The competition officially kicks off on 18th January (Sunday) with the first round of the Men’s and Women’s Singles bracket, although an initial qualifying programme will be completed throughout the previous week.
While the qualifiers unfold, the newly introduced AO Opening Week provides an opportunity for tennis enthusiasts to access a range of fun activities, live shows and immersive experiences. As well as being able to enjoy appearances from several retired legends and current stars, attendees can also watch the main draw take place on the Grand Slam Oval fan stage.
After a fortnight of intense competitive action, the 2026 Australian Open wraps up on Sunday, February 1st, following the conclusion of the Men’s final.
Melbourne Park
As has been the case for the best part of four decades, this year’s Australian Open will be staged at Melbourne Park.
Before settling into its current home in 1988, the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club – which is situated less than nine kilometres away in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs – had assumed hosting responsibilities for the previous 15 years. Although the event has been held in Melbourne on more occasions than any other city throughout its long history, the Australian Open has also taken place in Brisbane, Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, and New Zealand (Christchurch in 1906 and Hastings in 1912).
Melbourne Park is equipped with a staggering 39 tennis courts, although its six clay surfaces will not be in operation. The competition has always been contested on hard courts at this location, but grass was used throughout the first 82 years of its existence. There are three show courts at Melbourne Park: the Rod Laver Arena (15k capacity), the John Cain Arena (10.5k capacity), and the Margaret Court Arena (7.5k capacity). The impressive Rod Laver Arena is Australia’s second-largest indoor sports venue, behind the 21,000-seater Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney.
Thanks to Melbourne Park’s colossal size and easily accessible location, the Australian Open consistently boasts higher spectator numbers than any of the other three Grand Slams. Last January, a total of more than 1.2 million people attended the event.
Events
Although the world’s best singles players will inevitably grab most of the headlines, the Australian Open also plays host to doubles, wheelchair, and junior events.
Here’s a full list of the events we’ll see in Melbourne:
Men’s Singles
Women’s Singles
Men’s Doubles
Women’s Doubles
Mixed Doubles
Men’s Wheelchair Singles
Women’s Wheelchair Singles
Men’s Wheelchair Doubles
Women’s Wheelchair Doubles
Quad Wheelchair Singles
Quad Wheelchair Doubles
Junior Boy’s Singles
Junior Girl’s Singles
Junior Boy’s Doubles
Junior Girl’s Doubles
Junior Boy’s Wheelchair Singles
Junior Girl’s Wheelchair Singles
Junior Boy’s Wheelchair Doubles
Junior Girl’s Wheelchair Doubles
The AO Legends Trophy
A small group of retired professionals will participate in the AO Legends Trophy, an exhibition event that provides plenty of light-hearted entertainment for watching audiences. A legends event has formed part of the Australian Open schedule for several years, but a format change in 2025 has made it a more marketable feature. Following last year’s successful launch, the competition pits ‘Team Australia’ against ‘Team World’ in a selection of Men’s, Women’s, and Mixed matches.
The inaugural edition of the AO Legends Trophy was won by the hosts, with two-time Grand Slam winner Lleyton Hewitt leading his country to glory. It featured a number of former world-class players, including Pat Rafter, Samantha Stosur, Tommy Haas, and Daniela Hantuchová.
Prize Money and Points Allocations
This year’s total prize pot sits at an eye-watering A$111.5 million, which is a colossal 16% uplift on 2025’s equivalent figure. That money is distributed on a performance-based sliding scale, with the amount players receive dependent on how far they progress in the tournament. Those eliminated in the first round will still be entitled to a payment of A$150k for their efforts, while unsuccessful qualifying participants also take a small slice of the pie.
The Australian Open has rewarded men and women equally for the last 24 years (and briefly between 1984 and 1995), so there will be an even distribution of funds between the two genders. As it generates more revenue than the aforementioned other segments, the singles divisions are duly given a larger proportion of the kitty.
Defending champions Jannik Sinner and Madison Keys earned A$3.5 million for winning last year’s competition, while runners-up Alexander Zverev and Aryna Sabalenka took home a cool A$1.9 million. The tournament’s next victors are poised to each receive A$4.15 million from this year’s record-breaking prize pot – not bad for two weeks' work!
In addition to a bumper pay cheque, the winners will also be issued 2,000 ATP/WTA points. As per the prize money distribution model, the remaining points allocations are determined by performance.
Australian Open 2026 – Schedule
To help you plan your viewing timetable, we’ve provided a full schedule of this year’s Australian Open. Please note that all dates are aligned to Melbourne’s local time zone (Australian Eastern Daylight Time), so you’ll need to adjust your clock accordingly!
Monday, January 12th to Thursday, January 15th: All qualifying rounds
Sunday, January 18th: Start of Round 1 – Men’s Singles and Women’s Singles
Monday, January 19th: Start of Round 1 – Men’s Doubles and Women’s Doubles
Wednesday, January 21st: Start of Round 1 – Mixed Doubles
Saturday, January 24th: Start of Round 1 – Junior Boys’ Singles, Junior Girls’ Singles, and AO Legends Trophy
Sunday, January 25th: Start of Round 1 – Men’s Wheelchair Singles, Women’s Wheelchair Singles, Men’s Wheelchair Doubles, Women’s Wheelchair Doubles, Quad Wheelchair Singles, Quad Wheelchair Doubles, Junior Boys’ Doubles, Junior Girls’ Doubles
Tuesday, January 27th: Start of Quarter-finals – Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Women’s Doubles, Mixed Doubles
Wednesday, January 28th: Semi-finals – Mixed Doubles.
Start of Quarter-finals – Men’s Doubles, Junior Boys’ Doubles, Junior Girls’ Doubles.
Thursday, January 29th: Semi-finals – Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles, Men’s Wheelchair Singles, Women’s Wheelchair Singles, Junior Boys’ Doubles, Junior Girls’ Doubles, Junior Boys’ Wheelchair Doubles, Junior Girls’ Wheelchair Doubles
Friday, January 30th: Final – Mixed Doubles, Men’s Wheelchair Doubles, Women’s Wheelchair Doubles, Quad Wheelchair Doubles, Junior Boys’ Doubles, Junior Girls’ Doubles, Junior Boys’ Wheelchair Doubles, Junior Girls’ Wheelchair Doubles.
Semi-finals – Men’s Singles
Quarter-finals – Junior Boys’ Singles, Junior Girls’ Singles
Saturday, January 31st: Final – Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles, Men’s Wheelchair Singles, Women’s Wheelchair Singles, Quad Wheelchair Singles, Junior Boys’ Wheelchair Singles, Junior Girls’ Wheelchair Singles
Semi-final – Junior Boys’ Singles, Junior Girls’ Singles
Sunday, February 1st: Final – Men’s Singles, Junior Boys’ Singles, Junior Girls’ Singles
2025 Champions
Jannik Sinner is targeting his third consecutive Australian Open title, having already become the youngest player to register back-to-back triumphs at Melbourne Park since Jim Courier achieved this feat over three decades ago. After edging past Daniil Medvedev in an epic 2024 showpiece to land his maiden Grand Slam, the Italian ace recorded a straight-sets victory over Alexander Zverev in last year’s final.
If he is to successfully defend his title, it’s likely he’ll face world number one Carlos Alcaraz at some stage. The talented duo met in the final of the three remaining Grand Slams in 2025, following Sinner’s controversial three-month doping ban. The Spaniard emerged victorious at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows while Sinner took the Wimbledon crown, as the two men continued to assert their dominance over the ATP circuit. They also clashed in a tight encounter at last month’s ATP Finals, which resulted in Sinner claiming his second end-of-year championship on home soil.
There was a surprise winner in last year’s Women’s Singles event, as nineteenth seed Madison Keys secured her first and only major to date. After navigating past several tough opponents to make it through to the final, Keys needed all three sets to overcome pre-tournament favourite Aryna Sabalenka, who was aiming to lift the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup for a third successive year.
Keys’ best performance prior to her landmark success in Melbourne was at the 2017 US Open, where she finished runner-up following a disappointing defeat to American compatriot Sloane Stephens.