The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, commonly known simply as Wimbledon or The Championships, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious.[2][3][4][5][6] It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877 and is played on outdoor grass courts, with retractable roofs over the two main courts since 2019.
 | |
| Official website | |
| Founded | 1877 |
|---|---|
| Editions | 134 (2021) |
| Location | London England, United Kingdom |
| Venue | All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club Worple Road (1877–1921) Church Road (since 1922) |
| Surface | Grass outdoors[lower-alpha 1] |
| Prize money | £40,350,000 (2022)[1] |
| Men's | |
| Draw | S (128Q) / 64D (16Q)[lower-alpha 2] |
| Current champions | Novak Djokovic (singles) Nikola Mektić / Mate Pavić (doubles) |
| Most singles titles | Roger Federer (8) |
| Most doubles titles | Todd Woodbridge (9) |
| Women's | |
| Draw | S (128Q) / 64D (16Q) |
| Current champions | Ashleigh Barty (singles) Hsieh Su-wei / Elise Mertens (doubles) |
| Most singles titles | Martina Navratilova (9) |
| Most doubles titles | Elizabeth Ryan (12) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Draw | 48 |
| Current champions | Desirae Krawczyk / Neal Skupski |
| Most titles (male) | Leander Paes (4) Vic Seixas (4) Owen Davidson (4) Ken Fletcher (4) |
| Most titles (female) | Elizabeth Ryan (7) |
| Grand Slam | |
| Last completed | |
| 2021 Wimbledon | |
Wimbledon is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the others being the Australian Open, the French Open, and the US Open. Wimbledon is the only major still played on grass, which is the traditional tennis playing surface.
The tournament traditionally took place over two weeks in late June and early July, starting on the last Monday in June and culminating with the Ladies' and Gentlemen's Singles Finals, scheduled for the Saturday and Sunday at the end of the second week. However, changes to the tennis calendar in 2015 have seen the event moved back by a week to begin in early July.[7][8] Five major events are held each year, with additional junior and invitational competitions also taking place.
Wimbledon traditions include a strict all-white dress code for competitors, and royal patronage. Strawberries and cream are traditionally consumed at the tournament.[9] Unlike other tournaments, advertising is minimal and low key from official suppliers such as Slazenger and Rolex.
In 2009, Wimbledon's Centre Court was fitted with a retractable roof to lessen the loss of playing time due to rain. A roof was operational over No. 1 Court from 2019,[10] when a number of other improvements were made, including adding cushioned seating, a table and 10 independently operable cameras per court to capture the games.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Championships were cancelled, the first cancellation of the tournament since World War II.[11] The rescheduled 134th edition was staged from 28 June 2021 to 11 July 2021, following from the 2020 cancellation. The 135th edition is scheduled to take place between 27 June 2022 and 10 July 2022, with regularly scheduled play on the middle Sunday expected for the first time. The 135th edition will also mark the centenary of the inaugural championships staged at the Centre Court.