Lights. Camera. Quiet, please.
At the US Open in New York, tennis is colliding head‑on with the creator economy, and the soundtrack is no longer just the thud of the ball and the murmur of a late-summer crowd. It’s ring lights, selfie angles and running commentary from hospitality suites high above Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Around 100 influencers and content creators have been granted accreditation this year – twice as many as last season. For tournament organisers, it is a calculated gamble: open the gates to a new audience, but risk trampling the sport’s old codes of conduct.
On court, those codes still matter. Players apologise for net cords. They own up to double bounces. They shake hands when it’s over. In the stands, there has always been an unspoken rule too: don’t disturb the point.
That line is suddenly blurred.
Ring lights on Ashe, and a warning from the chair
Naomi Osaka felt it first.
During the two-time champion’s opening match on Arthur Ashe, a group in a hospitality suite staged a full-blown photo shoot while play was in progress. They even switched on a portable ring light as Osaka stepped up to serve. The umpire stepped in, issuing a reprimand.
The incident didn’t disappear into the noise. A video from that match – a group talking loudly, filming themselves as points unfolded – went viral. It ended with the chair umpire calling for them to stop.
When Osaka returned to Ashe on Thursday, the atmosphere had changed, but not in the way players usually mean.
“Today the umpire told everyone to be quiet more than I've ever heard an umpire tell a crowd to be quiet,” she said. Osaka insisted she normally locks in on the court, filters everything else out. This time, she couldn’t.
“There was a moment where there was people shouting and you could hear it quite clearly. I think it bothered my opponent, too.”
Her message wasn’t a rejection of the new wave, but a reminder of where the line should be.
“I think obviously if you come to a sporting event, you have to respect the sport,” she said. “I feel like it's common courtesy to read up on the sport, especially the etiquette.
“It could be a good thing for people to make the sport of tennis popular to their specific audience, but I think it has to be managed a lot better, especially in the situation like my first-round match.
“Overall, I think there are huge positives. 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.”
Gauff’s dress code for the digital age
Coco Gauff, world number four and one of the sport’s most powerful young voices, struck a similar balance: open arms for new fans, but not at any cost.
“I definitely think it's cool to have a new demographic and I definitely think it helps grow the sport,” she said.
Then came the analogy that cut through the debate.
“But if you're being invited to a red carpet, you wouldn't show up in jeans. I think it's just follow the etiquette of the sport. That's all.”
In other words: come as you are, bring your audience, but respect the stage.
Not everyone is bothered
Arthur Ashe is the biggest tennis stadium on the planet. It has always hummed – people talking, drinks being poured, the constant shuffle in the upper decks. Some players thrive in that chaos. Some don’t.
Daniil Medvedev, the men’s seventh seed and a player who has had his share of tense exchanges with New York crowds, is firmly in the “embrace it” camp.
“I think the more we try to raise awareness about tennis, the better it is, the more popular the sport is,” he said. “The more the sport grows, the better it is. I trust USTA with what they are doing. I think [there is] a lot more upside than downside, so go for it.”
American 11th seed Frances Tiafoe sounded equally relaxed. For him, the US Open’s power lies in its mix.
“I think the Open is great because you get all types of people that want to come and watch tennis,” he said. “All different walks of life, different types of people, different type of occupations. Personally, I love that.
“I have no problem with anybody doing anything, coming to watch the tennis.”
Pegula draws a harder line
Jessica Pegula, the world number three, sees the upside too. But she has also watched the viral clips.
“I can appreciate the influencers coming and showcasing the US Open experience,” she said. Then she drew the distinction that many players have been whispering about.
“But I do think that it's tough when you see videos when they're taking pictures and using the selfie lights. People are down there trying to perform. It's their career and their job. It seems a bit disrespectful.
“I think it's become a little too much this year.
“I can appreciate one side of it, but I think when you have the other side literally interrupting matches, it gets a little tough.”
“The tennis Disneyland”
The shift in atmosphere has not come out of nowhere. It is baked into the way the tournament has been reshaped.
In 2024, the US Open introduced a policy of free fan movement. No more waiting for changeovers to slip into your seat. A year later, the event stretched to 15 days. The week before the main singles draw is now sold as “Fan Week”, a festival of mixed doubles and exhibitions featuring stars past and present.
Tournament chief executive Craig Tiley has a clear vision: “the tennis Disneyland”.
To get there, the US Open created a “creator credential” – a formal pass for influencers and content creators.
“We need to find ways of reaching new audiences, reaching people in a way that they connect with media today,” Tiley said in a pre-tournament news conference. “The creation of the creator credential has been a key part of that because it's enabled us to talk to people in a way that they're listening. That's been a big focus.”
The result is what we are seeing now: ring lights in suites, content being shot mid-point, a new kind of noise layered on top of the old New York buzz.
USTA walks the tightrope
After Osaka’s disrupted first-round match, the response from organisers came quickly. Screens around the grounds now carry more pointed reminders, asking fans to “refrain from any activity that could disrupt the game, including noise levels, flash photography and ring lights”.
The USTA’s official line is clear: growth, but not at the expense of the contest.
It said in a statement that it “is always striving to grow tennis in this country and bring new audiences into the sport”.
“We want all of our fans and guests to have an incredible time when they attend, but we also need to ensure they do not interfere with the action and competition on the court,” the statement continued.
“We are continually looking for ways to ensure fans in the stands know what is permitted and what is prohibited.”
That is the tightrope now. On one side, the sport’s traditions and the players’ workplace. On the other, the pull of new platforms, new demographics, new money.
Influencers have arrived at the US Open, credentials around their necks and cameras in hand. The question is no longer whether they belong, but how far they can go before the quiet part of “Quiet, please” stops being negotiable.
