The last Grand Slam of the year
There are four majors each year, and the US Open is the finale. By the time it starts, the season’s storylines have built up all summer, so it often carries the most weight and the most pressure.
Tennis · August 31 to September 13, 2026
US Open
The US Open is the last of tennis’s four Grand Slams, the sport’s biggest events. It runs for two weeks at the end of the summer in New York, played on hard courts, and it is known for loud crowds, late-night finishes, and a party atmosphere you do not get at the other majors. You do not need to follow tennis all year to enjoy it. Here is what a casual viewer needs.
The basics
- When
- August 31 to September 13, 2026
- Where
- Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York
- Surface
- Hard court
- Main arena
- Arthur Ashe Stadium, about 23,000 seats
How it works
It is a knockout tournament. Lose once and you are out, so every match matters. The field narrows round by round over two weeks, from the first round down to the semi-finals and then the finals on the closing weekend, with the women’s singles final on the second Saturday and the men’s on the Sunday. There are singles and doubles draws, but the singles finals are the main event.
New to tennis scoring? Here is the whole system in plain English.
What to watch for
- The night sessions in Arthur Ashe Stadium. The roof, the lights, and a New York crowd make it the loudest stage in tennis.
- Upsets in the first week. Big names can go out early on these fast hard courts, and those are often the most fun matches to catch.
- The closing weekend. The women’s final is on the second Saturday and the men’s on the Sunday, the two matches everyone talks about.
Three things that make the US Open the US Open
A hard, fast surface
The US Open is played on hard courts, which are quicker and less forgiving than clay or grass. That tends to reward big serving and aggressive play, and it can produce short, explosive matches.
The most New York of the majors
Music between points, planes overhead, and a crowd that shows up as much for the night out as the tennis. It is louder and later than Wimbledon or the French Open, and that is the whole appeal.
How to watch in the US
In the United States, the US Open airs on ESPN and its networks, and streams on the ESPN app. Play runs day and night across two weeks, with the marquee matches usually in the evening sessions. You can drop in for a single match; you do not need to watch the whole fortnight.
US Open questions, answered
- When is the 2026 US Open?
- August 31 to September 13, 2026, in New York. The US Open is the final tennis Grand Slam of the year, two weeks of matches capped by the women's and men's singles finals on the closing weekend. Qualifying rounds run the week before the main draw begins.
- Where is the US Open played?
- At the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York, the largest tennis complex in the world. The main court, Arthur Ashe Stadium, seats around 23,000 and has a retractable roof, making it the biggest tennis arena anywhere. It is a short 7 train ride from Manhattan.
- How does the US Open work?
- Singles is a 128-player bracket, single elimination, played over two weeks. Win 7 straight matches and you are the champion. Men play best of 5 sets, women play best of 3. Doubles, mixed doubles, junior, and wheelchair events run alongside the singles draws.
- How does tennis scoring work?
- Points go 15, 30, 40, then game (a score of zero is called love). Win 6 games by a margin of 2 to take a set. At 6-6, a tiebreak decides the set (first to 7 points, win by 2). Men win the match by taking 3 sets, women by taking 2. If a match reaches a final-set 6-6, all four Grand Slams now play a 10-point tiebreak to settle it.
- Who are the players to watch at the US Open?
- On the men's side: Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Novak Djokovic, who holds more Grand Slam titles than any man in history. On the women's side: Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, and American Coco Gauff, who won the US Open in 2023. The New York crowd gets loudest for the home players, so keep an eye on the Americans in the draw.
- How can I watch the US Open in the US?
- ESPN holds exclusive US broadcast rights. Matches air across ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC, with every court streaming on ESPN+ ($11.99/month). ESPN+ is the only way to follow all the outer-court matches at once. Live TV bundles like YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, and Fubo carry the ESPN channels.
- What makes the US Open different from the other Grand Slams?
- It is the loudest and latest of the four. Hard courts (faster than clay, slower than grass), New York in the late-summer heat, and night sessions under the lights that can run past midnight. The atmosphere is closer to a stadium concert than the hushed lawns of Wimbledon. It is also the last major of the season, so titles and year-end rankings often come down to it.
- What is a Grand Slam in tennis?
- The four biggest tournaments of the year: the Australian Open (January, hard court), the French Open on the Paris clay (May to June), Wimbledon on grass (June to July), and the US Open on hard court (August to September). Winning all four in a single year is a calendar Grand Slam, one of the rarest feats in sports.
- Is the US Open on Fanish yet?
- Not yet. Formula 1 is live now, with tennis on the way. Want US Open coverage in the app? Tell us at hey@fanish.app and we will move it up the list.
Show up to the US Open like you know.
The World Cup and Formula 1 are live in the app now, and the US Open is coming. Download it for what is on, and enjoy the game. ish.
Download on the App StoreFree to download. One $4.99 purchase unlocks the launch bundle. Pay per event. Never a subscription.