The Wimbledon Championships is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. It has been held annually at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877. The Championships is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments. The other three are the Australian Open, the French Open and the US Open.

Of the four Grand Slam tournaments, the Wimbledon Championships is the only one to be played on grass courts. The courts are all outdoors. However, in 2009, the Centre Court at Wimbledon was fitted with a retractable roof. With the typical unpredictable British weather, playing time was often being lost due to rain. The option of a roof on the Centre Court meant that the amount of time lost to rain could
be minimised.

Wimbledon parking guide

Parking near Wimbledon

If you’re travelling for the tournament, then you are probably wondering where you will be able to find parking in Wimbledon. There are parking restrictions in place around the Wimbledon area during the tennis championships, so be sure to check signs nearby to ensure you are entitled to park where you are.

During the Wimbledon Championships, Merton Council operate a car park in Wimbledon Park. This is only a five-minute walk from the entrance to Wimbledon Tennis. This car park is open from 6am to 10pm. Overnight parking is not allowed. You can book a space in advance for £25 or pay on the day for £30. It is recommended that Blue Badge holders pre-book parking so that your space is guaranteed.
There is also a park and ride site at Morden Park. This is accessed from the A3 at Tolworth and via the A240 and A24 at postcode SM4 5QU. The park and ride scheme runs between 6.30am and 11pm. It costs £15 per car.

Another option is St Mary’s Church in Wimbledon, which has offered parking to those attending the Wimbledon Championships since the 1950s. There is space for about 140 cars in the field adjacent to the churchyard. The charge is £28 per day and the car park gates are open from 9am to 10pm. All proceeds are donated to local, national and international charities or used to support the resources of St Mary’s
church.

Parking in Wimbledon during such a popular event is bound to be in high demand. Book in advance with YourParkingSpace to ensure that you have access to an affordable and convenient parking space. We offer off-street parking, including driveways and lock-up garages, in the area around the Wimbledon Championships. There are options available for booking hourly, daily or weekly parking. You can be certain that you are entitled to park in any parking space booked via YourParkingSpace, so you can enjoy the tennis without any worry about parking restrictions or fines.

YourParkingSpace offers a simple and easy-to-use online platform for booking your parking in advance. Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, you can organise your parking at a time that suits you. Why not put parking in your pocket by downloading our free app?
If you own an empty parking space in the area around the Wimbledon Championships, have you considered earning an easy extra income by registering with YourParkingSpace? It’s free to list and takes only moments to register. You could soon be watching the bookings come rolling in and settling back with a simple second income.

Wimbledon guide

The tournament consists of five main events. These are:

• Gentlemen’s Singles
• Ladies’ Singles
• Gentlemen’s Doubles
• Ladies’ Doubles
• Mixed Doubles

There are also four junior events held and seven invitational events. The junior events are:

• Boys’ Singles
• Girls’ Singles
• Boys’ Doubles
• Girls’ Doubles 

The invitational events are:

• Gentlemen’s Invitation Doubles
• Ladies’ Invitation Doubles
• Senior Gentlemen’s Invitation Doubles
• Gentlemen’s Wheelchair Singles
• Ladies’ Wheelchair Singles
• Gentlemen’s Wheelchair Doubles
• Ladies’ Wheelchair Doubles

The majority of events are single elimination tournaments, meaning that players who lose their match are eliminated from the tournament. However, the Gentlemen’s, Senior Gentlemen’s and Ladies’ Invitation Doubles are round robin tournaments instead. Matches in the Gentlemen’s Singles and the Gentlemen’s Doubles events are best of five sets. All the other events are best of three sets.

It was traditional until 1921 for the winners of the previous year’s tournament to be automatically granted a place in the final round. This led to issues as it meant that the previous winners were able to rest while their opponents competed from the start of the competition. As a result, many winners retained their titles in successive years. Since 1922, all players, including the previous year’s champions, are required to play all the rounds of the tournament.

Whilst dark green and purple are the traditional Wimbledon colours, all tennis players taking part in the tournament are required to wear all-white clothing. This is a long-time tradition at Wimbledon. A small amount of colour accents on white clothing is acceptable, but this cannot be part of an identifiable brand logo. In 1982, there was controversy over one of the players wearing clothing with branding for
“Kim” cigarettes. Considering the levels of fitness needed to be one of a top tennis player, this seems
like a strange thing to be advertising.

Wimbledon has a long-running sponsorship with Slazenger, who have supplied all tennis balls used during the tournament since 1902. Wimbledon has also had a sponsorship association with Robinsons fruit drink brand since 1935.

Around 250 ball boys and girls play a vital role in ensuring the smooth running of the tournament. The young people are nominated by their head teacher and are drawn from schools in the London boroughs of Merton, Sutton, Kingston and Wandsworth, as well as from Surrey. All the ball boys and girls are around 15 years old. To be selected, they must pass a written test on the rules of tennis and pass fitness and mobility tests. Successful candidates then take part in training sessions prior to the tournament.

Members of the Royal Family traditionally attend matches at the Wimbledon Championships. It was traditional for players to bow or curtsey to the those sitting in the Royal Box when they enter or leave the Centre Court. However, this was discontinued in 2003. Players are now only required to do this if the Prince of Wales or the Queen are present.

A public ballot is held for tickets for the Centre Court. This is usually oversubscribed, and it was estimated that there are often four applicants to every ticket available. Successful applicants are selected at random by a computer. Seats and days are allocated randomly. Ballot tickets are not transferable. However, holders of debenture tickets are permitted to sell their tickets on. Demand for tickets is extremely high and they have even been known to be traded on the London Stock Exchange. Tennis fans from all over the world queue up, often overnight, for the chance of a ticket to access the show courts. There are even toilets and water facilities provided for those camping out overnight in the
queue. When they join the queue, fans are handed queue cards. This is to prevent queue jumping. Anyone who needs to leave the queue temporarily must makes sure that they agree their position with others nearby in the queue and a steward. In 2010, the one millionth numbered Wimbledon queue card was handed out to a lady called Rose Stanley from South Africa. See this article for more information regarding tickets.

Stewards walk along the line early in the morning and hand out wristbands, which are colour coordinated to each court. Once the grounds open and the queue begins to move, fans can exchange the wristband for a ticket at the ticket office. Strawberries and cream are an essential part of the Wimbledon experience. In 2018, there were 190,900 portions of strawberries and cream eaten during the Championships. The cost of a portion of strawberries and cream is surprisingly reasonable, having remained at £2.50 since 2010. There are outlets around the Grounds which sell this delicious treat. They also offer a plant-based vegan friendly cream alternative.

The Wimbledon Championships is a prestigious tournament to win. There is also a large amount of prize money offered to the champions. The total prize money fund for the Wimbledon Championships in 2019 is £38m. The champions of the Ladies’ and Gentlemen’s Singles events will each receive £2.35m.

In 2018, the champion of the Gentlemen’s Singles was Novak Djokovic and the champion of the Ladies’ Singles was Angelique Kerber. Novak Djokovic has been a professional tennis player since 2003. He has played in 14 championships and won in 2011, 2014, and 2015, as well as in 2018. In his career, he has won 864 matches and has only lost 182. Angelique Kerber has also been a professional tennis player
since 2003. She has played in 11 championships, but 2018 was her first win. Over her career, she has won 418 matches and lost 234.

The 2019 Wimbledon Championships take place between 1 – 14 July. The three top ranked players for the Gentlemen’s Singles are: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer. The three top ranked players for the Ladies’ Singles are: Naomi Osaka, Ashleigh Barty, and Karolina Pliskova. Defending Ladies champion Angelique Kerber is ranked fifth in 2019.