4 - FIFA/CIES International University Network

ANATOMY OF AN EVENT:
WIMBLEDON
THE HOME OF TENNIS
For two weeks each year the sleepy London suburb of Wimbledon becomes the epicentre of world
tennis. Adrian Hill looks behind the scenes in the planning process and tells the story of Wimbledon in
the words of the organisers, contractors and suppliers responsible for tennis’ truly iconic event.
WIMBLEDON IS MORE than just
the leading tennis tournament in
the world, it’s a British institution.
When Rafael Nadal claimed
his second men’s singles title
this July it concluded the 124th
Championships...and almost
immediately the planning for the
125th edition was underway.
The need to cater for hundreds
of thousands of spectators, deliver
a massive hospitality operation,
implement significant temporary
facilities and overlay, carry out
intense but unobtrusive security,
and facilitate thousands of media
personnel from around the world
make organising and delivering
this event a major management
challenge for the organisers.
“We do not rest on any laurels,
we want to stay at the top of
the pyramid,” Ian Ritchie, chief
executive of the All England Club,
tells SportBusiness International.
“I’ve done five Championships
now and you need to make every
year different, and to innovate. We
try to improve the experience for
everyone who comes here - both
players and public.”
Ritchie has overseen the
landmark redevelopment of the
Centre Court with the installation
of a roof during his tenure of one
of the most prestigious roles in
British sport.
“People said to me when I got
the job: ‘That’s great - two weeks
preparation and two weeks for
the Championships.’ But it’s a
year-round job...Even without
structural improvements we have
185 countries taking television
coverage which means that there
are always contracts up for renewal
and negotiation.
“September and October starts
a whole series of detailed review
meetings of what happened the
previous year. A chunk of research
comes in, committee members
state their views and we review
correspondence from the public.
If I, or any of my management
colleagues, get a letter and there
are improvement ideas in there we
take them away and look at them.
“When we get towards
Christmas we start to work on
improvements; that last quarter
of the year is also about strategic
improvements, January and
February sees the practical
implementation.”
Ritchie is coy about revealing
how much this huge operation
costs but the level of commitment
required from his organisation,
and the group of suppliers and
contractors involved, indicates a
massive financial outlay. After all,
each year in excess of £25 million
is handed over to British tennis
from the ‘surplus’ generated by
the Championships.
The club employs 150 fulltime
staff and has nearly 10,000
accredited to work during the
Championships as it plans to
deal with 500,000 spectators,
3,500 members of the media, 560
players and over 300 court officials.
The multitude of personnel
required range from carpenters
to cleaners, and from honorary
stewards to physiotherapists.
“People come back year after
64 SportBusiness International • No. 160 • 09.10