The humble beginnings of the $500m+ Australian Open
Today’s lineup: The humble beginnings of the $500m+ Australian Open
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Happy New Year!
Thanks to all of those who followed, subscribed and engaged with Notice in 2024. In 2025, Notice is planning to introduce a range of new initiatives to help keep the Australian Sports Industry informed and connected.
See below one of them and watch this space :)
- Matt, Writer/Founder
New networking events in 2025!
Notice is planning to take the Australian sports industry offline and into real-life, and is gauging interest from those who may like to attend a brand-new series of networking events.
The idea at the moment is simple – come along and hang out with like-minded sports industry peers, and build your network over an evening of casual drinks in a fun and informal setting.
Who should come?
Do you work in and around sport? Then this is for you. The invite is open to those from agencies, rights-holders, brands, media, suppliers, recruitment, government, startups, education, or anyone else that has a passion for the industry and would like to connect.
Interested? Let us know 👇
*More details to follow as we gauge interest levels.
LIV Golf and Seven Network announced a multi-year broadcast extension which will see the League return live and free in 2025 and beyond
Athletics Australia extended its partnership with PUMA until 2032 which will see all AA athletes, coaches and staff kitted in PUMA's apparel at all international events on the runway to Brisbane 2032
Tennis Australia/Australian Open signed a new multi-year partnership with Pirelli, and another one with Australian beauty retailer, Mecca who have both built large-scale activation sites at Melbourne Park
Brisbane Roar welcomed mining company Hellyer Metals as its newest Major Sponsor on a 2-year-deal - it secured the naming rights to the game day technical area bolster signage for both Isuzu UTE A-League Men’s and Ninja A-League Women’s matches
Hydralyte extended its partnership with the World Surf League into 2025 and 2026, and will activate across the Australian Championship Tour events at Bells Beach, Snapper Rocks and Margaret River, as well as the Bioglan Bells Beach Longboard Classic
The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles announced Aspen Pharmacare Australia as a Partner of the Club which will see heartburn relief brand, Zantac, feature on the front of the NRL playing shorts and back of the NSW Cup playing shorts during the 2025 Season
Everything Fleet became a Platinum Partner of the NSW Waratahs ahead of the 2025 season and its branding will feature on the front of the shorts for the NSW Waratahs Men’s team and the back right of the shorts for Women’s team
Nike announced its “2025 After Dark Tour”, a women’s race made up of a unique series of nighttime 10km and half marathon running events in 6 major cities: Sydney, Shanghai, Seoul, Mumbai, Los Angeles and Mexico City
Reebok signed a deal with Adelaide 36ers star Montrezl Harrell who will wear Reebok footwear exclusively on court throughout the remainder of the 2024/25 NBL season
The Sydney Roosters and KD Community announced a new partnership that will see both parties come together to promote inclusivity and diversity in sport during the 2025 season
basketball.com.au, Australia's most comprehensive digital destination for basketball was launched - it will provide comprehensive coverage of basketball at every level, from junior competitions to domestic professional leagues and Australians competing overseas
Gemba was appointed by Tennis Australia to supply Customer Intelligence services for the Australian Open 2025
The SA Government is partnering with Port Adelaide FC to help transform Alberton Oval with a $35m upgrade which includes new state-of-the-art facilities for the club's AFLW team and a new grandstand to increase the oval’s capacity to AFL match day standard
Meta appointed UFC President and CEO, Dana White to its board
The Australian Open is one of the most significant events on the Australian sports calendar and a commercial powerhouse... and it’s come from humble beginnings
Last year, Tennis Australia announced that the 2024 Australian Open delivered a record-breaking $533.2m injection into the Victorian economy via a Nielsen Sport report, an eye-watering figure that has significantly grown over the last decade.
AO Economic impact previous results:
AO 2024 - $533.2m
AO 2023 - $375.3m
AO 2022 - $267.3m
AO 2021 - $138m
AO 2020 - $387.7m
AO 2019 - $347.2m
AO 2018 - $293.2m
AO 2016 - $278.1m
AO 2014 - $245.5m
AO 2012 - $239m
AO 2010 - $160m
Over the past 10 years the Australian Open has contributed $3.14b in economic benefits to Victoria.
The Australian Open has previously recorded $500+ million in annual revenue for Tennis Australia and CEO Craig Tiley has recently referred to a 5-year plan to reach $1+ billion in revenue. As the tournament and its revenues grow, so does its workforce requirements.
Whilst the Australian Open's economic results and impact are clearly positive, there's often-overlooked non-economic benefits of hosting the tournament, so they don't tell the whole story.
The Australian Open delivers significant brand value for Melbourne
How? The tournament:
Has a captive global audience and beams footage of Melbourne into millions of living rooms across the world with high-frequency, delivering similar outcomes to a traditional tourism advertisement
Reinforces Melbourne's positioning as a world-class city - By being part of an exclusive list of cities that has the privilege of hosting a Grand Slam, Melbourne positions itself as one of the best cities in the world
As a relatively small country, Australia is privileged to host major sports events that far exceed our population and economic rank, and this delivers major reputation benefits that have positive flow-on effects that go far beyond pure-economic ones e.g. political power & diplomacy, trade & migration, community spirit etc.
The Australian Open has come from Humble Beginnings...
Since it was first played in 1905 it's taken place across multiple cities:
Melbourne - 63 times
Sydney - 17 times
Adelaide - 14 times
Brisbane - 8 times
Perth - 3 times
New Zealand - 2 times
…and at places such as the Sydney Cricket Ground and Adelaide Oval.
Did you know the Australian Open was once played in a Perth Zoo in 1909?

These early tournaments were a stark contrast to what the Australian Open has become commercially today.
Over time, the Australian Open has built a number of strong revenue streams (including non-traditional ones) such as its lucrative 5-year, $107 million sponsorship with Kia until 2028, and its 5-year, $425 million media rights deal with Nine until 2029.
In 2024, the Australian Open broke the 2-week attendance record with 1,020,763 fans through the gates.
Can the Australian Open go bigger in 2025?
Although the Australian Open is only a 2-3 week event, the build-up takes place months prior, and stakeholder engagement requirements are wide and varied
Here are some ways that Tennis Australia engaged with its key stakeholders such as fans, media, and partners both locally and internationally leading up to the Grand Slam tournament.
1. Australian Open Launch – immersive event at THE LUME
World-class major sports events require world class venues, and according to CEO, Craig Tiley, THE LUME Melbourne helped Tennis Australia serve up an Australian Open launch event that “hit different”.
Through THE LUME’s ability to deliver fully customised experiences using stunning projections and immersive soundscapes, the Australian Open launch event delivered floor-to-ceiling scenes of Melbourne Park, and offered media and attendees a vivid glimpse into what’s to come for Australian Open 2025.
2. Australian Open Launch in China
The 2025 Australian Open was also launched in the tournament's biggest market - China.
In front of media and fans in the beachside area of Aranya, Tennis Australia:
Announced its new AO China Ambassador, Liu Haoran
Unveiled its exclusive AO China retail connection
Treated attendees to the taste of Melbourne
Hosted partner activations from Kia, Marriott, 1573, Luckin, Waterdrop & EZZ

3. Australian Open Partnership Summit
Tennis Australia launched its first ever partnership summit at The Ritz-Carlton to share strategies and trends (in partnership with dentsu Sports Analytics & Stylus) and provide an enhanced platform for networking and collaboration.
4. Grand Slam collaboration
In the lead up to Wimbledon, Tennis Australia co-hosted a garden party in London with Frances Tiafoe, Ash Barty, Todd Woodbridge and a selection of corporate guests.

Members of the AO partnerships team also visited the US Open to connect with global brands and the tennis community.
*Craig Tiley has previously acknowledged the external threat of private equity swooping in to steal the Australian Open (similar situation to golf) but in order to counter the threat, he believes that the governing bodies of the 4 x grand slams need to collaborate more.
5. Campaign Launch
To invite Australians into an expanded AO25 experience and bring fans of all kinds closer to the game, Tennis Australia launched its second iteration of its “Hits Different” campaign (in partnership with BMF Australia and PHD) across TV, OLV, OOH, social, digital display, radio, EDM, POS, merchandise, and on-site channels.
How’s AO25 going? So far, so good.
This year's AO25 Opening Week kicked off with a record-breaking 116,528 fans flocking to Melbourne Park (+30% growth on last year).
Collaborate with Notice
Have some news, insights & data, a press release, or an idea that you’d like to share? Or want to explore a collaboration on an article?
Reach out to Matt on LinkedIn here, via the button below or via email:
E: matthew.hughes@noticesports.com.au
Adelaide FC - Partnerships Manager
AFL - Senior Events Executive
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Crypto.com - (Senior)Product Manager, Sports
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Football Australia - Manager - Broadcast & Media Operations
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GroupM - Group Strategy Director - Sport
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lululemon - Director, Digital, Auz&NZ (Ecom/Digital Marketing)
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Lumen8 Media - Broadcast Graphics Designer
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LSKD - Head of Community Marketing
Marriott International - Market Director of Sales, Sports & Entertainment
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Netball Australia - Head of Business Development
Netball Victoria - Growth and Delivery Manager
North Melbourne FC - Match Day & Activations Coordinator
Peloton - Senior Marketing Manager, Australia
Queensland Rugby Union - Partnerships Manager
Sportsbet - Head of Mass Media
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Sports Entertainment Network - Game Day & Events Manager - SEN Teams
Sports Entertainment Network - General Manager – Operations
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St Kilda FC - Program & Operations Lead
Ted - Producer, Sports
Tennis Australia - Strategy Lead
TGI Sport - Event Producer
Touch Football Australia - Chief Executive Officer
Victoria Racing - Head of Marketing
Under Armour - Assistant Manager, Digital Marketing (Paid Performance)
URBNSurf - Public Relations Manager
WNBL - Marketing Manager
WNBL - Media & PR Manager
World Rugby - Head of Hospitality (Men's RWC 2027 LOC)
Not a subscriber yet? Discover specialised sports marketing insights, tailored for sports industry professionals within Australia and across the globe. If you work in sports for an agency, brand or rights-holder then this is for you.