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‘Serena Effect’ lifts US Open prices as international visitors return

The US Tennis Association has revealed unprecedented interest in tickets for the 2022 US Open tennis Grand Slam, which got underway this week, with the proportion of ticket-holders from abroad having rocketed in comparison with last year.

According to Fox Business, the USTA said that international fans are accounting for between 14% and 15% of all ticket-holders at this year’s event – up from less than 3% last year, in spite of a well-documented squeeze on spending.

Average ticket prices on the resale market for the US Open have also increased by 68% thanks to interest surrounding the progress of all-time great Serena Williams.

The USTA cited the so-called ‘Serena Effect’ for the significant interest in tickets for this year’s tournament, with six-time champion Williams having indicated that it will be her final major tournament.

Following her announcement, over 13,000 tickets were sold in just one day for the event, and Fox Business reported that tickets were sold out for the first two days of this year’s Grand Slam.

Average resale prices for the 2022 women’s final have increased from $768 to $1,289 in comparison with the previous record set for the 2019 final.

“Ticket sales are incredibly strong,” Danny Zausner, chief operating officer of the US Tennis Association, told FOX Business. “This year we are on track to break the record for 2019, and that was before Serena’s announcement that it would be her last Grand Slam tournament.”

Zausner added that whilst prices of some food items had increased this year, inflation does not appear to be a barrier to attendance at Flushing Meadows in New York.

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