She makes certain celebrities on the U.S. Open watch tennis in type

There’s Ben Stiller, entrance row for the Taylor Fritz–Novak Djokovic match, watching each level with intent. Beside him, Owen Wilson. A number of seats down? Elizabeth Banks. And that’s only a sampling from one night time session on the U.S. Open, America’s largest and loudest skilled tennis match. A number of the largest names haven’t even touched down in Queens, N.Y., but — however because the match stakes get greater, so does the celeb wattage.

Even non-tennis followers can get swept up within the different sport taking place outdoors of the courts: celeb watching. Behind the velvet ropes and completely chilled champagne, there’s one individual ensuring the celebrities are seated on the proper match, the caviar-topped rooster nuggets are boxed up and the Honey Deuces are flowing.

Enter Amanda Wight, who leads this system. Whereas her crew does “a bit of outreach” to safe high-profile names to look at tennis’s largest abilities duke it out on the courtroom, this 12 months from Aug. 18 to Sept. 7, she says her inbox is crammed up with asks — and her cellphone doesn’t cease buzzing.

“Largely the requests come on to us — by pals of the Open, brokers and even gamers who’ve celeb pals, both different athletes or entertainers,” Wight tells Yahoo.

The star energy would possibly look easy, nevertheless it’s the results of considerate planning and behind-the-scenes coordination. In reality, the US Tennis Affiliation (USTA) has a job particularly carved out to handle VIP engagement and celeb expertise. Loads of stars need tickets, however not everybody will get one. In recent times, the visitor checklist has grow to be much more intentional.

The invitation checklist

Whereas the USTA crew plans year-round, the true surge of requests comes in the summertime.

“As soon as it hits the beginning of August, then it’s [fielding] a whole lot and a whole lot of requests,” Wight says.

These celebrities aren’t shopping for their very own passes; the essential — and the very, essential — aren’t paying. “Nearly all of them are invited friends,” she says. “We now have only a few celebrities who’re truly buying tickets.”

Wight and her crew have a “finite” quantity for celeb ticket allocation. As soon as they overview the requests, it turns into a cautious recreation of curation — weighing star energy, cultural relevance and timing to find out who will get in, the place they sit and the way to profit from their look. Particularly for the 2 largest days of the match.

“We all know everybody needs to attend the ladies’s and males’s finals,” Wight says, which will probably be happening on Sept. 6 and Sept. 7, respectively. “We actually concentrate on the highest-profile names — from leisure and sports activities, to style and tech — and we prioritize those that align with what the U.S. Open represents on a worldwide stage. … We attempt to preserve it on the highest degree that we are able to.”

These folks sit on the prime of the invite hierarchy. And the larger the title, the later their attendance tends to get confirmed.

In 2024, that included Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, who determined to attend the lads’s last simply 36 hours earlier than the occasion. They joined Patrick and Brittany Mahomes within the ESPN suite — setting off a flurry of calls, approvals and safety walk-throughs. “We attempt to preserve it underneath wraps however nonetheless plan photographs of their arrival and seating,” Wight says. “We all know the place everyone seems to be seated in order that broadcasters and photographers can seize them.”

The Open expertise, celeb type

For these invited or accredited with one of many USTA’s allotted tickets, the expertise begins lengthy earlier than the primary serve. Transportation is commonly organized — from black automobiles choosing up expertise round Manhattan to extra high-touch service for friends arriving by non-public jet or helicopter.

“We’ll do pickups at LaGuardia’s non-public terminal,” Wight says.

As soon as on-site at Billie Jean King Nationwide Tennis Heart, VVIPs are usually positioned in both the President’s Suite or the Emirates Suite, two of probably the most unique hospitality areas in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The President’s Suite is a two-story, invite-only area with its personal non-public entrance, top-shelf open bar and personal ballroom for intimate dinners. Common friends embody Anna Wintour, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Alec Baldwin and Vera Wang.

“[It] will be most aligned to the Royal Field [at Wimbledon]. Clearly, we’ve a bit of bit extra wiggle room as a result of we don’t have royals in our President’s Suite,” Wight says. “There’s a proper dinner each night that friends can attend, there’s allotted seating. That one’s a bit of bit extra buttoned-up.”

Emirates’ hospitality suite spans practically 1,400 sq. toes and provides direct sightlines to heart courtroom, unique cocktails and elevated bites. It’s one of many largest within the stadium — basically the dimensions of 4 commonplace suites mixed.

“There’s a chef getting ready meals for everybody, they usually’re waited on for his or her beverage providers,” Wight says. “It’s very comfy and a enjoyable vibe, in fact, significantly within the night session.”

Neither suite is on the market to the general public for buy. As an alternative, they’re used to host celebrities, dignitaries and choose friends from the USTA and its companions.

Wight says friends are inclined to arrive early earlier than the match begins for a cocktail or keep after it ends to mingle — however the whole lot is managed quietly and discreetly.

Not each celeb leads to a field, and never each seat comes from the USTA. Nonetheless, Wight and her crew work carefully with their company sponsors to be sure that if a star is coming by, they get the blue carpet therapy.

“Courtside is usually sponsor-based,” Wight says. “Emirates has a few seats. Generally we are able to flip folks in and [out of the suite] relying on who’s coming and who we need to have courtside.”

That’s why you would possibly spot stars like Rory McIlroy, Tom Brady, John Mulaney or Olivia Munn sitting just some toes from the baseline — as they’ve throughout this match. Some come by sponsors. Others are invited by gamers. And typically, if there’s room and the title is sufficiently big, Wight’s crew finds them a seat.

“It’s a combination,” she says. “Gamers will attain out and say, ‘Hey, I’m coming — can I get a seat within the participant space? Can I heat up with so-and-so? Can I cease by the lounge?’ And we attempt to make it occur. They’re their pals, in any case.”

Incorporating influencers

It’s not simply Hollywood A-listers and celebrity athletes filling up the Open’s visitor checklist. In recent times, the USTA has additionally been increasing its attain by incorporating influencers — from magnificence creators and style TikTokers to sports activities personalities with large on-line followings. In accordance with the USTA, extra invites have gone to digital creators within the years because the COVID pandemic, because the match appears to broaden its cultural footprint.

Some nonetheless roll their eyes at influencers getting A-list therapy, however that’s simply how the sport is performed now. The purpose is easy: Attain new audiences within the locations they’re already scrolling.

Influencer friends may not land within the President’s Suite or present up in a broadcast cutaway subsequent to Gigi and Bella Hadid, however their impression continues to be measurable. Blue carpet images, courtside selfies and Get Prepared With Me-style vlogs rack up tens of millions of impressions — and assist place the U.S. Open as a related, fashionable and aspirational cultural second, not only a sporting occasion.

The USTA needs folks with large on-line followings on the stadium, like Giggly Squad podcast hosts Hannah Berner and Paige DeSorbo, who each attended this 12 months.

On the opposite finish of the affect spectrum are the WAGs — like Dairy Boy founder Paige Lorenze and Morgan Riddle, who each have large on-line followings and critical courtside presence. Riddle, dubbed “probably the most well-known girl in males’s tennis,” is relationship Taylor Fritz; Lorenze is engaged to Tommy Paul. Technically, they’re “throughout the tennis household,” Wight says — however their capacity to drive buzz (and rack up views) places them proper within the influencer combine.

“We actually need to attempt to lean into that as a result of they do appeal to new audiences that we’re attempting to develop,” she says.

You would possibly count on the influencer crowd to by chance disrupt play — snapping selfies with the flash on or filming throughout factors — however Wight says etiquette has by no means been a problem.

“They’re all fairly well-behaved, to be trustworthy,” she says.

Greater than a match

For all of the glitz and glamour, the U.S. Open continues to be, at its core, a tennis match. However in 2025, celeb tradition doesn’t simply orbit the game; it elevates it. Whether or not it’s a set cameo from a pop icon or a TikTok creator capturing the proper tennis skirt twirl, the off-court visibility amplifies what occurs on it.

Let’s not overlook, the celebrities within the stands aren’t simply there to be seen — they’re usually displaying as much as see somebody particular. With gamers like Jannik Sinner, Naomi Osaka and Carlos Alcaraz competing, many celebrities are superfans of particular person athletes and time their visits accordingly, including to the cachet.

At a serious sporting occasion the place luxurious hospitality and influencer technique now play alongside world-class tennis, one factor is obvious: The U.S. Open is now not only a match. It’s a seen-and-be-seen expertise.