No tennis tournament on earth has been running longer. The Championships at Wimbledon date back to 1877, placing the event ahead of the widespread domestic use of the light bulb and predating the construction of the Eiffel Tower. Its official name is “The Championships, Wimbledon,” though the single word has always been enough for anyone who follows the sport.

Wimbledon stands alone among the four Grand Slams in one crucial respect: it is the only major still contested on natural grass. The other three tournaments long ago moved to hard courts or clay, surfaces that are far cheaper and less demanding to maintain. Grass requires constant, expert attention, and Wimbledon’s groundskeeping staff trims it to exactly 8 millimeters throughout the tournament, monitoring the surface daily because even small variations in the turf affect how the ball moves off the ground.

Wet weather and grass courts are a dangerous combination, and rain delays frustrated players and spectators alike for most of the tournament’s history. Centre Court’s retractable roof, installed in 2009, resolved much of that problem by allowing matches to continue through rain and even into the evening under artificial lighting. That said, the surrounding neighborhood still has a say in proceedings: matches are wrapped up by 11:00 PM as a courtesy to local residents.

Players arriving on court face one of the most demanding dress codes in professional sport. The all-white clothing requirement traces its origins to the Victorian era and has been enforced with genuine strictness ever since. Off the court, the venue itself maintains a restrained visual identity. Sponsorship presence is deliberately kept subtle, a notable contrast to the commercial landscape of most major sporting events. The Slazenger ball supply arrangement, in place since 1902, is recognized as the longest-running sponsorship deal in sports history.

The strawberries and cream association is not simply a cliche. Hundreds of thousands of portions are consumed during the fortnight each year, making the combination as much a part of the tournament’s identity as the grass itself. The iconic Wimbledon towels have developed their own following, with dedicated fans returning year after year and accumulating collections that apparently fill entire closets.

The record books carry some extraordinary entries. The longest match in tennis history unfolded at Wimbledon in 2010, when John Isner outlasted Nicolas Mahut across three days in a contest that consumed 11 hours and 5 minutes of play. On the individual title front, Roger Federer’s eight men’s singles championships make him the most decorated player in the tournament’s history among men. Martina Navratilova holds the equivalent distinction on the women’s side with nine singles titles claimed between 1978 and 1990.

The trophies awarded to singles champions are among the most recognized objects in sport. Men’s champions lift a gold cup, while women’s champions receive the Venus Rosewater Dish.

The tournament’s history includes a number of details that tend to surprise people unfamiliar with its earlier chapters. Before the Open Era arrived in 1968, professional players were simply barred from competing. Only amateurs were eligible, meaning some of the best players in the world spent years unable to enter. For a long stretch of the tournament’s earlier history, defending champions bypassed the entire draw and waited directly for the final through a system called the challenge round, while every other competitor earned their place through normal competition.

Royal connections run deep. King George VI, then still known as Prince Albert, entered the men’s doubles competition in 1926. The Royal Box on Centre Court continues to draw members of the British royal family and prominent guests to this day.

The All England Club itself began its existence not as a tennis institution but as a croquet club. Lawn tennis arrived as a secondary pursuit before eventually taking over entirely.

Wimbledon has been canceled only a handful of times across nearly 150 years. Both World Wars forced suspensions, and the COVID-19 pandemic produced a cancellation in 2020, the first in more than seven decades. One procedural change arrived more recently: after generations of human line judges calling shots on the baseline, electronic line-calling technology was introduced in 2025.

For many players, Wimbledon occupies a category of its own. Winning the tournament carries a weight that other titles, significant as they are, do not quite match.