French Open

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Template:Short description Template:Redirect-multi Template:About Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox GrandSlamTournaments

The French Open (Template:Langx), also known as Roland-Garros ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam tennis events every year, held after the Australian Open and before Wimbledon and the US Open.

The French Open begins in late May and continues for two weeks.Template:Efn The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The French Open is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface. Until 1975, the French Open was the only major tournament not played on grass. Between the seven rounds needed for a championship, the clay surface characteristics (slower pace, higher bounce), and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches, the French Open is widely regarded as the most physically demanding tournament in tennis.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

HistoryEdit

Officially named in French Internationaux de France de Tennis ("French Internationals of Tennis" in English),<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the tournament uses the name Roland-GarrosTemplate:Efn in all languages,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and it is usually called the French Open in English.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><section begin=GrandSlamArticle/>

In 1891, the Championnat de France, which is commonly referred to in English as the French Championships, began. This was only open to tennis players who were members of French clubs. The first winner was H. Briggs, a Briton who resided in Paris and was a member of the Club Stade Français. In the final, he defeated P. Baigneres in straight sets.<ref name=PastWinners>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The first women's singles tournament, with four entries, was held in 1897. The mixed doubles event was added in 1902 and the women's doubles in 1907. In the period of 1915–1919, no tournament was organized due to World War I. This tournament was played until 1924, using four venues:

  • Societé de Sport de l'Île de Puteaux (an island in the river Seine), in Puteaux; played on the club's ten sand grounds laid out on a bed of rubble. 1891, 1893, 1894 (men's singles), 1895 (men's singles), 1897 (women's singles), 1902 (women's singles and mixed doubles), 1905 (women's singles and mixed doubles), 1907 (men's singles, women's singles, mixed doubles) editions.
  • The Croix-Catelan of the Racing Club de France (a club founded in 1882, which initially had two lawn-tennis courts with four more grass (pelouse) courts opened some years later, but due to the difficulty of maintenance, they were eventually transformed into clay courts) in the Bois de Boulogne, Paris. 1892, 1894 (men's doubles), 1895 (men's doubles), 1897 (women's singles), 1901 (men's doubles), 1903 (men's doubles and mixed doubles), 1904, 1907 (men's doubles), 1908, 1910–1914, 1920–1924 editions.
  • Tennis Club de Paris (a club founded in 1895, which initially had four indoor wood courts and five outdoor clay courts), at 71, Boulevard Exelmans in the Auteuil neighborhood, Paris. 1896, 1897 (men's singles), 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901 (men's and women's singles), 1902 (men's singles), 1903 (men's singles and women's singles), 1905 (men's singles) and 1906 editions.
  • Société Athlétique de la Villa Primrose in Bordeaux, on clay. Only played in 1909.

In 1925, the French Championships became open to all amateurs internationally and was designated a major championship by the International Lawn Tennis Federation. It was held on clay courts at the Stade Français in Saint-Cloud (site of the previous World Hard Court Championships) in 1925 and 1927. In 1926 the Croix-Catelan of the Racing Club de France hosted the event in Paris, the site of the previous French club members only tournament, also on clay.

Another clay court tournament, called the World Hard Court Championships, is sometimes considered the true precursor to the modern French Open as it admitted international competitors. This was held at Stade Français in Saint-Cloud, from 1912 to 1914, 1920, 1921 and 1923, with the 1922 event held in Brussels, Belgium. Winners of this tournament included world No. 1s such as Anthony Wilding from New Zealand (1913, 1914) and Bill Tilden from the US (1921). In 1924 there was no World Hard Court Championships due to tennis being played at the Paris Olympic Games in Colombes.<section end=GrandSlamArticle/>

After the Mousquetaires or Philadelphia Four (René Lacoste, Jean Borotra, Henri Cochet, and Jacques Brugnon) won the Davis Cup on American soil in 1927, the French decided to defend the cup in 1928 at a new tennis stadium at Porte d'Auteuil. The Stade de France had offered the tennis authorities three hectares of land with the condition that the new stadium must be named after the World War I aviator hero Roland Garros.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The new Stade de Roland Garros (whose central court was renamed Court Philippe Chatrier in 1988) hosted that Davis Cup challenge. On 24 May 1928, the French International Championships moved there, and the event has been held there ever since.<ref name="Historypage">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

During World War II, the Tournoi de France was not held in 1940 and from 1941 through 1945 it took place on the same grounds, but those events are not recognized by the French governing body, the Fédération Française de Tennis.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 1946 and 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon, making it the third Grand Slam event of the year. In 1968, the year of the French General Strike, the French Championships became the first Grand Slam tournament to go open, allowing both amateurs and professionals to compete.<ref name="Historypage"/>

Since 1981, new prizes have been presented: the Prix Orange (for the player demonstrating the best sportsmanship and cooperative attitude with the press), the Prix Citron (for the player with the strongest character and personality) and the Prix Bourgeon (for the tennis player revelation of the year). In another novelty, since 2006 the tournament has begun on a Sunday, featuring 12 singles matches played on the three main courts. Additionally, on the eve of the tournament's opening, the traditional Benny Berthet exhibition day takes place, where the profits go to different charity associations. In March 2007, it was announced that the event would provide equal prize money for both men and women in all rounds for the first time.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2010, it was announced that the tournament was considering a move away from Roland Garros as part of a continuing rejuvenation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Plans to renovate and expand Roland Garros have put aside any such consideration, and the tournament remains in its long time home.

The 2022 edition finally saw a new tiebreaker format.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> If the deciding set is tied at six-all, the match is decided in a 10-point format. Should the tiebreaker game be tied at 9-all (or any tie hereafter), whoever scores two straight points wins.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The decision was made by the Grand Slam Board for all four Grand Slams "based on a strong desire to create greater consistency in the rules of the game at the grand slams, and thus enhance the experience for the players and fans alike", a statement from the Board read.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The 2024 edition marked the first time that a member of the Big Three (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic) was not featured in the final since 2004.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

ExpansionEdit

File:Court Philippe Chatrier May 30th 2013.jpg
Court Philippe Chatrier during the 2013 French Open.

From 2004 to 2008, plans were developed to build a covered stadium with a roof, as complaints continued over delayed matches.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Various proposals were put forward to expand the facility or to move the tournament to a completely new, 55-court venue outside of Paris city limits. In 2011 the decision was taken to maintain the tournament within its existing venue.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The expansion project called for a new stadium to be built alongside the historical Auteuil's greenhouses and expansion of old stadiums and the tournament village.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A wide-ranging project to overhaul the venue was presented in 2011, including building a roof over Court Philippe-Chatrier, demolishing and replacing Court No. 1 with a grassy hill for outdoors viewing, and geographical extension of the venue eastward into the Jardin des Serres d'Auteuil.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Legal opposition from environmental defence associations and other stakeholders delayed the works for several years as litigation ensued.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In particular, the city council voted in May 2015 against the expansion project, but on 9 June 2015 Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo announced the signing of the construction permits, with work scheduled to begin in September of that year and conclude in 2019.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In December 2015, the Administrative Court of Paris once again halted renovation work, but the French Tennis Federation won the right to proceed with the renovation on appeal.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Renovation work finally commenced at the close of the 2018 edition of the tournament. Redeveloped seating and a retractable roof was constructed for Court Philippe-Chatrier and the new 5,000-seat Court Simonne-Mathieu was opened, having been named after France's second-highest achieving female tennis player, and noted for its innovative use of greenhouse encasing architecture.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The renewal of the venue has been generally well received by the players and the public.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The 2020 edition of the tournament, which was the first to be assisted by the roof over Philippe-Chatrier, was postponed to late September and early October and was played in front of limited spectators, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Floodlights were also installed over each of the courts in the precinct, allowing the tournament to facilitate night matches for the first time.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2021, the tournament was back in the traditional slot of late May and early June.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Surface characteristicsEdit

The French Open has been the only major played on clay courts since 1978, when the US Open changed to hard courts.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Clay courts slow down the ball and produce a high bounce when compared with grass courts or hard courts.Template:Citation needed For this reason, clay courts take away some of the advantages of big servers and serve-and-volleyers, which makes it hard for these types of players to dominate on the surface.Template:Citation needed For example, Pete Sampras, known for his huge serve and who won 14 Grand Slam titles, never won the French Open – his best result was reaching the semi-finals in 1996. Many other notable players have won multiple Grand Slam events but have never won the French Open, including John McEnroe, Frank Sedgman, John Newcombe, Venus Williams, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker, Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Murray, Jimmy Connors, Louise Brough, Virginia Wade and Martina Hingis; McEnroe and Edberg lost their only French Open finals appearances in five sets.

On the other hand, players whose games are more suited to jumpier surfaces, such as Rafael Nadal, Björn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Mats Wilander, Justine Henin and Chris Evert, have found great success at this tournament. In the Open Era, the only male players who have won both the French Open and Wimbledon, played on faster grass courts, are Rod Laver, Jan Kodeš, Björn Borg, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz and only female players are Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Margaret Court, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Garbiñe Muguruza, Simona Halep and Ashleigh Barty. Borg's French Open–Wimbledon double was achieved three times consecutively.<ref name=Wimbledonrecords>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Composition of the courtsEdit

1. Red brick dust.
2. Crushed white limestone.
3. Clinker (coal residue).
4. Crushed gravel.
5. Drain rock.

Trophies, prize money and rankings pointsEdit

The trophies have been awarded to the winners since 1953 and are manufactured by Mellerio dits Meller, a famous Parisian jewelry house. They are all made of pure silver with finely etched decorations on their side. Each new singles winner gets his or her name written on the base of the trophy. Winners receive custom-made pure silver replicas of the trophies they have won.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> They are usually presented by the president of the French Tennis Federation (FFT).

The trophy awarded to the winner of the men's singles is called the {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (The Musketeers' Cup). It is named in honor of the "Four Musketeers". The trophy weighs 14 kg, is 40 cm high and 19 cm wide.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The current design was created in 1981 by the Mellerio dit Meller. Each winner gets a smaller-size replica and the original remains property of the FFT at all times.<ref name="trophy">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The trophy awarded to the winner of the women's singles is called the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen (Suzanne Lenglen Cup) since 1979. The current cup was awarded for the first time in 1986. It is, with a few details, a replica of a cup offered at the time by the city of Nice to Suzanne Lenglen. This trophy, donated by Suzanne Lenglen's family to the Musée National du Sport, was awarded between 1979 and 1985 to every winner until the FFT made a copy. Each winner receives a smaller-size replica and the original remains property of the FFT at all times.<ref name="trophy"/>

Prize moneyEdit

For 2025, the prize money pool was announced to be 56.352 million, an increase of 5.37% compared to the prize pool for 2024 edition.<ref name="prizemoney">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

2025 Event Winner Finalist Semifinals Quarterfinals Round of 16 Round of 32 Round of 64 Round of 128 Q3 Q2 Q1
Singles €2,550,000 €1,275,000 €690,000 €440,000 €265,000 €168,000 €117,000 €78,000 €43,000 €29,500 €21,000
Doubles1 €590,000 €295,000 €148,000 €80,000 €43,500 €27,500 €17,500 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Mixed doubles1 €122,000 €61,000 €31,000 €17,500 €10,000 €5,000 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Wheelchair singles €63,900 €31,950 €20,600 €12,360 €8,750 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Wheelchair doubles1 €21,650 €11,350 €8,250 €5,150 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Quad wheelchair singles €63,900 €31,950 €20,600 €12,360 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Template:Nowrap1 €21,650 €11,350 €8,250 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
  • 1 Prize money for doubles is per team.

Rankings pointsEdit

Men and women often receive point values based on the rules of their respective tours.

Senior pointsEdit

Event W F SF QF Round of 16 Round of 32 Round of 64 Round of 128 Q Q3 Q2 Q1
Men's singles 2000 1300 800 400 200 100 50 10 25 16 8 0
Men's doubles 0 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Template:Nowrap 1300 780 430 240 130 70 10 40 30 20 2
Template:Nowrap 10 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a

Template:Col-begin Template:Col-break

Wheelchair pointsEdit

Event W F SF/3rd QF/4th
Singles 800 500 375 100
Doubles 800 500 100 Template:N/a
Quad singles 800 500 100 Template:N/a
Template:Nowrap 800 100 Template:N/a Template:N/a

Template:Col-break Template:Col-break

Junior pointsEdit

Event W F SF QF Round of 16 Round of 32 Q Q3
Template:Nowrap 1000 600 370 200 100 45 30 20
Girls' singles
Template:Nowrap 750 450 275 150 75 Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a
Template:Nowrap Template:N/a Template:N/a Template:N/a

Template:Col-end

ChampionsEdit

Former championsEdit

Current championsEdit

2024 French Open

Most recent finalsEdit

2024 event Champion Runner-up Score
Men's singles Template:Flagicon Carlos Alcaraz Template:Flagicon Alexander Zverev 6–3, 2–6, 5–7, 6–1, 6–2
Women's singles Template:Flagicon Iga Świątek Template:Flagicon Jasmine Paolini 6–2, 6–1
Men's doubles Template:Flagicon Marcelo Arévalo
Template:Flagicon Mate Pavić
Template:Flagicon Simone Bolelli
Template:Flagicon Andrea Vavassori
7–5, 6–3
Women's doubles Template:Flagicon Coco Gauff
Template:Flagicon Kateřina Siniaková
Template:Flagicon Sara Errani
Template:Flagicon Jasmine Paolini
7–6(7–5), 6–3
Mixed doubles Template:Flagicon Laura Siegemund
Template:Flagicon Édouard Roger-Vasselin
Template:Flagicon Desirae Krawczyk
Template:Flagicon Neal Skupski
6–4, 7–5

RecordsEdit

File:Rafael Nadal 2011 Roland Garros 2011-crop.jpg
Rafael Nadal, the all-time record holder in men's singles.
File:Chris Evert playing tennis at Camp David.png
Chris Evert, the all-time record holder in women's singles.
Record Era Player(s) Count Years
Men since 1891
Most singles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal 14 2005–2008, 2010–2014, 2017–2020, 2022
Amateur Era Template:Flagicon Henri Cochet 4 1926, 1928, 1930, 1932
World Hard Court Championships: 1922
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Max Decugis 8 1903–1904, 1907–1909, 1912–1914
Most consecutive singles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal 5 2010–2014
Amateur Era Template:Flagicon Frank Parker
Template:Flagicon Jaroslav Drobný
Template:Flagicon Tony Trabert
Template:Flagicon Nicola Pietrangeli
2 1948–1949
1951–1952
1954–1955
1959–1960
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Paul Aymé 4 1897–1900
Most doubles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Daniel Nestor
Template:Flagicon Max Mirnyi
4 2007 with Mark Knowles, 2010 with Nenad Zimonjić, 2011, 2012 with Max Mirnyi.
2005, 2006 with Jonas Björkman, 2011, 2012 with Daniel Nestor.
Amateur Era Template:Flagicon Roy Emerson 6 1960, 1962 with Neale Fraser, 1961 with Rod Laver, 1963 with Manuel Santana, 1964 with Ken Fletcher, 1965 with Fred Stolle.
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Max Decugis 13 citation CitationClass=web

}}</ref>

Most consecutive doubles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Daniel Nestor 3 2010–2012
Amateur Era Template:Flagicon Roy Emerson 6 1960–1965
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Maurice Germot 10 1906–1914, 1920<ref name="fo" />
Most mixed doubles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Jean-Claude Barclay 3 1968, 1971, 1973 with Françoise Dürr.
Amateur Era Template:Flagicon Ken Fletcher 3 1963–1965 with Margaret Court.
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Max Decugis 7 1904–1906, 1908–1909, 1914 and 1920 with Suzanne Lenglen.
Most Championships
(singles, doubles & mixed doubles)
Open Era Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal 14 2005–2008, 2010–2014, 2017–2020, 2022 (14 singles)
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Max Decugis 28 1902–1920 (8 singles, 13 doubles, 7 mixed)
Women since 1897
Most singles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Chris Evert 7 1974–1975, 1979–1980, 1983, 1985–1986
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Suzanne Lenglen 6 1920–1923, 1925–1926
World Hard Court Championships: 1914, 1921–23
Most consecutive singles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Monica Seles
Template:Flagicon Justine Henin
Template:Flagicon Iga Świątek
3 1990–1992
2005–2007
2022–2024
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Jeanne Matthey
Template:Flagicon Suzanne Lenglen
4 1909–1912
1920–1923
Most doubles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon Martina Navratilova 7 1975 with Chris Evert, 1982 with Anne Smith, 1984–1985, 1987, 1988 with Pam Shriver, 1986 with Andrea Temesvári.
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Simonne Mathieu 6 1933, 1934 with Elizabeth Ryan, 1936–1937, 1938 with Billie Yorke, 1939 with Jadwiga Jędrzejowska.
Most consecutive doubles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Martina Navratilova
Template:Flagicon Gigi Fernández
5 1984–1985, 1987–1988 with Pam Shriver, 1986 with Andrea Temesvári.
1991 with Jana Novotná, 1992–95 with Natasha Zvereva.
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Françoise Dürr 5 1967–1971
Most mixed doubles titles Open Era Template:Flagicon Françoise Dürr 3 1968, 1971, 1973 with Jean-Claude Barclay.
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Suzanne Lenglen 7 1914, 1920 with Max Decugis, 1921–1923, 1925, 1926 with Jacques Brugnon.
Most Championships
(singles, doubles & mixed doubles)
Open Era Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon Martina Navratilova 11 1974–1988 (2 singles, 7 doubles, 2 mixed)
French Championships* Template:Flagicon Suzanne Lenglen 15 1919–1926 (6 singles, 2 doubles, 7 mixed)
Wheelchair: singles and doubles since 2007, quads since 2019
Most singles titles Men Template:Flagicon Shingo Kunieda 8 2007–2010, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2022
Women Template:Flagicon Esther Vergeer 6 2007–2012
Quads Template:Flagicon Dylan Alcott 3 2019–2021
Most consecutive singles titles Men Template:Flagicon Shingo Kunieda 4 2007–2010
Women Template:Flagicon Esther Vergeer 6 2006–2009
Quads Template:Flagicon Dylan Alcott 3 2019–2021
Most doubles titles Men Template:Flagicon Shingo Kunieda 8 2007–2011, 2013–2015
Women Template:Flagicon Aniek van Koot 9 2010, 2013, 2015, 2018–2022, 2024
Quads Template:Flagicon David Wagner 3 2019–2022
Most consecutive doubles titles Men Template:Flagicon Alfie Hewett
Template:Flagicon Gordon Reid
5 2020–2024
2020–2024
Women Template:Flagicon Diede de Groot
Template:Flagicon Aniek van Koot
5 2018–2022
2018–2022
Quads Template:Flagicon David Wagner 3 2019–2022
Miscellaneous
Unseeded champions Men Template:Flagicon Mats Wilander
Template:Flagicon Gustavo Kuerten
Template:Flagicon Gastón Gaudio
1982
1997
2004
Women Template:Flagicon Margaret Scriven
Template:Flagicon Jeļena Ostapenko
Template:Flagicon Iga Świątek
Template:Flagicon Barbora Krejčíková
1933
2017
2020
2021
Youngest singles champion Men Template:Flagicon Michael Chang 17 years and 3 months (1989)
Women Template:Flagicon Monica Seles 16 years and 6 months (1990)
Oldest singles champion Men Template:Flagicon Novak Djokovic 36 years and 20 days (2023)
Women Template:Flagicon Zsuzsa Körmöczy 33 years and 10 months (1958)
  • French Championships (1891–1924) was only open to French clubs' members. In 1925, it opened to international players, and was later renamed the French Open in 1968, when it allowed professionals to compete with amateurs. See WHCC.

Broadcasting and streamingEdit

FranceEdit

France Télévisions and Amazon Prime Video hold the broadcast rights to the French Open until 2027.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> All 11 "night sessions" will remain exclusive to Prime Video.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Studio presentation for the French Open on France Télévisions is hosted by Laurent Luyat and is historically located on a terrace in a corner of the Court Philippe Chatrier.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

United StatesEdit

NBC's coverage of the French Open began in 1975.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2007,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Tennis Channel acquired the pay television rights to the tournament and sub-licensed coverage of morning window (U.S. time) matches to ESPN for broadcast by ESPN2 from 2007 through 2015.<ref name=aa-espnfrenchopen>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In August 2015, ESPN announced that it would discontinue its sub-licensing and drop coverage of the French Open beginning in 2016, with network staff citing that because of the structure of the arrangement, its coverage "did not fit our successful model at the other three Majors"—where ESPN is the exclusive rightsholder.<ref name=aa-espnfrenchopen/> Rather than find another partner to sub-license coverage to, Tennis Channel chose to retain the rights under its new owner Sinclair Broadcast Group, nearly doubling the amount of Tennis Channel's coverage.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Cbignore<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Starting with the 2023 edition and continuing the following year, NBC moved some of its coverage of the French Open exclusively to its streaming service, Peacock.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In June 2024, it was reported that the U.S. rights had been acquired by TNT Sports beginning in 2025, as part of an overall deal with Warner Bros. Discovery that also includes a renewal of its pan-European rights with Eurosport.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Matches air mainly on TNT, with TBS and TruTV providing coverage as well. All matches are also available streaming on Max.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

United KingdomEdit

BBC began broadcasting French Open finals annually in 1981<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> (often in their Grandstand or Sunday Grandstand programmes). The BBC's coverage continued until 2011. From 2012 until 2021, ITV Sport televised the French Open in the United Kingdom. Eurosport began broadcasting the tournament in 1989.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> As of 2022, Eurosport holds exclusive UK broadcast rights to the tournament.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Studio presentation for the French Open on Eurosport is hosted by Barbara Schett with Mats Wilander. Commentators include Simon Reed, Chris Bradnam, Nick Lester, Barry Millns alongside Jo Durie, Annabel Croft, Frew McMillan, Miles Maclagan, Arvind Parmar and Chris Wilkinson.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

IndiaEdit

In India, Star Sports had the exclusive broadcast rights of the French Open.Template:Citation needed However, Sony Pictures Sports Network, owned by Sony Pictures Networks India, acquired the broadcast rights from 2022 through 2024.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Ball boys and ball girlsEdit

For the 2024 French Open, 280 "ramasseurs de balles" (literally "gatherers of balls" in English) are scheduled to be selected for the tournament.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Aged between 11 and 16 years old and dressed in matching Lacoste shirts and shorts, the ball boys and ball girls are chosen to take part in the French Open through an application process, only available to those licensed of the French Tennis Federation, which in 2023 had approximately 4,000 applicants from across France.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Upon selection they are trained in the weeks leading up to the event.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

See alsoEdit

Lists of champions
Other Grand Slam tournaments

NotesEdit

Template:Notelist

ReferencesEdit

Template:Reflist

External linksEdit

Template:Sister project

Template:S-start

Template:Succession box Template:S-end

Template:French Open championships Template:Grand Slam Tournaments Template:Tennis box Template:Grand Slam champions Template:Portal bar Template:Authority control