Wimbledon enjoyed an impressive financial bounce back this summer, recording a Championships surplus of £44 million.
This was despite much-reduced crowds, especially in the first week, before 100% capacity was restored to the two main show courts from the quarter finals onwards.
The figures, released to All England Club members this month, suggest that the grass court Grand Slam has ridden out the pandemic to date with no lasting damage.
When it was canceled for 2020 the monetary hit was neutralized by a far-sighted insurance policy, although that was impossible to secure this year.
Considering the lower ticket sales and extra Covid costs involved with the 2021 edition – such as block booking a central London hotel – £44 million is a good result, although short of the £50.8 million announced in 2019.
The Lawn Tennis Association will receive the large majority of the surplus. The British game is already looking forward to a £22million bonus from the government, which is granting the money to repair public courts around the country in the wake of Emma Raducanu’s triumph at the US Open.
Another sign of Wimbledon’s seemingly pandemic and recession-proof finances is that the recent sale of debentures for Court Number One were oversubscribed.
A new tranche of 1,250 five year ‘season tickets’ for the arena were disposed of for £46,000 each, which will help fund the ambitious and locally controversial expansion onto the neighboring golf course.
From next year onwards they can expect to make even more money, because the tournament will operate for 14 straight days with the eradication of the traditional Sunday off.