The Madrid Open is a... different tournament

Jose Morón | 23 Apr 2026 | 11.37

The Madrid Open is a tournament... different. Photo: Misterchip.

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Every year, when the Madrid Open arrives, the same debate topic resurfaces: the audience in the stands and the VIP boxes. Observing the small audience yesterday in the stands during Rafa Jódar's first match in the tournament, it was widely discussed on X (Twitter) the fact that so few people wanted to see the Madrilenian, especially considering his recent performances in Marrakech and Barcelona.

Misterchip, the popular journalist from Onda Cero, used his platform to highlight the lack of audience in Jódar's debut match in the tournament, in front of his own people. "It may be sold out, but there's nobody in the center court, as almost always. Someday, someone will remove the jet set from this tournament and bring it closer to normal people, and we will see the seats filled even when Djokovic, Alcaraz, or Sinner aren't playing. Those who didn't go or chose to stay gossiping missed a great match of Jódar," stated the journalist.

In the photo accompanying the text, you can see how the Manolo Santana court wasn't even half full. Many empty seats and very few people in the stands, sparsely scattered, even when the match was in the third set, with everything yet to be decided. That is, at the most exciting moment.

The idiosyncrasy of the Madrid Open

This tournament is unique. It always has been and always will be as long as the organizers remain the same. They aim to push innovation to the extreme, and Madrid was the first to introduce ball kids who were models, initially female, later including male models, to address certain sexist criticisms. Then, there was the year of the blue clay, the debate around wildcard entries, a practice court at the Bernabéu, and other aspects that make Madrid a tournament unlike any other in the world.

The issue of empty seats is not new. It is not surprising. Madrid's main court has the highest proportion of VIP boxes compared to regular seats you will find in a tournament of this category. Half of the stadium consists of VIP boxes. These boxes are sold to various companies throughout the tournament at a very high price, resulting in high profitability for the organizers.

These companies are not always present during the 12 days of the tournament, leading to the visible empty spaces captured in the photo. Perhaps their intention is only to attend on the final weekend of the tournament, distributing the tickets among their clients on other days, leaving those boxes empty most of the day. Profitable for the tournament? Yes. Visually appealing with nearly half the stadium empty in that area? Not so much.

The rest of the stands, the upper part, where the common folk sit, also appeared half empty yesterday. It might be understandable for a Wednesday and the early days of the competition, but it is still notable considering that everything was supposedly sold out. If all tickets were sold, where was the rest of the crowd?

It is expected that as the days go by and we approach the final rounds, these stands will gradually fill up more, and this issue will fade into the background (until next year). However, something very similar happened in the women's final a couple of years ago between Swiatek and Sabalenka, on a Saturday towards the end of the tournament.

Madrid is special in many ways, and it must be understood that the issue of the VIP boxes has been, is, and will remain unchanged. Regardless of the debates or discussions that arise each year when tennis comes to the capital of Spain, Madrid is what it is. For better or for worse.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El Madrid Open es un torneo... diferente