Premium Timepieces And Custom Jewelry: How Elite Tennis Athletes Showcase Luxury At The U.S. Open

The Watch Game Among Top Competitors

Tennis’s elite have transformed the U.S. Open into a runway for haute horlogerie, with timepieces ranging from five figures to over $1 million adorning wrists courtside. The tradition of luxury sponsorships has become central to the sport’s culture, with nearly every top-ranked player contracted to premium watch houses.

Jannik Sinner, the world’s No. 1 men’s player and a Rolex-sponsored athlete, previously wore a $40,000 Rolex Daytona after his Wimbledon victory in July. His partnership with Rolex places him among seven of the top 10 ranked players globally who sport watches from the Swiss manufacturer. When he clinched the U.S. Open title last year, Sinner selected a Rolex GMT Master II ‘Root Beer’ model, retailing at $18,000, to wear while accepting the trophy.

Andrey Rublev, ranked No. 15 in men’s singles, made headlines this year by switching his official sponsorship from Bvlgari to Vanguart. The Ukrainian competitor debuted a striking $180,000 titanium Orb timepiece at Wimbledon and wore the same statement piece during his Monday match victory against Dino Prižmić.

Alexander Zverev, currently the world’s No. 3 player, maintains a unique partnership with Richard Mille that dates back to 2018. The collaboration produced the RM 67-02, an ultra-lightweight automatic watch featuring German flag colors, priced at approximately $350,000.

Custom Diamonds And Signature Jewelry Collections

Beyond watches, the tournament has showcased intricate custom jewelry pieces designed specifically to honor the moment. Aryna Sabalenka, the reigning world No. 1 woman, celebrated her eighth U.S. Open appearance by debuting an entirely custom diamond collection from Material Good during her opening singles match. The pieces included a choker necklace featuring eight pear-cut stones (combining seven white diamonds with one imperial topaz), a tourmaline necklace adorned with eight small diamonds, and matching drop earrings each set with eight diamonds. While these custom pieces don’t carry a standard retail price, comparable Material Good designs range from $2,800 to $13,400.

Madison Keys, ranked No. 6 and the first-ever athlete partner for jewelry brand Brilliant Earth, wore a specially commissioned $1,350 gold medallion necklace bearing her name. The piece features a four-leaf clover design on one face with nine diamonds around its perimeter, while the reverse showcases embossed charms depicting a horseshoe, sun, moon, heart, and key.

Jessica Pegula, the fourth-ranked woman and daughter of billionaire Terrence Pegula, rotated between luxury watches throughout the tournament. During her mixed doubles appearances and opening singles round, she prominently displayed the approximately $90,000 DB28xs Starry Seas from De Bethune, a Swiss watchmaking house. Fellow American Emma Navarro and Tommy Paul, both De Bethune-sponsored athletes, wore matching timepieces valued similarly at $90,000 during their respective matches.

Sponsorships And Off-Court Style

Jannik Sinner’s role as a Gucci global brand ambassador extends beyond Rolex timepieces into fashion partnerships. The Italian competitor has been photographed with Gucci’s recently launched $2,150 duffle bag, designed in U.S. Open-inspired yellow and blue colorways for this year’s tournament debut.

Other notable luxury pairings include Ukrainian player Elina Svitolina’s $24,000 Spirit of Big Bang Steel Pavé diamond watch from Hublot—the same brand that sponsors Novak Djokovic. Italian mixed doubles champion Andrea Vavassori accepted his trophy while wearing a Gerald Charles Maestro GC Sport watch in Royal Blue, retailing for $18,000.

The Historical Precedent: Record-Breaking Watch Valuations

The luxury watch phenomenon at professional tennis reached extraordinary heights during Rafael Nadal’s career. The retired Spanish legend wore multiple Richard Mille timepieces worth $1 million or more throughout his playing days. Nadal and Richard Mille collaborated to create 10 different models, including the $1.05 million RM 27-04 he wore while winning the 2020 French Open and 2022 Australian Open. At the 2024 French Open, he displayed the RM27-05 manual winding flying tourbillon, valued at $1.1 million—pieces that today appreciate to between $2 million and $3 million in the secondary market.

Sabalenka herself has demonstrated this trend, wearing a $114,000 pink gold Royal Oak Offshore featuring 32 baguette-cut rainbow gemstones when she won last year’s championship. For her recent Cincinnati Open appearance, she switched to a $91,300 Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Selfwinding Chronograph, her official sponsor watch.

Celebrity Courtside Luxury

The luxury watch culture extends beyond competing athletes to high-profile spectators. Last year’s tournament saw celebrities including John Mayer, Serena Williams, Kevin Hart, Travis Scott, Patrick Mahomes, and Simone Biles all spotted wearing Audemars Piguet timepieces from the stands. Travis Kelce flaunted a Rolex Day-Date in 18K yellow gold with baguette-cut diamonds, while newly minted billionaire Roger Federer sat ringside wearing an extraordinarily rare Daytona 100th Anniversary 24 Hours of Le Mans Yellow Gold model estimated at over $250,000.

Official Tournament Partnerships And Luxury Integration

The U.S. Open itself maintains deep ties with the luxury sector through multiple official partnerships. Tiffany & Co. renewed its multi-year agreement in 2023 as the official trophy partner, crafting five sterling silver awards annually—two 18-inch, nine-pound singles championship trophies and three 5.5-pound doubles trophies. This year’s activation includes a pop-up featuring a one-of-a-kind diamond-encrusted tennis racket displaying 5 carats of diamonds alongside a 24-karat gold vermeil tennis ball stitched with nearly 7 carats of diamonds.

Rolex has held the “official timekeeper” designation since 2018, with branded clocks positioned throughout the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Polo Ralph Lauren serves as the official fashion and outfitter partner, completing the luxury ecosystem surrounding the tournament.