The 2026 China Open shattered attendance and merchandising records during its Golden Week swing in Beijing, drawing over 270,000 cumulative visitors to the grounds by October 4—a 37% increase over the same period in 2025.
Record-Breaking Attendance at the National Tennis Center
Crowd numbers surged past previous historical benchmarks as the tournament capitalized on peak holiday scheduling. The tournament recorded five consecutive days with single-day visitor counts exceeding 35,000 attendees. That momentum culminated on October 1 and October 2, when daily attendance crossed the 40,000 threshold, refreshing the tournament’s historical records, according to local news reports.
Merchandise and Concession Sales Surge Past 2025 Totals
Spectator spending mirrored the heavy foot traffic, generating total consumer revenue exceeding 32 million yuan. Official tournament merchandise proved to be the primary economic driver, pulling in nearly 22 million yuan in sales and significantly eclipsing the total revenue generated across the entire 2025 tournament. Concession and dining sales contributed over 9 million yuan, while retail vendors brought in more than 1.1 million yuan over the course of the event.
Expanding Beyond the Grounds Through Entertainment and Technology Partnerships
Organizers pushed the event footprint beyond the physical stadium gates by establishing a four-tier scene framework connecting core on-site activations with commercial districts, theater screens, and theme-based hospitality. Through an expanded technical collaboration with BOE, the tournament set up three “super live sites” starting September 27 at Fangshan The First Outlets, 798 Art District, and the Water Cube South Plaza. Five additional commercial district points—including the Beijing Conference Center, Tongzhou MixC, Longfusi, and the Olympic Museum—hosted synchronized fan events. Those off-site locations drew nearly 800,000 visitors by October 4, generating close to 150 million yuan in local economic activity, anchored by 350,000 visitors at Fangshan and 250,000 at the 798 Art District.
Tournament Partners with Cinemas and Local Business Groups
To capture audiences outside traditional sports venues, the tournament partnered with Huaxia Film to introduce dedicated theater screenings during the Golden Week holiday. The opening broadcast of the September 30 evening marquee match reached more than 100 cinemas across 28 provinces and municipalities, covering major first-tier cities alongside Beijing’s core urban districts. Simultaneously, organizers teamed up with the Beichen Group and BTG Group to use local cultural and tourism resources in Chaoyang and Dongcheng districts. The partnership introduced a stub-economy ticketing rights network spanning nearly 350 participating merchants to stimulate offline retail spending.
For the first time, tournament organizers introduced officially licensed fan-themed hotels and restaurants to capture extended tourist spending. The initiative integrated specialized IP branding and guest privileges at the Beichen Huiyuan Hotel Apartments VIP Building and the Quanjude Olympic Village restaurant. The dedicated hotel offerings generated more than 500,000 yuan in sales, with Golden Week occupancy rates projected to rise by over 15% year-over-year. Custom-themed dishes proved popular with visiting fans, highlighted by the diamond pork shreds emerging as a top-selling signature item among nearly 100 themed culinary products sold.
The tournament continued its multi-venue schedule through the remainder of the holiday window ahead of the singles and doubles finals.
