2021 Citi Open Goes To 100% Capacity in Historic Return of Washington’s Summer Tennis Tradition
NPS Allows Full Capacity Attendance For Citi Open Fans
Tournament Restores Full Prize Money to Players To Increases Purse by $750,000
Fans on Waitlist Get First Opportunity to Purchase Newly-Released Full Tournament Tickets Starting Today at 12pm EST
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 15, 2021) – DC sports fans and the world’s top tennis players got some exciting news today.
This morning, MDE Sports announced that the 2021 Citi Open will be held at full,100 percent, fan capacity this summer at Washington DC’s Rock Creek Park Tennis Center from July 31 - August 8. The announcement comes after the National Park Service (NPS), which manages Rock Creek Park, issued updated COVID-19 guidelines for the site, and a month after city authorities lifted all capacity restrictions in the DC metropolitan area, and is further evidence that Washington, D.C. is back.
"We are thrilled to be able to invite fans back to Rock Creek Park at full capacity,” said Mark Ein, Citi Open chairman and CEO of MDE Tennis. “This is an exciting development, not just for tennis fans, but the whole DC community. We are grateful to the National Park Service for their long standing partnership with the event and enabling full capacity for the 2021 Citi Open.”
The development has also enabled organizers to restore full tournament prize money. In order to hold the event at the initial 50 percent fan capacity limit, players agreed to a 40 percent pay reduction. With all fan restrictions lifted and before any additional tickets are sold, MDE Sports proactively increased the total 2021 Citi Open prize money by $750,000, returning the tournament purse to pre-pandemic levels.
“We are also pleased to be able to pay the players full prize money after a difficult period of time for many on tour,” added Ein. “It is all something we never thought possible just a few months ago. To welcome back fans without any restrictions is a testament to the resilience of this city and our community. We can’t wait to see the faces and hear the roar of full crowds once again. It will be a very special moment in the history of this great tournament.”
Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP Chairman, said: “To see this event bounce back from challenges of the last year and announce full prize money for 2021 is fantastic news. It sends a positive message of recovery for our entire sport. We would like to recognise Mark Ein and the Citi Open team for the hard work and ambition that made this possible.”
The news follows the recent announcement that all-time great Rafael Nadal will begin his bid to win a record-setting 21st Grand Slam at the 2021 Citi open in his Washington debut. With fan attendance originally restricted to 50 percent capacity, tickets were already substantially sold out before the announcement of Nadal went viral. The news topped 1.2 billion media impressions worldwide and has led to overwhelming demand for tickets to see the Spaniard win his 89th ATP title at the historic US Open Series event in DC’s Rock Creek Park.
The tournament’s waitlist for tickets exceeded 6,300 names before fan restrictions were lifted Thursday morning. The revised capacity guidelines have allowed tournament officials to release approximately 3,000 additional daily seats to meet the unprecedented demand at the box office for the event. These tickets will be made available first to fans currently on, or who join, the waitlist on a full tournament basis. To provide greater accessibility, the tournament has reserved a small number of individual session tickets that will be available for sale next week.
In addition to Nadal, the 2021 Citi Open will also feature a star-studded player field comprised of two Top-10, six Top-20, and eleven Top-30 players, including recent Wimbledon semifinalists Hubert Hurkacz and new world No. 10 Denis Shapovalov, quarterfinalists Felix Auger-Aliassime and Karen Khachanov, and defending 2019 Citi Open champion Nick Kyrgios, as well as US Olympic team stars Coco Gauff, Jennifer Brady, and Jessica Pegula, who will headline the inaugural Citi Open Women’s Invitational.
To join the waitlist for full-tournament tickets, email [email protected] or call (202) 721-9500 or visit citiopentennis.com before tickets are sold out. Limited single-session tickets will be available to the general public on Etix.com beginning some time next week. For more updates on the 2021 Citi Open, click here to subscribe to the tournament’s official newsletter and be sure to follow the Citi Open on Twitter, Instagram & Facebook @citiopen!
Note: The 2021 Citi Open will be open for full spectator capacity in accordance with updated COVID-19 guidelines from the National Park Service. Consistent with CDC guidelines, spectators who are not fully vaccinated are advised to wear a mask at the event.