Wimbledon History

Origins: 1877

The first Wimbledon Championships took place on July 9, 1877 — a Wednesday afternoon at the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club on Worple Road, Wimbledon. There was one event: the Gentlemen's Singles. Twenty-two players entered. Spencer Gore won, defeating William Marshall in the final 6–1, 6–2, 6–4.

The tournament charged a shilling admission. Around 200 spectators attended the final. Cricket matches were cancelled to free the ground for the new event.

By 1884 the Ladies' Singles had been added, won for the first six consecutive years by Maud Watson and then Blanche Bingley and Lottie Dod. The Doubles events followed. Wimbledon rapidly expanded beyond what Worple Road could accommodate, leading to the move to the current Church Road site in 1922 — where it has remained for over a century.

The Pre-War Era

The period between the world wars produced some of the sport's earliest legends. Suzanne Lenglen, the French player for whom Roland Garros's second court is named, dominated the Ladies' draw from 1919 to 1926 — winning six titles and losing only a single set across those years. Her style — graceful, athletic, tactically sophisticated — redefined what women's tennis could look like.

On the men's side, Henri Cochet, Bill Tilden, and Jean Borotra produced some of the era's defining Centre Court contests. Tilden's rivalry with Cochet in the late 1920s drew the tournament's first genuinely international fan base.

Wimbledon was not held from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War. The grounds were used for military purposes; the All England Club suffered bomb damage in 1940 that destroyed Centre Court's north stand.

The Open Era: 1968 Onwards

Before 1968, only amateur players could compete at Grand Slams. The introduction of the Open Era — allowing professionals to enter — transformed the entire sport and made Wimbledon's Champions genuinely the best players in the world. Rod Laver, who won Wimbledon as an amateur and then again as a professional, immediately became the measure of what the new era could produce.

The 1970s and 1980s brought Wimbledon's greatest rivalries. Bjorn Borg won five consecutive titles from 1976 to 1980, his clay court baseline game adapted to grass through relentless preparation. John McEnroe ended the streak in 1981, winning three titles himself. Their 1980 final — which included the 18–16 fourth-set tiebreak — remains one of the most replayed matches in tennis history.

Agassi, Sampras, and the Serve Era

Pete Sampras defined Wimbledon in the 1990s and early 2000s. Seven titles between 1993 and 2000 — the most at the time — were built on a first serve and volleying game perfectly designed for grass. His loss to Goran Ivanisevic in the 1998 semifinal and the 2001 fourth-round defeat to Roger Federer — both in five sets — were the rare moments when his Wimbledon aura cracked.

Goran Ivanisevic's 2001 title came as a wildcard entry ranked 125th in the world — the most dramatic and improbable Wimbledon victory of the Open Era. His serve had always been lethal on grass; his mental resilience that fortnight matched it.

The Federer Era: 2003–2017

Roger Federer won eight Wimbledon titles — a record he held until Novak Djokovic surpassed him in 2022. His first title in 2003, defeating Mark Philippoussis, began a run of five consecutive Championships. He was defeated by Nadal in 2008 in a final widely regarded as the greatest match ever played at Wimbledon — 6–4, 6–4, 6–7, 6–7, 9–7 in near-darkness.

Federer's final title came in 2017 against Marin Cilic, his eighth overall. The manner of the victory — dropping only one set throughout the tournament — suggested his grass court game had, if anything, become more refined with age.

Serena Williams: The Dominant Women's Champion

Serena Williams won seven Wimbledon titles, her last in 2016. Her combination of a flat, powerful first serve that skidded through the grass and an aggressive baseline game made her the most dominant Ladies' Champion since Navratilova. She reached three more finals after 2016, each time falling short of an eighth title.

Venus Williams won five Wimbledon titles of her own, making the Williams sisters the most successful Wimbledon family in the Open Era. Their 2008 final — Venus defeating Serena — is the only all-sisters Grand Slam final in history.

Djokovic and the Modern Record

Novak Djokovic surpassed Federer's seven titles with his eighth in 2022, becoming the most successful men's Wimbledon champion in history. His titles span 2011 through to 2022 and reflect a physical and tactical evolution — the baseline defending that defined his early years developing into a more proactive, net-approaching style on grass.

Djokovic's 2019 final against Federer — saving two championship points before winning in a final-set tiebreak — is considered among the greatest Finals in the tournament's history.

The New Generation: Alcaraz and Sinner

Carlos Alcaraz became the first Spaniard to win Wimbledon in 2023, defeating Djokovic in four sets. He retained the title in 2024 against Djokovic in another four-set final. The back-to-back championships from a player still in his early twenties announced a genuine Wimbledon era.

Jannik Sinner broke through in 2025, defeating Alcaraz in four sets in a final that saw the two best players of their generation produce a Wimbledon classic. It was the first Italian men's Wimbledon title — and Sinner arrived as the defending champion in 2026.

On the women's side, Iga Świótek's 2025 title — culminating in a 6–0, 6–0 final — ended a narrative that grass was her least favoured surface. She arrives at the 2026 Championships as the defending champion and overwhelming favourite.