The Madrid tournament and its already traditional "golf sessions"

Diego Jiménez Rubio | 27 Apr 2026 | 10.07

Controversy over schedules at Mutua Madrid Open 2026

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The Mutua Madrid Open 2026 experienced its first endless night of tennis with Rafael Jódar and Joao Fonseca as the main protagonists, in the midst of a debate as logical as necessary about the schedules set by the organization and the understandable loss of spectators and fans in the stands due to such a late start and finish.

Every year, the same old story repeats itself. The Madrid tournament has a particular fondness for nights, for those days when the Caja Mágica provides everyone with a mix of sensations that are hard to explain, ranging from the utmost excitement of experiencing memorable hours to the desperation of watching the clock inexorably advance. Rafael Jódar and Joao Fonseca took on the first night shift of this edition, reopening the debate on the extent to which it makes sense to schedule two matches in an evening session starting at 8:00 pm.

The ATP and WTA regulations establish that no match can start later than 11:00 pm

It is a unique experience to cover this tournament as a journalist, especially on days like these. Since the order of play was announced on Saturday afternoon, a murmur of disbelief swept through the press room. "Is the last match really this late? We might end up leaving here very late," was the line of conversation among journalists. It's important to note that once the match is over, we must stay to collect statements from the players and finalize our articles.

Journalists, security personnel, press staff members, catering workers, court attendants... For everyone, it was an even longer night than it was for any fan trying to resist falling asleep to witness the outcome of a match that could be a turning point in tennis history. I am disheartened by the messages from many tennis-loving friends and family members who, after the first set, tell me that they are going to bed. "The match is insane, but I need to get up early tomorrow, I can't stay up." Why deprive so many people of a spectacle like this?

The current regulations stipulate that no match can start after 11:00 pm. What the organization of the Mutua Madrid Open 2026 did by starting a night session comprising two matches at 8:00 pm is pushing the limits and playing with time constraints. Jódar and Fonseca took to the court after 10:30 pm, and their match ended right at 1:00 am. If the aim was to avoid significant absences with this decision, it is clear that it was miscalculated.

Jódar and Fonseca started after 10:30 pm and finished at 1:00 am, with a progressive loss of TV viewers and fans in the stands

The atmosphere on the court was fantastic, and the majority of the crowd stayed until the end, but after the first and particularly the last set, many people left. They cannot be blamed for it. Every year, a situation like this arises in Madrid, and despite not being the only tournament inclined towards endless nights, the frequency with which it occurs at the Caja Mágica necessitates taking action and at the very least, moving the night session at Manolo Santana Stadium one hour earlier.

There is no reason to explore the boundaries of reasonable hours and make it difficult for fans to enjoy leisure activities, nor to extend the workday for a group of workers who give their best every day to make this event successful. Tennis can be epic and spectacular without ending at hours when the vast majority of the population is asleep. Let's hope that this day of the Mutua Madrid Open 2026 can set a precedent and sow the seed of change.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El torneo de Madrid y sus ya tradicionales "sesiones golfas"