US Open 2026: The Tension Between Tennis and Influencers

Arthur Ashe Stadium has seen its share of drama. This week, some of it came from the stands.

As Naomi Osaka fought through her first-round match at the 2026 US Open against Anastasia Zakharova, the chair umpire suddenly cut through the noise.

"Guys, please, in the suite behind me ... please take your seat," came the announcement over the microphone, halting play and turning attention away from the baseline and up into the luxury boxes.

It wasn’t a rogue phone ring or a late arrival. It was content.

A viral clip from Osaka’s win showed a group of spectators filming what appeared to be a TikTok video during the second set. Another angle from the same match caught a fan switching on a selfie light to snap photos while Osaka tried to serve. On one of tennis’ biggest stages, the glow wasn’t just from the Arthur Ashe lights anymore.

The US Open has always been louder, looser, more chaotic than its Grand Slam cousins. This year, it has become a magnet for a new wave of fans and influencers, many of whom are documenting every sip of a Honey Deuce, every bite of $100 caviar nuggets, every outfit, every moment. The sport, once fiercely protective of its hush, is learning what happens when tennis meets the attention economy.

Osaka understands the upside.

The four-time major champion, who has long spoken about wanting to broaden tennis’ reach, didn’t dismiss the influencer influx outright.

The exposure they bring, she said, “could be a good thing ... to make the sport of tennis popular.” She knows what a viral moment can do for an athlete, a tournament, a sport. But she also drew a clear line.

The distractions, she added, “have to be managed a lot better.”

“If you come to a sporting event, you have to respect the sport. I feel like it’s common courtesy to read up on the sport," Osaka said on Thursday, Sept. 3, after her 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 victory over Katerina Siniakova. "You want people to continue to grow the sport. I just think it has to be in a way that everyone knows the rules and the etiquette.”

That word — etiquette — used to define tennis crowds. Whispered conversations. Phones away. Applause at the right moments. Now, between points, some fans are more focused on framing the perfect shot than watching the next one.

Jessica Pegula sees both sides from close range.

Ranked among the top American players and a regular presence in the latter stages of majors, she knows how valuable the US Open’s off-court spectacle can be. She can “appreciate the influencers coming and showcasing the US Open experience,” she said, from those high-end food offerings to the now-iconic Honey Deuce that has become as much a Flushing Meadows staple as night sessions and subway rumble.

That buzz helps sell tickets. It helps sell the event.

But there is a tipping point.

Pegula didn’t sugarcoat how it feels when the show in the stands intrudes on the match on court.

"It's getting to a point where it's a bit disrespectful," she said. “I do think that it's tough when you see videos like that when they're taking pictures and using the selfie lights. People are down there trying to perform. It's their career and their job ... So I think it's gotten a little maybe too much it feels like this year. I don't know. I think again, I can appreciate one side of it, but I think when you have the other side literally interrupting matches, it gets a little tough."

Players are used to noise in New York. They are not used to being backlit by someone else’s content creation.

Daniil Medvedev, a former US Open champion who has never shied away from the New York crowd, leaned into the positives. To him, packed stands and fresh faces — even those holding selfie sticks — are mostly a good sign.

He sees “a lot of more upside than downside” in the surge of new tennis fans at the Open.

"The more the sport grows, the better it is," Medvedev said. He backed the USTA to strike the right balance, adding, "I trust USTA (United States Tennis Association) with what they're doing. For sure, if it disturbs during the play, like if you see a light or something, well, you always say it to the referee ... maybe one time they do it, then someone tells them not to do it."

That’s the tension at the heart of this US Open. Tennis wants to be bigger, younger, more visible. Social media delivers that in an instant. But the same phones that beam the sport to millions can also blind a player in mid-serve.

For now, the onus sits in three places: on the USTA to enforce rules in real time, on umpires to step in as they did during Osaka’s match, and on fans — old and new — to understand that the court is not a backdrop, it’s the main event.

The selfies can wait a changeover. The sport will not.