Wimbledon, the largest Grand Slam tennis tournament in the world, begins on July 5, 2018. Anyone can go, but getting a ticket is due to the perseverance and luck of the draw. You have to be lucky and you generally have to plan ahead.
If you are a tennis fan and are going to be in England at the end of June or the beginning of July (in 2019), you still have the opportunity to request tickets for the grass tennis championships at Wimbledon. If it’s the 2018 championships you’re after, it might not be too late. There are still four ways to go after tickets. That is how:
1. The Wimbledon ballot
The only people who can safely count on Wimbledon tickets are members of the All-England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), who run the tournament. There are only a few hundred of them, and if you are reading this, it is a good guess that you are not one of them. Almost everyone else has to take their chances in a drawing after a public vote.
Since 1924, the AELTC has sold most of the tickets for the show courts, the Central Court, and Courts 1 and 2, in advance. Applications for the ballot for the following June and July are obtained from the club in August and must be submitted no later than mid-December. (So if you’re reading this after December, it’s too late for the current year.) There is a separate wheelchair ballot for display spaces suitable for wheelchairs.
The ballot is always oversubscribed. Entering the ballot does not entitle you to a ticket, but instead you get a place in a drawing. The selected candidates are chosen randomly by a computer and notified in February prior to the tournament. If you win a seat, you must accept the day and court assigned to you in the drawing. Tickets cannot be transferred or sold and are invalidated if they are.
To participate in the 2019 Wimbledon public vote
Starting around 1 September, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has been accepting applications for public ballots from UK applicants. To obtain an application, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope, DL size (4 1/4 “by 8 5/8”) to AELTC, PO BOX 98, SW19 5AE before mid-December – exact dates are posted on the AELTC Website approximately one month after the end of the current year’s tournament. Applications postmarked after the specified date are not processed. And people who call the office after that date do not receive requests.
Applications abroad are taken online. Information on how to apply for the public ballot for Wimbledon tickets from abroad is available on the AELTC website, generally as of November 1.
If you are successful on the ballot, pay for your assigned tickets online. In 2018, the center court ticket price ranged from £ 60 for the opening day to £ 210 for the final.
And by the way, the tournament organizers are very strict about the applications, so be very careful when completing yours. Your request will be void if you request more than one form, if you cross out or make modifications to your form, or if you write any special requests and instructions. And forget about requesting tickets to give away or sell. If you don’t use the tickets you request, they will be voided.
But don’t be discouraged; There are a few other ways to get Wimbledon tickets.
2. Queue to buy tickets on the day
If you missed voting for this year or were unsuccessful in the drawing, don’t despair. Anyone willing to get up early and stand in line, rain or shine, can purchase tickets on match day by joining the line. This generally involves overnight camping, but the vibe in the queue is friendly and many foreign visitors enjoy the opportunity to meet and discuss tennis with other fans while they wait to enter the grounds.
Queuing – on the day – is one of the great traditions of the tournament. Unlike many other major sporting events, Wimbledon organizers reserve a good proportion of tickets for members of the public to purchase at the gates. But you have to be patient and you must really want those tickets. In recent years, the entire queuing process has become much more civilized, with organized camps, a wake-up call, and ‘drop off’ facilities for your camping gear.
Every day, except the last four days, 500 tickets for each of the courts of the Center and No.1, No.2 and No.3 are reserved for sale to the public at the turnstiles. They cost from £ 60 to £ 210 for the center court, from £ 30 to £ 105 for the number 1 – 3 courts depending on the day.
Another 6,000 Grounds entrance tickets are sold each day. The Grounds entry ticket is valid for Courthouse No. 2, as well as unreserved seats and reservations in Courts 3-19. Tickets cost between £ 8 and £ 25, depending on time and day .
Each person in the queue can only buy one ticket, so if you have come with a partner or family, everyone must be in the queue. Learn more about camping and queuing to buy tickets here. And the tickets on the day are sold for cash only, so you better visit the nearest ATM if you are looking for one of the expensive tickets for the show courts.
3. Hospitality packages
Two tour operators are authorized to sell hospitality packages which, in addition to tickets, generally include food and drink, and may also include accommodation and travel arrangements. These packages start at around £ 400 per person. Visitors from the UK, Europe and America can book a package through Keith Prowse, starting at £ 400 per person and going up to over £ 5,000 for fancy seats at the end. In 2018, its central court suites included stylish food and drink, afternoon tea, and the services of a private limousine around the clock.
Tickets cost around £ 1,600 per person for the opening matches to almost £ 5,000 per person for the men’s final. But if that’s a little too rich for your budget, there are packages starting at £ 400 for reserved tickets, Court Number 1, and an Albert Roux-designed meal at a casual private restaurant.
Those from Asia and Australasia can book a package through Pure Wimbledon by Sportsworld, which ranges in 2018 from around £ 400 for the first day, number 2 court tickets (with bed and breakfast at nearby hotels based on two shared) at over £ 5,700 per person for Center Court final tickets with accommodation.
4. Daily ticket resale
If you’re already on the Wimbledon grounds (having managed to get one of the 6,000 grounds admission tickets sold every day), you can get court seats at the ticket reseller kiosk. Ticket holders who leave the grounds prior to the close of the game are encouraged to put their unwanted tickets in special boxes so that they are available for resale. Resale proceeds go to tennis-related charities.
