Game, set, match
The oldest tennis tournament in the world, Wimbledon undeniably remains the most influential, attracting the A-listers and continually shaping culture and style as we know it.
You might’ve missed one of the biggest moments for Australian sport so far this year. It happened while Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz was proving his mettle against Serbia’s Novak Djokovic on Wimbledon Centre Court. A smaller, but no less important match was playing out on the second biggest arena, the No.1 Court, as 16-year-old Australian Emerson Jones played in the Wimbledon girls final against Slovakian top seed Renata Jamrichova. It’s the second time this year that the pair have ended up in a final, after Jamrichova defeated Jones in the Australian Open, and though Jamrichova retained her champion status at Wimbledon, it helped push the Gold Coast player — regarded as one of the best Australian prospects since Ash Barty — further into the spotlight. “I made the final of junior Wimbledon, so that’s pretty exciting,” Jones said after the match.
Wimbledon's star power
Wimbledon has always been one of the most influential competitions in sport. If you want a pulse-check on the current zeitgeist, you only need look to the stands. This year, spectators included Chicken Shop Date creator Amelia Dimoledenberg, the OG brat Charli XCX, Stormzy, Leo Woodall and Tashi Duncan herself, Zendaya, enjoying the quintessential Wimbledon delicacy – strawberries and cream, served since 1877 – while watching the women’s final. The Duchess of Wales Kate Middleton also made a rare public appearance at The Championships this year amid her ongoing cancer treatment. She was welcomed to the stands to a massive standing ovation, with an awed Princess Charlotte in tow. The British tennis competition’s star power pull is unmatched by the other Grand Slams. Princess Diana famously attended with an adolescent Prince William in 1991, Sienna Miller and Jude Law were in the stands during their highly publicised relationship of ‘04 and a million thinkpieces were launched when Kate Middleton went to the 2018 tournament with Meghan Markle.
That prestige means there’s a higher standard of dress code which applies, especially if you’re in the Royal Box. Dubbed the ‘Fashion Week of tennis’, followers post as many videos of the spectators as they do the actual tennis; what Sienna Miller and Alexa Chung wear to Wimbledon is followed as closely as their Glastonbury ‘fits, while up-and-comers like Emma Corrin use the tournament as an opportunity to confirm their sartorial credentials.
Iconic moments in the making
The Championships first took place in 1877, and in the 147 years since, some of the most iconic moments in sporting history have taken place on a Wimbledon court. John McEnroe’s infamous outburst at an elderly chair umpire, during his 1981 first-round match, became one of the most quoted moments in tennis history (“You can't be serious, man. You cannot be serious!”) The 2008 final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal is still regarded as the best to ever take place, and is also the longest singles final in Wimbledon history at 4 hours and 48 minutes. The longest match in tennis history happened in the first round of the 2010 tournament, when John Isner and Nicolas Mahut played a marathon 11 hours and 5 minutes over three days. They went head-to-head over three days, with their fifth set going to 138 games. And of course, it was the start of the love story for Peter Colt and Lizzie Bradbury after wildcard Colt won the competition in an unprecedented men’s final in 2004. (OK, that last one only happened in the film, Wimbledon, but it still counts because, nostalgia). Understanding that legacy means when you watch today, you know any moment could become history in the making — it’s what makes match-ups like the one between young Jones and Renata Jamrichova so exciting.
Influence off the court
The power and influence of Wimbledon – enduring as it is — has also meant the longevity of trends like ‘tenniscore’. It first emerged in 2022, when Miu Miu presented their autumn/winter collection with preppy and perfectly pleated white skirts and polo shirts. They launched Miu Miu Tennis Club pop-ups in St Tropez and New York City and got the ball rolling on brands presenting their own iterations of the trend. Gucci released their viral collaboration with Adidas, Celine dropped a tennis capsule collection, while young companies like Sporty & Rich capitalised on the movement to become one of athleisure’s biggest brands.
Today, tenniscore could be considered one of the prevailing aesthetics of 21st century fashion; a modern take on the preppy trend that defined the ’90s. Searches for tennis skirts and polo shirts are up 52% and 53% respectively on Depop, StockX reported that trades of tennis shoes are up 35% year-on-year and Wimbledon itself has seen a 15% growth in retail sales on their site. Tennis players are highly sought-after ambassadors by fashion brands. According to SponsorUnited, in the past year sponsorships were up 41% and the number of brands advertising in tennis jumped 40%. Carlos Alcaraz, who just won the competition for the second year in a row, is an ambassador for Louis Vuitton while Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were tapped for the maison’s new Core Values campaign this year. Jannik Sinner (the current men’s world #1) is partnered with Gucci and Britain’s Emma Raducanu is a Dior ambassador. Wimbledon has arguably had the biggest influence on the relationship between fashion and the sport. Sure, everyone thinks that the enforced all-white rule that players need to adhere to hinders their expression, but perhaps it has also forced deeper consideration of what they wear and how.
"Understanding the legacy of WIMBLEDON means when you watch today, you know any moment could become HISTORY in the MAKING"
Betting big on the game
Brands who bet big on Wimbledon are rewarded favourably too. This year, one of the most anticipated partnerships was with Range Rover, as the Official Vehicle Partner. This saw Range Rover’s plug-in electric hybrid vehicles – the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport – used to transport players, their teams, and event officials throughout the tournament, in an effort to lower emissions at The Championships. It was a natural synergy; the quintessentially British car for the quintessentially British sporting event. Not only that, but both brands also continually prioritise their commitment to sustainability, and with this partnership furthered Range Rover’s goal of achieving net zero operational emissions by 2030.
There’s also a rising generation of influencers who are bringing tennis to a new audience. Influencer Morgan Riddle, girlfriend of US #1 men’s player Taylor Fritz, is known as ‘The Most Famous Woman In Men’s Tennis’ after she started posting TikToks about the ins and outs of the ATP tour two years ago. This year, she partnered with Wimbledon itself to host a series called Wimbledon Threads. She interviewed attendees about their outfits and gave people at home an insight into what goes on behind the scenes. Over the course of the competition, her following jumped by over 200,000 and her videos were viewed over 8.9 million times.
But part of the charm of Wimbledon is how it’s been able to simultaneously evolve with the times, while also staying true to its history and tradition. For author of Wimbledon: The Official History, John Barrett, it’s one of his favourite things about The Championships. “The Club has taken great care to keep the same atmosphere of tennis in an English garden,” he told Tennis Head. “Somebody who hasn’t been there for 50 years wouldn’t recognise the place at first, but they would still feel the same about it, because it retains the same feel.”
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