Attracts many South Tyroleans to Turin: Jannik Sinner © ANSA / ALESSANDRO DI MARCO

More South Tyroleans, but fewer foreigners at the ATP Finals

Jannik Sinner moves the South Tyroleans. This insight is not new and is now backed up by numbers. Foreign tennis fans, on the other hand, are declining sharply at the ATP Finals in Turin.

10 November 2024

From Turin

On Sunday evening, one of the most important tournaments of the year begins for Jannik Sinner. After the world number one missed the Masters in Rome due to illness, he will now play in front of his Tifosi for the first time this season - and in front of many South Tyroleans. Probably more than a thousand tennis fans from our country have snapped up tickets for the event in the Inalpi Arena to admire the South Tyrolean superstar up close.

As the Italian Tennis Federation (FITP) announced at a press conference, 99 percent of the tickets have already been sold. In contrast to the previous year, when sales only rose rapidly after Sinner's triumph at the Masters 1000 tournament in Toronto, the rush for tickets began in January. No wonder, since Sinner won the Australian Open at that time. 60.000 tickets were already sold after the first month of the year.

More than 1000 South Tyroleans in Turin

The distribution of tickets between countries of origin is interesting. Last year, fans from 88 countries came to Turin, but this year there are spectators from 101 countries. Curiously, last year 56.000 fans from abroad passed through the turnstiles, this year there are only 26.000. The reason for this is that sales outside the Piedmont region - and thus also in South Tyrol - have increased dramatically. While there were around 2023 fans in 57.000, this year almost 90.000 enthusiasts come from other regions of Italy.

This is how the sales went. © FITP

"This year, Jannik's overwhelming start to the season aroused such a desire among the Italians to participate that the offer was quickly exhausted and the foreigners were eliminated early," explained FITP President Angelo Binaghi.

The fact that this year's edition is the first since 2001 in which neither Roger Federer nor Rafael Nadal nor Novak Djokovic are taking part probably also plays a role. Sinner & Co. do not yet have the same appeal abroad as the "Big 3". The fact that almost all tickets were sold nonetheless shows that tennis still inspires the masses even without its golden generation.