There are sporting events, and then there is Wimbledon. Held every summer on the iconic grounds of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) in south-west London, The Championships have been captivating the world since 1877 – long preceding tennis’s global reach and before a single professional player had set foot on Centre Court. What has endured nearly 150 years of change is something rare: an event where history and world-class competition exist side by side, every single year.

When is Wimbledon?

Wimbledon takes place over two weeks in late June and early July. The 2026 Championships run from 29 June to 12 July, with the Ladies’ Singles Final on the Saturday and the Men’s Singles Final on the Sunday. Matches on Centre Court typically begin at 1:30pm, with outside courts starting at 11:00am across all 18 courts at the All England Club. Qualifying rounds take place in the week prior to the main draw.

Where is Wimbledon Played?

The Championships are held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) in Wimbledon, London SW19 – a short walk from Southfields station on the District line. The club has been on Church Road since 1922, when it moved from Worple Road to meet growing demand.

There are three show courts at The Championships, Wimbledon, however Centre Court remains the focal point. With a capacity of just under 15,000, it offers a more intimate setting than most modern arenas. A retractable roof, installed in 2009, ensures play can continue through unpredictable British weather. Court No. 1, which has a capacity of 12,000 spectators also has a retractable roof and provides excellent viewing through the earlier rounds, while the outer courts offer an up-close experience that few other Grand Slams can match.

When Did Wimbledon Start?

The first Wimbledon Championship was held on 9 July 1877, organised by what was then called the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club. The tournament was announced in the weekly sporting magazine The Field, inviting amateurs to enter at one guinea.

The sole event was the Gentlemen’s Singles. In front of around 200 spectators, 27-year-old Spencer Gore defeated William Marshall 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 in just 48 minutes – a modest beginning for what would become the most prestigious off all the tennis tournaments.

How Wimbledon Has Evolved Over Time?

What started as a small local event – staged partly to fund the repair of the club’s pony roller – has grown into a global spectacle watched by millions. By the early 1900s, Wimbledon had already outgrown its all-England identity. The move to Church Road in 1922, the beginning of the ‘Open Era’ in 1968, the installation of the retractable roof in 2009, and continued expansion of prize money have all marked significant steps forward.

When Did Women First Play at Wimbledon?

The Ladies’ Singles was introduced in 1884, seven years after the first Championships. Thirteen women entered, with Maud Watson winning the inaugural title. The addition was significant, not just for growing the tournament, but for broadening the sport’s audience at a time when women’s participation in competitive athletics was far from the norm. The Women’s Championship has since produced its own roster of legends and landmark moments that stand equal to anything in the men’s game.

Wimbledon in the Open Era

The most transformative shift in modern Wimbledon history came in 1968, when the tournament became one of the first to welcome professional players. Before this, the sport’s top earners were barred from the majors entirely. The Open Era changed that – and changed the sport with it. Rod Laver won the Men’s Singles in both 1968 and 1969, and the years that followed brought the rivalries and champions whose names still define Wimbledon’s record books today.

What Makes Wimbledon Unique?

Of the four Grand Slams on the tennis calendar, Wimbledon is the only one still played on grass – the surface on which lawn tennis was born, and the one that continues to produce the fastest and most unpredictable form of the game. The grass at Wimbledon is perennial ryegrass, maintained at precisely 8mm throughout the tournament, setting it apart from the hard courts of the Australian and US Opens and the clay of the French Open. Players must wear almost entirely white, a rule dating to the Victorian era that remains strictly enforced, with even the shade of white policed. The Royal Box on Centre Court, regularly attended by members of the Royal Family, lends a ceremonial quality no other Grand Slam replicates. And the strawberries and cream – over 190,000 portions served during the fortnight using Grade 1 Kent strawberries delivered fresh each morning – complete a picture of tradition that is entirely Wimbledon’s own. That balance between evolution and tradition is precisely what gives Wimbledon its enduring character.

All-Time Wimbledon Winners

Men’s Singles Winners (Open Era)

The Open Era has produced some of the greatest champions in tennis history, with Federer, Djokovic, and Sampras accounting for 22 of the 57 titles contested since 1968.

Women’s Singles Winners (Open Era)

The women’s draw has been defined by extraordinary dominance, with Navratilova, Graf and Serena Williams combining for 23 Open Era titles between them.

Most Successful Wimbledon Players

Men:

Roger Federer holds the all-time record for men’s titles at Wimbledon, having won the championship eight times, winning consecutively from 2003 to 2007 before adding further titles in 2009, 2012, and 2017. His final victory at the age of 35 made him the oldest Open Era men’s champion, and his grass-court tennis is still considered the purest expression of the game.

Novak Djokovic has seven Wimbledon titles, including three consecutive between 2018 and 2021. His nerve and mental clarity on the biggest occasions have defined his record at SW19, perhaps most memorably when he saved two match points against Federer in the 2019 final.

Pete Sampras won seven titles across the 1990s and into 2000, his serve-and-volley game perfectly suited to the surface. His record stood as the men’s all-time mark until Federer passed him in 2017.

Women:

Martina Navratilova is the most successful women’s champion in Wimbledon history with nine titles, including six in a row from 1982 to 1987. Her combination of serve-and-volley precision and physical conditioning set a standard that has never been matched on a single surface.

Serena Williams claimed seven Wimbledon titles between 2002 and 2016, placing her among the most successful champions in the Open Era. Powerful and technically formidable on every surface, she was particularly lethal on grass – her serve alone was enough to overpower most opponents before a rally had even begun.

Steffi Graf won seven Wimbledon crowns between 1988 and 1996, highlighted by her Golden Slam in 1988, in which she won all four majors and Olympic gold in the same calendar year. At Wimbledon specifically, her aggressive baseline game made her close to unplayable during her peak.

Notable Wimbledon Finals and Historic Matches

No match in Wimbledon’s history is revisited more often than the 2008 Men’s Final. Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-7(8), 9-7 across nearly five hours, two rain delays, and a fourth-set tiebreak widely considered one of the greatest passages of play in tennis history. The match ended in near-darkness, Nadal ending Federer’s 65-match winning streak on grass. Many who witnessed it still consider it the finest tennis match ever played.

The 2019 final offered a different kind of theatre. Djokovic defeated Federer 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 4-6, 13-12 in four hours and fifty-seven minutes – the longest Wimbledon final in history. Federer held two match points at 8-7 in the fifth and failed to convert both, with Djokovic going on to win the first-ever final-set tiebreak at the tournament. Tennis Magazine later named it the greatest men’s match of the decade.

Beyond those two finals, Wimbledon’s archive is rich with moments that endure on their own terms: Goran Ivanišević’s 2001 wildcard triumph – the only time a wildcard has won the men’s title – Andy Murray’s 2013 victory ending a 77-year wait for a British men’s champion, and Boris Becker’s 1985 title at 17, still the youngest men’s champion in Wimbledon history.

Experience Wimbledon in Person

For all that television can capture, there’s no substitute for being there. The grass underfoot, the hush before a first serve on Centre Court, the strawberries and cream in hand – Wimbledon is one of those rare sporting events that fully lives up to its reputation.

It’s a genuine bucket-list experience: world-class tennis in an iconic setting, with the kind of atmosphere that stays with you long after the final point is played. Our Wimbledon packages are designed to make every element of that visit as seamless as possible – whether you’re attending for the first time or returning for another unforgettable fortnight at SW19.