US Open Tennis 2026: Dates, Schedule, TV Coverage and Tickets
US Open Tennis 2026 has reached the second week at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. The third round finishes Saturday, September 5 and the round of 16 follows on Sunday and Monday. The women’s final is Saturday, September 12 and the men’s final Sunday, September 13. ESPN and ABC carry every match in the United States.
This is the 146th US Open, the longest ever staged at 22 days, and the richest tournament in tennis history at $108 million.
Quick Facts
| Edition | 146th |
| Full event | Aug 23 to Sep 13, 2026 (22 days) |
| Main draw singles | Aug 30 to Sep 13 |
| Women’s final | Saturday, September 12, 4 p.m. ET |
| Men’s final | Sunday, September 13, 2 p.m. ET |
| Venue | USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York |
| Surface | Outdoor hard court, Laykold |
| Singles draw | 128 players, 32 seeds |
| Top seeds | Alexander Zverev, Aryna Sabalenka |
| Defending champions | Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka |
| US TV | ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, ESPN Deportes |
| Prize money | $108 million, a tennis record |
Match of the Day
Alexander Zverev
Alejandro TabiloWeek One So Far
Djokovic went out in the first round. Mariano Navone beat the fourth seed 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 on opening night. Djokovic was visibly ill and made 70 unforced errors. The loss ended his Open Era record of 78 straight Grand Slam first round wins and was his first opening round exit in New York. Navone reached the third round before losing to Tomás Martín Etcheverry.
The men’s draw has fallen apart. Three of the top six seeds are gone. Félix Auger-Aliassime, the third seed, lost to Karen Khachanov in the second round after reporting dizziness. Sixth seed Alex de Minaur went out to Botic van de Zandschulp in straight sets. Add Djokovic and half the top six are out before the second week.
Alcaraz has barely been troubled. The defending champion beat Roman Safiullin, Jaime Faria and Wu Yibing to reach the round of 16, where he meets Tommy Paul. Not bad for a man who had not played a singles match since April.
Zverev has done it the hard way. The top seed needed five sets to beat Lorenzo Sonego in a rain-delayed first round, then five more to get past Quentin Halys. He plays Alejandro Tabilo on Saturday night.
The women’s favourites have held firm. Sabalenka, Rybakina, Pegula, Gauff, Andreeva, Nosková and Świątek are all still standing. Karolína Muchová, the seventh seed, is the biggest casualty, beaten by Emma Navarro in the third round, with ninth seed Elina Svitolina also out to Anna Kalinskaya.
The world No. 1 ranking is still live. Sabalenka, Rybakina, Pegula and Gauff can all finish on top. Rybakina takes it outright by reaching the semifinals, whatever anyone else does.
The Williams sisters lost from 5-0 up. Serena and Venus, back in the doubles on a wild card for the first time since 2022, led the deciding tiebreak 5-0 and lost 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-7(7) to Maya Joint and Chan Hao-ching. Venus, 46, had already gone out of the singles to Sofia Kenin in a match that began at 12:13 a.m., the latest start in tournament history.
Two farewells are complete. Stan Wawrinka lost his final Grand Slam match to Matteo Berrettini in the first round. Gaël Monfils played his last major and went out to Learner Tien in the second.
Alexandra Eala keeps going. The 17th seed dropped just eight games in beating Mary Stoiana and Oleksandra Oliynykova, and meets Iva Jovic on Arthur Ashe on Saturday with a first US Open round of 16 at stake.
Rain shaped the first week. Three straight days lost outdoor play from August 30, pushing part of the first round into September 2. Ashe and Louis Armstrong played on under their roofs throughout. The schedule has been back to normal since.
Round of 16 ties already set include Alcaraz against Tommy Paul, Daniil Medvedev against Frances Tiafoe, Sabalenka against Taylor Townsend and Pegula against Sorana Cîrstea.
Every score, round by round: US Open 2026 results.
US Open Tennis 2026 Schedule and Key Dates
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Aug 23 to 29 | Fan Week, qualifying and the Mixed Doubles Championship (completed) |
| Aug 30 to Sep 2 | First round, extended by rain (completed) |
| Sep 2 to 3 | Second round (completed) |
| Sep 4 to 5 | Third round |
| Sep 6 to 7 | Round of 16, Labor Day weekend |
| Sep 8 to 9 | Quarterfinals |
| Thu, Sep 10 | Women’s semifinals, 7 p.m. ET. Open for All Day, free grounds entry |
| Fri, Sep 11 | Men’s semifinals, 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET |
| Sat, Sep 12 | Women’s final, 4 p.m. ET |
| Sun, Sep 13 | Men’s final, 2 p.m. ET |
Outer courts and the Grandstand start at 11 a.m. ET. Arthur Ashe Stadium starts at 11:30 a.m. ET on most days. Night sessions in Ashe and Louis Armstrong begin at 7 p.m. ET. The USTA posts the next day’s order of play each evening.
Day by day detail, TV windows and local start times: US Open 2026 schedule.
Seeds and Players to Watch
| Seed | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alexander Zverev | Aryna Sabalenka |
| 2 | Carlos Alcaraz | Elena Rybakina |
| 3 | Félix Auger-Aliassime (out) | Jessica Pegula |
| 4 | Novak Djokovic (out) | Coco Gauff |
| 5 | Flavio Cobolli | Mirra Andreeva |
| 6 | Alex de Minaur (out) | Linda Nosková |
| 7 | Daniil Medvedev | Karolína Muchová (out) |
| 8 | Ben Shelton | Iga Świątek |
Jannik Sinner is not here. The world No. 1 beat Zverev to win Wimbledon in July for his fifth major, then withdrew on August 21 with a right knee injury. It is the first Grand Slam he has missed since Wimbledon 2019, and the reason Zverev is top seed and Alcaraz second.
Carlos Alcaraz is the clear favourite now. He won the Australian Open in January to complete the career Grand Slam at 22, the youngest man ever to do it, then a wrist injury at the Barcelona Open cost him Roland Garros, Wimbledon, Montreal and Cincinnati. He has lost one set in three matches.
Alexander Zverev is top seed at a major for the first time. He won his maiden Grand Slam at Roland Garros and reached the Wimbledon final, and he is the first man to be a major’s No. 1 seed without ever having been world No. 1.
Aryna Sabalenka chases a three peat. She won in 2024 and 2025. No woman has taken three straight US Opens since Serena Williams from 2012 to 2014.
Three different women hold the 2026 majors. Rybakina took Melbourne, Mirra Andreeva won Roland Garros at 19, and Linda Nosková won Wimbledon at 21.
American depth is the story of the draw. Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton, Alex Michelsen and Learner Tien are all still involved, alongside Jessica Pegula, Coco Gauff, Emma Navarro, Amanda Anisimova, Madison Keys, Taylor Townsend and Iva Jovic.
Missing from the start: Jannik Sinner, João Fonseca, Holger Rune, Jack Draper, Casper Ruud, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Emma Raducanu and Victoria Mboko.
Full field and section by section analysis: players guide and draw breakdown.
What Is New in 2026
Record $108 million purse. Prize money jumped 20 percent on 2025. This is the first Grand Slam to pass $100 million in player compensation, and the USTA added a $2 million player support programme on top.
Longest edition ever. Fan Week opened August 23 with Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day leading off for the first time, giving 22 competition days. More than 300,000 fans came through the gates during Fan Week, with Fan Access Pass registrations up 66 percent on 2025.
New host broadcasters. The USTA produces the world feed from 2026, a job ESPN held from 2015 to 2025, with Warner Bros. Discovery taking on host broadcast duties for the first time. Your local channel is unchanged.
RedZone came to tennis. ESPN streamed point to point coverage across all 16 courts from August 30 through September 4, a first for ESPN tennis coverage. That window has now closed.
Arthur Ashe rebuilt. Phase two of the $800 million project reworked the lower bowl and suite levels. Courtside seating grew from 3,000 to 5,000 and the concourses are 40 percent wider. The tournament’s chief operating officer puts capacity at 23,933. The full redesign lands before the 2027 US Open.
How to Watch US Open Tennis 2026 Live
ESPN holds exclusive US rights through 2037. Coverage runs across ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, ESPN Deportes and the ESPN App.
| Session | Date and time ET | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Round of 16 | Sun Sep 6, 3 to 6 p.m. | ABC |
| Women’s semifinals | Thu Sep 10, 7 p.m. | ESPN |
| Men’s semifinals | Fri Sep 11, 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. | ESPN |
| Women’s doubles final | Fri Sep 11, noon | ESPN2 |
| Women’s final | Sat Sep 12, 4 p.m. | ESPN and ESPN Deportes |
| Men’s doubles final | Sat Sep 12, noon | ESPN App only |
| Men’s final | Sun Sep 13, 2 p.m. | ABC and ESPN Deportes |
The streaming plans confuse a lot of people. ESPN+ still exists, but only as the content library inside the ESPN Select plan, and Select does not carry the ESPN linear channels. To stream all 16 courts and Multiview you need ESPN Unlimited.
| Plan | Price for new sign-ups | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| ESPN Select | $13.99 a month | ESPN+ library only, no linear channels |
| ESPN Unlimited | $31.99 a month | Every match, all 16 courts, Multiview |
| Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Unlimited | $35.99 a month | Same tennis access, bundled |
Prices rose from $12.99 and $29.99. Anyone who subscribed before August 20 keeps the old rate until their first billing date after September 17.
| Country | Where to watch |
|---|---|
| United States | ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Unlimited |
| UK and Ireland | Sky Sports Tennis, Sky Go, NOW |
| Canada | TSN, RDS, TSN Direct, TSN+ |
| Australia | Nine and 9Now free, Stan Sport for every court |
| Europe (45 markets) | Eurosport, plus every court on HBO Max. Excludes Austria, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK and Ireland |
| India and South Asia | JioStar, on Star Sports and JioHotstar |
| South Africa | SuperSport |
| New Zealand | ESPN via Disney+ or Sky Sport |
| MENA | beIN Sports |
| Japan | WOWOW |
Australia has the best free option anywhere. Nine airs selected matches free to air and 9Now streams them at no cost. Travelling? Your home service checks your location and will block you.
Prices, apps and local detail for every market: live stream guide.
Tickets and the Last Free Day
Face value sold out within hours of going on sale in late May. Grounds passes were $65 and Arthur Ashe seats started at $43, so resale is what most fans now pay. The average get in price across the main draw was $288, about 13 percent up on 2025, with finals tickets starting near $510.
Buy through usopen.org or Ticketmaster, the official ticketing partner. Official resale runs through the Official Ticket Marketplace, powered by Ticketmaster, the only secondary site where purchases are verified. Use those sources only.
Fan Week gave seven free days from August 23 to 29. One free day is left: Open for All Day on Thursday, September 10. Grounds admission is free and the outer courts stage the men’s doubles semifinals plus junior and wheelchair matches. The women’s semifinals in Arthur Ashe that evening are a separate ticketed session. The USTA required a free Fan Access Pass for Fan Week, so check the US Open app before you travel.
Sessions, prices and seating advice: tickets guide.
Prize Money
The 2026 US Open pays out $108 million, up 20 percent on the $90 million record set in 2025. Men and women earn identical amounts at every round.
| Result | Singles payout |
|---|---|
| Champion | $5,500,000 |
| Runner up | $2,800,000 |
| Semifinalist | $1,450,000 |
| Quarterfinalist | $780,000 |
| Round of 16 | $480,000 |
| Third round | $290,000 |
| Second round | $190,000 |
| First round | $140,000 |
Doubles and mixed doubles champions each take $1 million per team, with $500,000 for the runners up. The first round cheque rose 27 percent, the biggest jump of any round and a direct answer to player pressure over pay at the base of the draw.
Qualifying and doubles detail: prize money guide.
Mixed Doubles Result
Karolína Muchová and Jakub Menšík won the Mixed Doubles Championship on August 26, beating Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli 6-3, 1-6, 10-6. The all Czech pair split $1 million, the largest mixed doubles prize in tennis. ESPN2 coverage averaged 363,000 viewers, up 138 percent on 2025.
Sixteen teams played the main draw on August 25 and 26, after a new qualifying day on August 24. Matches used short sets to four games with no-ad scoring and a 10-point tiebreak instead of a third set, with the final played to six. Top seeds Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka lost their opener, as did two time defending champions Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori. Carlos Alcaraz and Serena Williams reached the quarterfinals on a wild card.
Full results and format: mixed doubles guide.
Inside the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center
Arthur Ashe Stadium holds about 23,900 after the 2026 rebuild, still the largest tennis stadium in the world. Louis Armstrong seats about 14,000. Those two courts have retractable roofs, which is why they kept playing through three days of rain in the first week. The Grandstand seats 8,125, has no roof, and gives the closest view on the grounds.
The tournament drew a record 1,144,562 fans in 2025, up 9 percent year on year and the second straight year above one million. Fan Week alone brought in more than 300,000 this year.
Getting there is simple. Take the 7 subway train or the Long Island Rail Road Port Washington Branch to Mets Willets Point, a short walk from the gates. The LIRR runs direct from Grand Central Madison and Penn Station in about 19 minutes. Parking near Flushing Meadows is limited, especially on New York Mets home dates.
A Short History
The US Open is the fourth and final Grand Slam of the season, after the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon. The first US National Championship was played in 1881 at the Newport Casino in Rhode Island. The men’s event moved to Forest Hills in 1915 and the tournament settled at Flushing Meadows in 1978, where it has been played on hard courts ever since.
Explore the Tournament
- Results: every score, updated daily
- Schedule and TV times: round dates, ESPN windows, order of play
- Live stream: every country, service and price
- Tickets: sessions, prices, safe buying
- Draw and matchups: seeds, quarters, projected meetings
- Printable bracket: free sheets to fill in
- Prize money: round by round breakdown
- Players and seeds: the full field
FAQ about US Open Tennis 2026
When is the US Open 2026 final?
The women’s final is Saturday, September 12 at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN. The men’s final is Sunday, September 13 at 2 p.m. ET on ABC. The round of 16 runs September 6 and 7, quarterfinals September 8 and 9, women’s semifinals September 10 and men’s semifinals September 11.
Did Novak Djokovic lose in the first round?
Yes. Mariano Navone beat the fourth seed 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 on opening night, August 30. Djokovic was unwell on court and made 70 unforced errors. The result ended his Open Era record of 78 consecutive Grand Slam first round wins and was his first opening round exit at the US Open. Navone then reached the third round.
Which seeds are out of the 2026 US Open?
Three of the top six men have gone: Novak Djokovic in round one, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alex de Minaur in round two. Arthur Fils, Lorenzo Musetti, Andrey Rublev, Brandon Nakashima, Alexander Bublik and Jiri Lehecka are also out. On the women’s side the biggest names gone are seventh seed Karolina Muchova and ninth seed Elina Svitolina, both beaten in the third round.
Is Jannik Sinner playing the 2026 US Open?
No. The world No. 1 withdrew on August 21 with a right knee injury, his first missed Grand Slam since Wimbledon 2019. Alexander Zverev is top seed in his place, with defending champion Carlos Alcaraz seeded second. Joao Fonseca, Holger Rune, Jack Draper, Casper Ruud, Emma Raducanu and Victoria Mboko are also out.
How can I watch US Open Tennis 2026?
In the United States, ESPN and ESPN2 carry daily coverage, ABC has the round of 16 on September 6 and the men’s final on September 13, and both semifinals are on ESPN. ESPN Unlimited streams all 16 courts at $31.99 a month for new subscribers. Sky Sports covers the UK, TSN Canada, Eurosport and HBO Max most of Europe, and Nine plus 9Now show free matches in Australia.
How much prize money is at the 2026 US Open?
A record $108 million, up 20 percent on 2025 and the first Grand Slam to pass $100 million. Each singles champion earns $5.5 million, the runner up $2.8 million, a semifinalist $1.45 million and a quarterfinalist $780,000. Losing in the first round pays $140,000. Doubles and mixed doubles champions take $1 million per team.
Are there any free days left at the 2026 US Open?
One. Open for All Day falls on Thursday, September 10, when grounds admission is free and the outer courts stage the men’s doubles semifinals plus junior and wheelchair matches. The women’s semifinals in Arthur Ashe that evening are a separate ticketed session.
What is the US Open bag policy?
One bag per guest, no larger than 12 inches wide by 12 inches high by 16 inches long. Backpacks are banned except single compartment drawstring bags. Reusable metal or plastic water bottles up to 24 ounces are allowed, glass is not. There is no bag storage inside the grounds, though paid storage sits just outside the Main Entry and Champions’ Gate.
We update this US Open Tennis 2026 guide every morning with results, start times, TV listings, seed movements and printable brackets, right through to the men’s final on September 13.