From croquet to strawberries: 9 facts you never knew about the Wimbledon tennis tournament

The 139th Wimbledon Championships begin in earnest this coming Monday 29th June, kicking off a fortnight of impeccably manicured lawn tennis in London.

For attendees it’s a chance to dress up like a posh person, eat extortionately priced strawberries, and get slowly trolleyed on weak Pimms and smuggled-in cans of G&T.

For the plebs following along at home, it’s a chance to witness a genuine slice of sporting history. As the world’s oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament, it’s the sporting highlight of the year for many, even in this World Cup year.

Latest Videos From

Watch full video here:

• Game, set and catch-of-the-day: A preview guide to the Wimbledon 2026 tennis tournament's best food spots

With 149 years of service behind it, you’d better believe that the Wimbledon Championships have a storied history. We dare say there’s plenty about this tournament that you don’t know, no matter how much of a tennis fan you consider yourself to be.

Aided by a member of the Shortlist team’s recent trip to the on-site museum (which really is worth a visit, by the way), here’s a round up of some of the most interesting facts concerning the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

Talking of which, what’s up with that name? It’s as good a place to start as any...

It’s just not croquet

What’s the name of the world’s most famous tennis club? If you said ‘Wimbledon’, you’ve fallen into an obvious trap. Rather, the Wimbledon Championships are played at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, which nods to another fascinating fact: it wasn’t initially a tennis club at all. As hinted at by the last two words of the club’s name, the AELTaCC (as literally no-one calls it) was established in 1868 to play the distinctly un-tennis-like sport of croquet, which was massive in the Victorian era. Lawn tennis wasn’t added to the roster until 1875, though it quickly took precedence.

A Major breakthrough for the Welsh

Wimbledon, and the sport of lawn tennis that is inextricably associated with it, has come to be viewed as being quintessentially English. However, it was Welsh-born Major Walter Clopton Wingfield who popularised the sport in Victorian London. He patented a portable equipment set and ruleset for an outdoor variation of real tennis, which the British Army officer called Sphairistikè, in 1874. The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club built its first tennis court the following year.

The first ever Wimbledon Championships

The inaugural Wimbledon Championships took place in July of 1877, and were won by local sports star Spencer Gore – an accomplished all-round athlete who also played high-level cricket for Surrey County Cricket Club. He won the first ever final in straight sets – numbering just three at the time – and was said to be the first player to implement volleying into his game. While he might have been a trailblazing sportsman, though, Gore evidently lacked vision, reportedly stating that “lawn tennis will never rank among our great games”. Fault!

Not the OG Wimbledon

The modern day All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club isn’t where the Wimbledon Championships were originally played – nor indeed where they took place for the first 45 years of their existence. Those early tournaments took place on Worple Road, about a mile south of the club’s present location. The club and competition moved up to its spacier Church Road venue in 1922, partly in response to the popularity of French tennis superstar Suzanne Lenglen. It should surprise no-one to learn that the first championship at this new location was blighted by rain delays.

A right royal achievement

Tennis fanatics will tell you that this is the sport of kings, and Wimbledon proved that point exactly 100 years ago. Back in 1926 the Duke of York took part in the gentleman’s doubles. That’s the same Duke of York who would go on to become King George VI – wartime monarch, last Emperor of India, and Liz’s dad. Yes, him out of The King’s Speech. This was to be the one and only time (to date) a royal participated in the championship – unless you count sitting in the best seat in the house, waving benignly, as participating.

When Wimbledon turned into a farm

What does one do with 42 acres of pristine grass and prime real estate during a time of war, when the capital is being bombed and your people are on rations? Why, one puts said verdant sports club to work, of course. Nursing sisters, the Red Cross, and the St John Ambulance all moved into SW19, as did the Fire Service and Civil Defence forces. Meanwhile, the main concourse was turned into a parade ground, and the car parks were turned into vegetable patches. If you had visited the club between 1939 and 1945, you would have been more likely to encounter a pig than a tennis ball.

Wimbledon went Pro later than you might think

Wimbledon is one of the most highly regarded professional sports tournaments in the world, yet it has only been this way for less than half of its life. It only ‘went pro’ – becoming an ‘open’ tournament and thus allowing professionals to compete alongside amateurs – in 1968, two years after England won the football World Cup on home turf. It was the first lawn tennis tournament to do so. The first winners of this Wimbledon Open era were the mighty Rod Laver for the gents and the legendary Billy Jean King for the ladies.

Even the ball girls and boys are elite

What does it take to become a ball girl or boy at the world’s best tennis tournament? It’s not as easy as being a football mascot, that’s for sure. Some 250 candidates are drafted from schools around the club, at which point they’re put through a tough training regime online, at school, at the Raynes Park Community Sports Ground, and on the Wimbledon courts themselves. After being assessed on their general fitness, ball skills, knowledge of the game, and handling of tie breaks and ball changes, only about a quarter of the entrants will make the grade.

The strawberries and cream tradition goes way back

The cynics among you might suspect that the whole strawberries and cream thing is but a modern ruse to part visitors from more of their cash. However, it’s actually a tradition that goes way back to shortly after the tournament began in 1877. Fruit consumption was strictly seasonal at that time, and the Wimbledon Championships just happened to coincide with the availability of this juicy ingredient. Strawberries might be easier to come by in modern times, but they continue to be viewed as a luxurious treat to this day – set off by an indulgent dollop of cream, of which 13,000 gallons are consumed every year.

• Wimbledon’s 2026 Collection: 6 standout pieces that bring Centre Court chic to centre stage

Skip the search — follow Shortlist on Google News to get our best lists, news, features and reviews at the top of your feeds!