I doubt very many would say tennis. Yet, it’s true. VERY true.

Year after year, the attendance at the Open tends to grow. It averages 98 percent capacity, around 700,000 attendees per tourney. Last year it battled an impending hurricane Irene and still managed to bring in 650,000 spectators, sell out 11 sessions, and set a record for a final match, (Novak vs. Nadal) with 24,713 people in Arthur Ashe Stadium, (meant to hold an average of 23,200).

Even during the height of the recession in 2009, the US Open actually continued to set records for ticket sales.

But don’t think those tickets represent the money coming in to the city. The ticket money goes to the United States Tennis Association and the organizers of the United States Open. The sponsored money is usually flipped over to prize money. It’s the hospitality costs that cause a great surge for NYC’s revenue.

Many of the Open’s attendees are coming from overseas specifically for the tournament, which lasts two weeks long during prime vacation time that coincides with Labor Day weekend. The average Open-goer has a median income of $150,000 according to the USTA, so it’s safe to say they aren’t always staying in a Comfort Inn. They fill the high end, luxury hotels in the the surrounding areas and tend to stake them out for the entirety of the tourney. The best hotels are often filled up months in advance.

Between the hotels, restaurants, rentals and everything in between, New York City makes an average profit of 250 million dollars off of the US Open. That number grows every year.  That’s a lot of green.

image@tennis.isport.com

Consistently, we hear tell of under-funded stadiums closing, teams being transferred to more profitable states, and the “bankruptcy” word being thrown around the offices of team owners.

One sporting event consistently delivers in profit, sponsorship, prize money and city revenue. That event is the US Open.

But why? As New Yorkers, we put teams like the Yankees and the Knicks on a pedestal. If you asked a random person on the street which NY sport brought the most money into the city, I doubt very many would say tennis. Yet, it’s true. VERY true.

Year after year, the attendance at the Open tends to grow. It averages 98 percent capacity, around 700,000 attendees per tourney. Last year it battled an impending hurricane Irene and still managed to bring in 650,000 spectators, sell out 11 sessions, and set a record for a final match, (Novak vs. Nadal) with 24,713 people in Arthur Ashe Stadium, (meant to hold an average of 23,200).

Even during the height of the recession in 2009, the US Open actually continued to set records for ticket sales.

But don’t think those tickets represent the money coming in to the city. The ticket money goes to the United States Tennis Association and the organizers of the United States Open. The sponsored money is usually flipped over to prize money. It’s the hospitality costs that cause a great surge for NYC’s revenue.

Many of the Open’s attendees are coming from overseas specifically for the tournament, which lasts two weeks long during prime vacation time that coincides with Labor Day weekend. The average Open-goer has a median income of $150,000 according to the USTA, so it’s safe to say they aren’t always staying in a Comfort Inn. They fill the high end, luxury hotels in the the surrounding areas and tend to stake them out for the entirety of the tourney. The best hotels are often filled up months in advance.

Between the hotels, restaurants, rentals and everything in between, New York City makes an average profit of 250 million dollars off of the US Open. That number grows every year.  That’s a lot of green.