Australian Open tennis betting 2026
The Australian Open is the first tennis grand slam of the year, with the 2026 edition set to be the 114th time the Melbourne-based tournament will be played. Australian Open tennis betting is available at all good sports betting sites, with both men’s and women’s odds live well in advance of the January 12 start date. Jannik Sinner is the hot favourite to win the men’s crown, while Aryna Sabalanka is fancied for the women’s title, with just over a month until it begins.
Our Australian Open betting guide will run you through everything you need to know, including the latest odds, events list, top Australian Open betting sites and apps, betting tips and predictions and much more. You can use the Page Navigation above to explore the World Gambling List’s Australian Open coverage.
Australian Open dates and venue
The Australian Open will kick off on January 12, 2026, following the qualifying tournament, which will run from January 6-9.
The 114 Australian Open will be played at Melbourne Park, where it has been played since 1988, following the decision to switch the tournament from grass courts to hard courts and give it a permanent home at the then named Flinders Park.
The two main show courts at the Australian Open are Rod Laver Arena and Margaret Court Arena, two of the legends of Aussie tennis and pioneers of the game internationally.
Key AO dates:
- Qualifying for the Australian Open 2026 will take place from Monday 6 to Thursday 9 January.
- The main draw will get underway on Sunday 12 January until Sunday 26 January.
- The wheelchair tournaments will start from Tuesday 21 January to Saturday 25 January.
Top Australian Open betting sites and apps 2025
Betway review
The Australian Open draws betting interest right around the world, with top players from various countries vying for a share of the massive prize money and ranking points, not to mention the prestige of a grand slam title.
Betting markets are available pretty much as soon as last edition has been run and won, although not all bookmakers will have futures markets on tennis, but you can rest assured the major operators will.
As the Australian Open draws closer, betting sites will ramp up their markets, with this generally happening when the draw is released and all lead-up events have been completed.
You can almost guarantee major Australian Open betting sites will run promotions surrounding the tournament, particularly in regulated betting markets, where tennis is popular, including Australia, USA, UK, Russia and many European countries.
The World Gambling List recommends wagering with online betting sites that are licensed in your jurisdiction if possible, although many countries allow residents to bet with offshore operators, including New Zealand and much of Canada.
Funding tennis betting sites is straight-forward and can be done with credit and debit cards, web wallets, payment processors, mobile payment options and even cryptos, including bitcoin and Ethereum. The latter is not allowed to be used to fund accounts in some countries, including the UK, USA and Australia.
Australian Open betting 2025
Australian Open betting is headed by star Italian Jannik Sinnner, who has been backed into 1.90 to win a third Aus Open crown, with Carlos Alcaraz (2.60) and veteran Novak Djokovic (9.00) rounding out the top three.
But as we have seen in the past, the soaring temperatures, early-season dates and five set nature of the Australian Open, can challenge even the most hardy of players which means there can be upsets.
Young stars Coco Gauff (8.00) and Mirra Andreeva (10.00) are also in the mix and loom as real threats to the established favourites after strong 2025s.
Coco Gauff closed 2025 ranked world No. 3, cementing her place among the elite after winning the French Open and the Wuhan 1000 — a mark of consistency and real Grand Slam momentum.
Andreeva, meanwhile, has surged up the rankings and by mid-2025 entered the top 10, becoming one of the youngest ever to reach that milestone — a meteoric rise for a teenager that makes her a dangerous underdog.
The full list of Australian Open events you can bet on include:
- Men’s Singles
- Women’s Singles
- Men’s Doubles
- Women’s Doubles
- Mixed Doubles
Australian Open odds 2026
Australian Open odds are now live for both the men’s and women’s singles events. Traditionally, Australian Open odds for the doubles events drop closer to the start date.
Australian Open men’s odds
| Player | Win Odds |
|---|---|
| Jannik Sinner | 1.90 |
| Carlos Alcaraz | 2.60 |
| Novak Djokovic | 9.00 |
| Alexander Zverev | 13.00 |
| Daniil Medvedev | 19.00 |
| Taylor Fritz | 26.00 |
| Jack Draper | 34.00 |
| Joao Fonseca | 34.00 |
| Ben Shelton | 41.00 |
| Alex De Minaur | 41.00 |
| Jakub Mensik | 51.00 |
| Arthur Fils | 51.00 |
| Felix Auger Aliassime | 67.00 |
| Hubert Hurkacz | 67.00 |
| Andrey Rublev | 67.00 |
| Lorenzo Musetti | 81.00 |
| Tommy Paul | 81.00 |
| Casper Ruud | 81.00 |
| Stefanos Tsitsipas | 81.00 |
| Jacob Fearnley | 101.00 |
| Alejandro Davidovich Fokina | 101.00 |
| Denis Shapovalov | 101.00 |
| Francisco Cerundolo | 101.00 |
| Learner Tien | 101.00 |
| Tomas Machac | 101.00 |
| Karen Khachanov | 101.00 |
| Frances Tiafoe | 101.00 |
| Nick Kyrgios | 101.00 |
| Matteo Berrettini | 101.00 |
| Grigor Dimitrov | 101.00 |
| Arthur Cazaux | 126.00 |
| Cameron Norrie | 126.00 |
| Jiri Lehecka | 126.00 |
| Lorenzo Sonego | 126.00 |
| Alexei Popyrin | 126.00 |
| Zhzihen Zhang | 151.00 |
| Flavio Cobolli | 151.00 |
| Thanasi Kokkinakis | 151.00 |
| Jordan Thompson | 151.00 |
| Ugo Humbert | 201.00 |
| Alex Michelsen | 201.00 |
| Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard | 201.00 |
| Kei Nishikori | 251.00 |
| Sebastian Korda | 251.00 |
Australian Open Women’s odds
| Player | Win Odds |
|---|---|
| Aryna Sabalenka | 3.00 |
| Iga Swiatek | 5.50 |
| Elena Rybakina | 8.00 |
| Coco Gauff | 8.00 |
| Mirra Andreeva | 10.00 |
| Amanda Anisimova | 10.00 |
| Naomi Osaka | 15.00 |
| Qinwen Zheng | 21.00 |
| Madison Keys | 21.00 |
| Victoria Mboko | 26.00 |
| Karolina Muchova | 26.00 |
| Paula Badosa | 34.00 |
| Jessica Pegula | 34.00 |
| Emma Navarro | 34.00 |
| Jasmine Paolini | 41.00 |
| Emma Raducanu | 41.00 |
| Diana Shnaider | 41.00 |
| Ons Jabeur | 51.00 |
| Marketa Vondrousova | 51.00 |
| Jelena Ostapenko | 51.00 |
| Elina Svitolina | 51.00 |
| Barbora Krejcikova | 51.00 |
| Alexandra Eala | 67.00 |
| Yulia Putintseva | 67.00 |
| Marta Kostyuk | 67.00 |
| Maria Sakkari | 67.00 |
| Leylah Fernandez | 67.00 |
| Daria Kasatkina | 67.00 |
| Danielle Collins | 67.00 |
| Anastasia Potapova | 67.00 |
| Linda Noskova | 81.00 |
| Bianca Andreescu | 81.00 |
| Beatriz Haddad Maia | 81.00 |
| Anna Kalinskaya | 81.00 |
| Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova | 81.00 |
| Victoria Azarenka | 101.00 |
| Sofia Kenin | 101.00 |
| Katie Boulter | 101.00 |
| Ekaterina Alexandrova | 101.00 |
| Donna Vekic | 101.00 |
| Dayana Yastremska | 101.00 |
Australian Open structure
The Australian Open singles tournament features a 128-player main draw and runs across two weeks, with seven knockout rounds deciding the champion. Entry into the draw comes through direct acceptance based on ATP/WTA rankings, a series of wildcards granted by Tennis Australia, and 16 players who battle through the qualifying tournament held the week prior. In total, 104 players enter directly, with 8 wildcards and 16 qualifiers completing the field.
All singles matches are played in a single-elimination format, meaning one loss ends a player’s tournament. Men’s singles matches are best-of-five sets across all rounds, while women’s singles and all doubles matches are best-of-three sets. If a final set reaches 6-6, the Australian Open uses a first-to-10 deciding tiebreak to determine the match.
Seeds are used to ensure the highest-ranked players are spread evenly throughout the draw, preventing early clashes between favourites. To lift the trophy, a player must win seven matches, progressing from the opening Round of 128 through to the final at Rod Laver Arena.
The same knockout structure also applies to doubles, wheelchair tennis and mixed doubles, which run alongside the main singles competitions throughout the fortnight.
Australian Open 2026 prize money
The Australian Open will issue a record AUD $96.5million across all events, with the prize money set to be broken down like this:
Singles
| Winner | $3,500,000 |
| Runner-up | $1,900,000 |
| Semi-final | $1,100,000 |
| Quarter-final | $665,000 |
| Fourth round | $420,000 |
| Third round | $290,000 |
| Second round | $200,000 |
| First round | $132,000 |
Doubles (per team)
| Winner | $810,000 |
| Runner-up | $440,000 |
| Semi-final | $250,000 |
| Quarter-final | $142,000 |
| Third round | $82,000 |
| Second round | $58,000 |
| First round | $40,000 |
How to watch the Australian Open 2026
The Australian Open is one of the biggest tournaments on the tennis calendar and it is possible to watch it all over the world, but it can be tough to work it out with so many streaming services. Below is a list of key tennis countries and how residents can watch the Australian Open tennis:
| Country | How to Watch the Australian Open (2026) |
|---|
| Australia | Live on free-to-air TV via Nine Network (Channel 9 / 9Gem / 9Go!) and stream on 9Now; full coverage also available via subscription service Stan Sport — including live, replay, highlights, and Centre-Court matches in 4K. |
| United States | Coverage on ESPN, and streaming on ESPN+ (plus ESPN2/ESPN as part of cable plans). |
| United Kingdom | Broadcast via Eurosport — live on TV and streaming online, and via the platform discovery+. |
| Canada | The tournament is available through Canadian rights-holders — typically via TSN (and where available, streaming services) per past broadcaster listings. |
| Spain | In Europe, coverage is through Eurosport / discovery+ under the continental broadcast deal for the Australian Open. |
| Italy | Similarly, viewers in Italy get access via Eurosport / discovery+ under the pan-European rights arrangement. |
| Russia | As part of Europe’s broadcast territory under the deal with Warner Bros. Discovery and Eurosport, Russian viewers—when accessible—should typically receive coverage via the same channels. |
| Japan | Coverage historically has been provided by national broadcaster WOWOW. |
| China | The Australian Open’s broadcasting partners list China among Asia-Pacific territories, meaning via the local agreed partner(s) (such as regional networks/streamers). |
| Switzerland | As part of Europe under the broadcast agreement, coverage is via Eurosport or the domestic public-service broadcast partners tied to the distribution deal. |
| Ireland | Also covered under the WBD/Eurosport pan-European rights — viewers can stream via discovery+ / Eurosport services. |
Australian Open history
The Australian Open is the youngest of tennis’s four Grand Slam tournaments, but its evolution has been one of the most dramatic. It began in 1905 as the Australasian Championships, held on grass courts at Melbourne’s Warehouseman’s Cricket Ground. Initially designed to showcase tennis across Australia and New Zealand, the event rotated locations, visiting cities including Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and even Christchurch. Women were first included in 1922, expanding the championship into a fully recognised international contest.
Despite its prestige, global participation was limited for decades due to Australia’s remote location and the long travel required, particularly by ship before the jet age. In 1969, during the dawn of the Open Era, the tournament became the Australian Open, fully welcoming professional players.
A major turning point came in 1988, when the event moved permanently to Melbourne Park. The shift from grass to hard courts modernised the tournament and helped attract the world’s best. The introduction of retractable roofs on Rod Laver Arena (1988), Margaret Court Arena (2015) and John Cain Arena (2021) established the Open as the first Grand Slam with multiple courts that could guarantee uninterrupted play in extreme heat or rain.
On the court, Novak Djokovic has become the most dominant champion in history, winning 10 men’s singles titles. He is followed by Roy Emerson (6), Roger Federer (6), Jack Crawford (4) and André Agassi (4). In the women’s game, Margaret Court’s record 11 titles remains unmatched, while Serena Williams (7), Nancye Wynne Bolton (6), Daphne Akhurst (5) and Steffi Graf (4) make up the elite group of multiple-time winners.
The Australian Open has also seen its share of controversy, including challenging heat conditions, player protests over scheduling, and COVID-era travel restrictions that created unprecedented quarantine rules in 2021. Yet through its innovations, fan-friendly atmosphere and world-class facilities, the Australian Open has grown from a regional championship into a truly global celebration of tennis — the Grand Slam of the Asia-Pacific.
