U.S. Open serves ESPN largest opening-day audience ever

Field Level Media|published: Tue 1st September, 21:06 2026

Novak Djokovic's stunning loss in the opening round of the U.S. Open scored massive ratings for ESPN.

ESPN's coverage of Sunday's first-round action at the U.S. Open averaged 914,000 viewers with a peak of 1.3 million across ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, marking the tournament's largest opening-day audience in the network's history.

Viewership was up 13% from last year on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. ABC averaged 1.25 million viewers, up 7% from last year. Of note, opening day in 2025 was shown on ABC and ESPN2.

Unseeded Mariano Navone's upset of No. 4 seed and four-time U.S. Open champion Novak Djokovic was shown in primetime on ESPN. The four-hour, 36-minute match averaged 958,000 viewers, up 10% from last year, and peaked at an average of 1.3 million viewers from 9:45 to 10 p.m. ET.

--Field Level Media

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