A Comprehensive Australian Open Guide

By Will Brown Contributor Updated: 25 December 2024

Will Brown Contributor

William Brown is a Content Writer with strong expertise in US and global gambling industry trends. Having covered the local sports betting market since the repeal of PASPA in 2018, William approaches his gambling guides with passion and diligence. He is a keen player of online slots, blackjack, and a regular sports bettor.

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Guide to the Australian Open

Every January, the Australian Open welcomes tennis pros and audiences from around the world for two weeks of high-stakes action. Hosted in Melbourne, the tournament is the first Grand Slam event of the year, with men’s, women’s, and mixed events unfolding before large crowds. In this Australian Open guide, we’ve provided a comprehensive overview of how the event works, its off-court activities and attractions, and its significance in the world of professional tennis.

Intro to the Australian Open Activities and Schedule

We’ve started this guide by exploring the long and storied history of the Australian Open, from its origins in the early 20th century to today. From there, we’ve looked at the format of the tournament, before explaining how its main events are scheduled across the two-week period.

One of the biggest draws for spectators is the many off-court activities and attractions held across Melbourne, hence why we’ve then focused on this. To wrap up this guide to Australian Open tennis, we’ve then looked at the significance of the tournament in Melbourne and the upcoming challenges it faces.

• History of the Australian Open
• The AO Format
• The Tournament Schedule
• Off-Court Activities
• The Tournament’s Signficance
• Impact on Melbourne
• Challenges to Overcome

History of the Australian Open Tennis

The Australian Open was first launched in 1905 as the Australasian Championship. The earliest games were played on grass courts, and it toured different cities including Brisbane and Sydney as well as its current home city of Melbourne. The event was officially recognized as a major international tournament in 1924, and it was renamed the Australian Championships.

In 1969, it was renamed again to the Australian Open. In 1972, it found its permanent address in Melbourne because the city attracted the largest crowds. In this era, many international tennis players chose to avoid the event due to its far-away location in the Southern Hemisphere.

By the time the tournament moved to hard courts at Melbourne Park in 1988, the event had taken on a new level of prestige in international tennis. This was further bolstered in 1996 when the event started to award the same number of ATP points as the other Grand Slam tournaments. The Australian Open tennis prize money pool is now equivalent to $55 million.

The Australian Open is now the most spectated tennis event of the Grand Slams, with more than one million people visiting to watch the live events. Throughout its history, it has staged performances from some of the biggest stars in tennis, including Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic, and Roger Federer.

Australian Open Format

Anyone interested in Australian Open tennis betting will benefit from knowing the format of the events. The tournament features men’s and women’s singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. The singles tournament consists of 128 players, while the doubles events have 64 teams.

The singles events remain the biggest draw for spectators at the Australian Open tennis court. Before the main draw, qualifying rounds are held to give lower-ranked players the chance to earn a place. Then, throughout the main event, the tournament follows a standard knockout format, with losing players eliminated until the final matches.

In men’s singles, the matches include best-of-five sets, while women’s singles consist of best-of-three sets. Doubles and mixed doubles also use the best-of-three format. This format has proven to be the best decider of players’ skills and acumen on the court and is the same used in all Grand Slam competitions.

The Tournament Schedule

One of the reasons we created this Australian Open guide was to ensure that bettors and viewers can start scheduling their viewing in the new year. The tournament usually takes place over two weeks in late January or early February. This coincides with the summer holidays in Australia.

The qualifying rounds are held over the first four days in three rounds. This is then followed by the main draw matches. The first week includes tense early-round action as players compete to secure a spot in the championship stages. The tournament then culminates in the quarterfinals, semifinals, and finalsin the second week.

The doubles and mixed doubles finals are held first, followed by the men’s and women’s singles finals. These are held on the last weekend of the tournament. In 2025, the tournament will commence on January 12, with the women’s singles final held on January 25 and the men’s singles final on January 26.

Off-Court Activities and Events

The Australian Open tennis tournament isn’t just revered for its packed schedule of high-octane tennis matches. As one of Australia’s largest sporting events, the city of Melbourne celebrates by hosting several off-court events and festivals that bring together the wider sporting community. These are held at both Melbourne Park and throughout the city’s stadium district.

One of the most popular Australian Open activities is the Open Festival. This is held across three weeks and culminates in a three-day music festival at the John Cain Arena. Here, some of the country’s biggest bands and DJs entertain the crowds on the final weekend of the Open.

There are also interactive fan experiences held throughout the tournament, where fans can play tennis-themed games and meet current and former star athletes. The Garden Square offers food and drinks as well as a large screen that plays the most anticipated games. The Ballpark offers family-themed entertainment, while the Topcourt is another entertainment zone that services fans.

For those looking for a more in-depth education than even this Australian Open guide provides, an Australian Open Museum chronicles the history of the tournament with in-depth exhibits. Many local restaurants, bars, and venues will also throw independent activities that celebrate the occasion.

The Significance of the Tournament

The Australian Open is the only major tennis event in the Southern Hemisphere, and as the first of four Grand Slams in the year, sets the tone for the remaining year. The event is highly regarded by pundits as showcasing which players may dominate the following year. International fans also speak highly of the event for its excellent organization and buzzy atmosphere.

The Australian Open crowds have a reputation for being passionate and highly invested in the matches. Every year sees attendance records surpassed, which is considerable when noting that it already attracts the biggest audience of the four Grand Slams. The competing athletes are also generally fans of the tournament due to its warm weather and responsive crowds.

The Impact on Melbourne

In addition to the tangible impacts on Melbourne’s atmosphere every January, the Australian Open delivers significant economic impacts to Melbourne and the state of Victoria. In 2024, the three-week event injected $350 million into the local economy, making it the largest economic generator in Australian sport.

Over the past 10 years, the event has contributed more than $2 billion of economic benefits to the state, with over 2,300 full-time jobs created from the tournament in 2024. It also has external benefits to the supporting industries, with more than 1,800 jobs created in the hotel, dining, entertainment, and construction industries.

This doesn’t even take into account additional tourist spending on Australian Open activities and other related expenditures. On a social level, the Melbourne-based tournament is a source of civic pride. The locals embrace the fact that the prestigious event puts the city on a global stage for two weeks and attracts such a large international audience.

Outside of the city, the event has also helped to promote tennis across Australia. This has seen greater investment in youth programs and community clubs, which has been instrumental in building a pipeline for emerging talent.

Challenges Faced by the Australian Open

Before we wrap up this Australian Open guide, it’s worth pointing out that the tournament may be set to face some major challenges. In 2024, Saudi officials shocked the tennis world by lobbying the ATP for a Saudi Arabian tennis tournament, which would be included in a billion dollar deal to merge the ATP and WTA.

The proposed tournament would no doubt have a large prize pool, which could easily sway the top professional tennis stars to ditch the Australian Open. And while it wouldn’t directly clash with the Open, the event would clash with the United Cup, a week-long mixed tournament held in Australia shortly before the Open.

Its positioning on the other side of the world may also discourage major talent from traveling far so close to a Saudi event. In response to the bid, Tennis Australia launched a formal complaint to the ATP, arguing that such a deal would violate a contract extending to 2029.

While the bid was rejected, the Saudi government has signed a media rights deal with the ATP that could extend its influence. Once the contract between the ATP and Tennis Australia ends, there remains a worrying possibility that the tournament’s prospects could be in doubt.