The behavior of influencers at this year’s US Open brought the risks of the relationship between brands and content creators into focus. During the match between Naomi Osaka and Anastasia Zakharova, influencers in a luxury suite distracted players by using illuminated equipment, prompting the umpire to stop play and ask them to remain quiet. At the tournament grounds, some content creators also asked US Open employees to take flash photographs of them while matches were still underway.
Jeanmarie Daly, director of media operations at the United States Tennis Association (USTA), had announced that the number of content creators accredited at the tournament had increased to the level of “almost doubling.” “Close to 100” influencers attended the event this year, compared with 54 last year. However, USTA spokesperson Brendan McIntyre said that the people who disrupted the match had not been accredited by the organization. Meg Radice and Audrey Jongens had their access revoked after sharing photos of their credentials on Instagram. According to McIntyre, the pair had applied improperly through the staff list of a food supplier.
Although content creators contribute to promoting the event by showcasing the tournament to their followers, their behavior negatively affected spectators’ experience. Creator advertising spending in the US reached 37 billion dollars in 2025, and that figure is expected to rise to 44 billion dollars by the end of the year. As brands increasingly turn to influencers, the behavior of those invited must also be taken into consideration in advance. Since a rule change in 2024, spectators have been able to get up from their seats whenever they want during matches; there are also areas near the courts where people can move around freely. Despite this, after the videos circulated, USTA put up new warnings outside the stadiums against using flashes or other lights.
A similar problem arose in an advertisement that Callaway Golf Company prepared with Good Good. In the video inspired by Curry Barker’s work *Obsession*, Good Good co-founder Garrett Clark was pushing professional golfer Alexis Miestowski to the ground as she reached for her Callaway-branded club. The advertisement drew backlash for normalizing violence against women. Callaway apologized and ended its relationship with Good Good. CEO Chip Brewer said the company had approved the video before it was released, but that the content did not reflect its values. The incident shows that brands need to scrutinize content more carefully when working with influencers who seek creative control.
Why it matters
These examples show that content creators’ role in event and brand communications cannot be assessed solely through reach and visibility. Behaviors that disrupt the audience experience may require accreditation processes and oversight at event venues to be reconsidered; this directly concerns organizers, brands and invited content creators. The Callaway case, meanwhile, demonstrates that leaving creative control to content creators does not separate the brand from the consequences of the published message. As advertising spending grows, the key open question is to what extent brands and event organizers will make codes of conduct and content approval binding when selecting their partnerships. Both incidents point to the need for pre-publication review and a clear division of responsibility, rather than subsequent apologies or revoked access.