Wimbledon 2021 Guide

Wimbledon 2021 saw players and fans alike welcomed back to the world’s oldest tennis tournament, after last year’s event was cancelled. It marked a welcome return to grass court Grand Slam tennis. And in true British style, it got off to a wet start.

This guide will answer all your questions about the Wimbledon competition to help you make the most out of the tournament.

What is Wimbledon?

Wimbledon is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. The Championship was first played in 1877 after the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club decided to organise a tennis tournament in a bid to raise money for the repair of its pony roller, a machine they needed to maintain their lawns.

The competition quickly gained popularity, becoming the first official lawn tennis tournament in the world, and later became recognised as the first Grand Slam tournament. The club moved its location to Church Road, Wimbledon in 1922 and has been there ever since.

Today, it has become the most sought after of the four Grand Slams among players and is always one of the biggest sporting events of the year for fans.

In 2021, players competed for a share of £35 million in prize money. This is a reduction of -7.85% compared to the £38 million total prize money available in 2019. The 2021 Wimbledon champion took home a cheque for £1,700,000. The runner up received £900,000.

How many Wimbledon Championships have there been?

Since its inception, the Wimbledon Championships have occurred every year, with the exception of WWI, WWII, and 2020 when there was no competition. There have 141 championships.

How many people go to Wimbledon?

In 2019, the total attendance was 500,397 across the length of the competition, making it the second-highest in Wimbledon history.

This year’s event will look a little different, due to COVID-19 restrictions. The Championships 2021 will begin with 50% capacity across the Grounds, building to full capacity crowds of 15,000 on Centre Court for the Finals weekend.

When does Wimbledon start?

Qualifying for the 2021 Wimbledon tournament started on June 21st. The tournament ran from Monday 28th June until July 11th.

What time does Wimbledon start?

Play starts on the outside courts at 11am and on Centre Court and No.1 Court at 1pm, apart from finals weekend when play starts on Centre Court at 2pm. The grounds of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club open at 10.30am each day and close 45 minutes after the end of the last match. The Wimbledon order of play is released each night before the next day’s play.

Where is Wimbledon held?

The Wimbledon Championships are held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in the market town of Wimbledon within the area of Greater London. Located just over seven miles south-west of the centre of London, the population size increases five-fold during the tournament each year.

How many courts are there at Wimbledon?

The All England Club currently has 18 grass courts that are used for tournaments, as well as eight American clay courts, two acrylic courts, and five indoor courts. On top of that, there are also 22 grass courts at Aorangi Park, which competitors can use as practice courts throughout the tournament. 

Wimbledon’s Centre Court has a capacity of 14,979, Court No. 1 a capacity of 11,360, and Court No. 2 a capacity of 4,000, while a total of 39,000 spectators can be in the grounds at any one time. All of the biggest games with the top seeds are typically played on Centre Court and Court No. 1, as these matches attract the largest crowds.

When is the Wimbledon final?

There are a whole host of great finals to watch at Wimbledon, with the Ladies’ and Men’s Singles finals rounding off the tournament on the final weekend. Find a full breakdown of the Wimbledon finals below:

Saturday 10th July 2021

• Ladies’ Singles Final
• Gentlemen’s Doubles Final
• Boys’ and Girls’ Singles and Doubles
• Quad Wheelchair Singles Final and third/fourth place play-off

Sunday 14th July

• Gentlemen’s Singles Final
• Boys’ Singles Final
• Girls’ Singles Final
• Boys’ and Girls’ Doubles Finals

Unconfirmed: Saturday or Sunday

• Ladies’ Doubles Final
• Mixed Doubles Final
• Ladies’ Wheelchair Singles Final
• Gentlemen’s Wheelchair Doubles Final
• Gentlemen’s Wheelchair Singles Final
• Ladies’ Wheelchair Doubles Finals

Who won Wimbledon 2021?

• Gentlemen’s Singles Final winner: N. Djokovic
• Ladies’ Singles Final winner: A. Barty
• Gentlemen’s Doubles Final winners: N. Mektic and M. Pavic
• Ladies’ Doubles Final winners: V. Kudermetova and E. Vesnina
• Mixed Doubles Final winners: N. Skupski and D. Krawczyk
• Gentlemen’s Wheelchair Singles Final winner: G. Reid
• Ladies’ Wheelchair Singles Final winner: D. De Groot
• Gentlemen’s Wheelchair Doubles Final winners: A. Hewett and G. Reid
• Ladies’ Wheelchair Doubles Finals winners: K. Montjane and L. Shuker
• Quad Wheelchair Singles Final winner: D. Alcott
• Quad Wheelchair Doubles Final winners: D. Alcott and S. Schroder

How many rounds in Wimbledon?

Both the Men’s and Ladies’ Singles tournaments consist of seven rounds. As a knockout tournament, half of the players are eliminated in each round until, by the seventh and final round, there are only two players left.

Men’s and Ladies’ Doubles tournaments are also made up of 128 players, paired into 64 teams. This means that these tournaments only have six rounds. The same is true of the Mixed Doubles tournament, but only 48 teams compete.

How many matches are played at Wimbledon?

Hundreds of games are played during the Wimbledon tournament each year, with professional, ex-professionals, and juniors coming together to compete. Below is a breakdown of each event and how many matches are played in each.

Where can I watch Wimbledon live?

The All England Club aims to broadcast as much of the Championships as possible on national, free-to-air television stations around the world. Wimbledon is broadcast by the BBC, both on television and radio in the UK.

To get a sense of how big the broadcasting operation is, approximately 2,500 broadcasters from around the world work in the Wimbledon broadcast centre. Eighteen of the courts have live television coverage, more than any other Grand Slam, and there are positions for 120 commentators on Centre Court alone.

How many people watch Wimbledon?

Millions of people around the world watch Wimbledon. The 2019 Gentlemen’s Singles Final had a peak audience on BBC1 of 9.6mn.

Betting tips for the tournament

Wimbledon betting markets

With millions of tennis fans from around the world tuning in to watch Wimbledon, there will be plenty of different betting markets to sink your teeth into. Whether you want to bet on the winner of a particular match, think you know how many sets there’ll be, or fancy a certain player to hit a particular number of aces, there’s bound to be a bet to get you excited about this fantastic tournament. Here are some of the betting markets you can expect to see at this year’s Wimbledon.

• Outright tournament winner
• Player to reach the final
• Match winner
• Winner of first set
• How many games per set
• Number of aces in a match
• Number of double faults
• Win by number of sets

This is just a taster of the huge variety of bets on offer at this year’s Wimbledon competition. Keep your eyes peeled for potential novelty bets too, such as what the weather will be on the final day or whether or not the strawberries and cream will run out.

When to start betting on Wimbledon 2021

You can bet on Wimbledon months before the tournament begins but only on the outright markets. The draw for Wimbledon 2021 draw isn’t announced until a few days before the event. With the full player schedule released on the day before the tournament starts. That means you won’t be able to bet on individual matches until this date. 

From here, the tournament will go on for two weeks, with progressively fewer matches to bet on as the tournament progresses. Many people tend to place bets on individual matches throughout the tournament, as well as betting on an outright winner. It’s always worth bearing in mind that you’ll usually get the best odds by placing your bet early.

Another popular form of betting is to place accumulators on each round. That means choosing a selection of players you think will advance at each stage. The beauty of doing it this way is that you can pick your favourite players and combine their odds together to build up some serious winnings.

Wimbledon betting tips

So, now that you know all about the competition, have an idea of the markets you can bet on, and know when you can start placing those bets, it’s time to discuss best practice for maximising your chances of winning. As with any sporting event, no one knows what’s going to happen — that’s what makes it so fun! That said, there are a few things you might want to consider to help inform your decision making:

Look at what odds are available

The best indication of the outcome of a match are the odds. Not only do bookmakers look at a huge range of factors to determine the odds they give out, they also price in betting demand for a particular player. This gives you a great idea of who is tipped to win the match and can help if you aren’t too familiar with the players. You can choose players with longer odds for more risk and more reward, or you can play it safe and choose a player with short odds. 

Look at each player’s recent form

One of the best indicators of how a player will perform at Wimbledon is their recent form. If the player is in bad form, their confidence may be low and they might be caught in a rut.

Conversely, if they’re in good form, they may feel full of confidence and ready to perform well. That said, upsets can and do happen, especially in knock-out tournaments, so form alone won’t always hold the answer.

Look at each player’s Wimbledon history

While the favourites tend to do well at most competitions, some are better on other court types than others. Wimbledon is the only major still played on grass and this surface plays much faster than clay or hard court. Look at how players have fared at Wimbledon in the past and see how well they do in the other grass season tournaments.

Look at previous head-to-head matchups

If you plan on betting on match winners, a great tip is to check out their previous head-to-head matchups. You’ll be able to see how many times, and what the results were on various different court types. If the players have faced each other several times this can be a key piece of information.

Keep up to date with the latest news

Wimbledon lasts for two weeks, and a lot can happen in that time. Players can show signs of exhaustion. They may have just scraped through their last game, or perhaps they’ve picked up an injury. Either way, this is vital information to be aware of when it comes to betting on matches.

Know where to find good information

The best way of boosting your chances is to outsource your efforts to the pros. Following tipsters can be a great way of winning some bets, but it’s important that you take the time to make sure they know what they’re talking about. And we’re not just talking about betting tipsters: pundits, commentators and ex-players of the game will all likely have more in-depth knowledge you can tap into.

If you fancy betting on Wimbledon with reduced risk, you might be interested in matched betting. This is a great low-risk way to earn some extra cash while enjoying everybody’s favourite tennis tournament.

If you join OddsMonkey as a Premium member, you’ll gain access to betting tools, including our OddsMatcher and TennisMatcher. If you’re already a member, don’t forget that you have access to all of our Wimbledon threads on the matched betting forum, with all the latest and best offers available for a wide range of markets.