- The Wimbledon Public Ballot has attracted record levels of interest to attend The Championships 2023 from tennis fans around the world.

- The Championships 2022 recorded the second-highest surplus, with £42.427 million distributed to the LTA.

- The Committee of Management of The Championships has updated the Wimbledon white clothing rule.

Following the successful staging of The Championships 2022, The All England Lawn Tennis Club today provided an update on plans for The Championships 2023. The 136th staging of the event will be held from Monday 3 to Sunday 16 July.


The Championships 2022 recorded second-highest surplus

The Championships 2022 produced a distributable surplus of £47.141 million, the second-highest on record, only bettered by the exceptional pre-pandemic 2019 event. Ninety per cent of the surplus (£42.427 million) will be distributed to the LTA for the benefit of British tennis.


Record numbers enter the Wimbledon Public Ballot

The application phase of the Wimbledon Public Ballot, giving tennis fans from around the world the opportunity to enter a draw to purchase tickets to The Championships 2023, closed on 15 November. Back for the first time in three years, the Ballot received a record number of entries.

Those successful in the Ballot will be notified via email from February 2023 onwards.

More than 80% of tickets available to the public through the Ballot and the Queue have been held at 2022 prices.

Ian Hewitt, Chairman of the All England Club, said: “I’m delighted to confirm a near record surplus to be distributed to the LTA following a hugely successful Championships earlier this year. I hope that this investment will continue to assist the LTA in its mission to encourage even more people across the UK to pick up a racket, and to support the development of players through to a professional level.”

“I’m also pleased to share that the Wimbledon Public Ballot has received a record number of entries during the application phase, including renewed strong levels of interest from overseas fans who are hopeful of attending The Championships next year.”


 Update to the Wimbledon white clothing rule

Following discussion and engagement with the WTA, clothing manufacturers and medical teams on how best to support women and girls competing at The Championships, the Committee of Management has taken the decision to update the Wimbledon white clothing rule to allow female competitors to wear mid/dark-coloured undershorts if they choose to.

Requirements for other clothing, accessories and equipment remain unchanged and the full wording of the rule can be found here.

Sally Bolton, Chief Executive of the All England Club, said: “We are committed to supporting the players and listening to their feedback as to how they can perform at their best. I’m pleased to confirm that, following consultation with players and representatives of several stakeholder groups, the Committee of Management has taken the decision to update the white clothing rule at Wimbledon. This means that from next year, women and girls competing at The Championships will have the option of wearing coloured undershorts if they choose. It is our hope that this rule adjustment will help players focus purely on their performance by relieving a potential source of anxiety.”


Professional Tennis team set to expand

The All England Club’s Professional Tennis team will be bolstered by two new hires, with Laura Robson and Jamie Delgado set to join at the end of November.

Laura is an Olympic silver medallist and Junior Wimbledon Champion who achieved a career-high ranking of No.27 in the world, while Jamie is also a successful former player who represented Great Britain in the Davis Cup and has built an impressive coaching track record having worked with Andy Murray, Gilles Müller and Denis Shapovalov.

Their roles will be focused on international player relations, with a remit that includes travelling to tournaments around the world to foster collaboration and engagement with the tennis community.

Laura has been working with the LTA on extending her knowledge of the event operations and management space over the past eighteen months including onsite experience at the cinch Championships at The Queens Club, Rothesay Open at Nottingham and more recently as Tournament Director of the women’s ITF $25,000 in Loughborough. She will be taking up the role of Tournament Director at the Rothesay Open at Nottingham next year and also at an additional combined ITF event planned for April.

Jamie Baker, Head of Professional Tennis and Tournament Director, said: ‘’Over the last four-and-a-half years, the All England Club has invested in, evolved and enhanced the Professional Tennis area of the organisation and these two appointments are an exciting next step. The player community is one of our most important stakeholder groups and I am looking forward to the positive impact Laura and Jamie will have on enhancing our year-round relationship with them.”


Operational updates

The Committee of Management has also approved two further operational updates for The Championships. The Wheelchair and Quad Wheelchair events will begin one day earlier in 2023, starting on Wednesday 12 July.

Furthermore, on the final weekend of The Championships – Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 July – the start time for play on No.1 Court will be brought forward to 11am rather than the traditional start time of 1pm. This change will provide additional opportunities to further enhance the profile and visibility of the Wheelchair and Quad Wheelchair events.