French Open Finals Ratings Fall Without Star Power

TNT Sports’s second French Open drew 1.3 million viewers for the men’s final between Alexander Zverev and Flavio Cobolli, a 25% drop from last year’s matchup between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. It marks the least-watched men’s French Open final in at least 20 years, according to Sports Business Journal.

Zverev finally broke through for his first Grand Slam title after years of coming close, including a runner-up finish at the 2020 U.S. Open and a semifinal loss at last year’s French Open to Alcaraz. Sinner was eliminated by Juan Manuel Cerúndolo in the second round of this year’s tournament, while Alcaraz withdrew due to a wrist injury before it began.

On the women’s side, Mirra Andreeva’s win over qualifier Maja Chwalinska drew 826,000 viewers across TNT and truTV, down 44% from last year’s match between Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka, which drew 1.47 million viewers. The 2024 finals match between Iga Swiatek and Jasmine Paolini drew 756,000 viewers on NBC before TNT took over the rights. 

Only three Americans across both draws reached the fourth round of the tournament this year, compared to eight last year, and for the first time since 2017, neither singles quarterfinal featured an American player. In addition to Alcaraz, several top names on the men’s side, including Holger Rune and Jack Draper, withdrew before the tournament began. 

Finals matches without big names have historically cratered, regardless of network. The 2020 US Open final between Dominic Thiem and Zverev was down 48% from the prior year and the 2015 US Open women’s final between Flavia Pennetta and Roberta Vinci was down 64%, according to data obtained by Front Office Sports. 

But last year’s men’s final, featuring two of the biggest names in the sport, brought in different numbers.

Alcaraz and Sinner’s five-hour, 29-minute match—the longest final in Roland-Garros history—peaked at 2.6 million viewers during a fifth-set tiebreaker. Gauff’s comeback win over No. 1 ranked Sabalenka drew 1.47 million viewers, up 94% from the year prior. 

This year’s tournament as a whole, however, brought more stable viewership. 

TNT’s first week of coverage, when the biggest names and most Americans were still in the draw, was up 25% in comparison to 2025. The network averaged 387,000 viewers across all windows, down just 1% from its first French Open last year, per SBJ. Across TNT, truTV, and HBO Max, the tournament reached 22.9 million viewers, up 46% from 2025. 

TNT signed its 10-year, $650 million deal with Roland-Garros in 2025, making the tournament the network’s longest rights deal.

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