Breaking Down Wimbledon's $350 Million Business
Breaking Down Wimbledon's $350 Million Business
If you are not a subscriber of Huddle Up, join 59,000 other professional athletes, business executives & casual sports fans that receive it directly in their inbox each morning — it’s free.
This Email Is Sponsored By…
I've been wearing a WHOOP for several years, and it has made a massive difference in my life. It's the only tech product that I wear 24/7. So it's pretty cool to see people like Patrick Mahomes, Rory McIlroy, Michael Phelps, and Justin Beiber wearing one.
WHOOP automatically measures your respiratory rate, oxygen level, resting heart rate, HRV, and activity levels throughout the day. I love how WHOOP interprets the data in an understandable and actionable display.
The best part? No matter what your goals are, WHOOP’s mission is to help you live your healthiest life, and I can’t recommend it enough. So try WHOOP’s new 4.0 for yourself and tell them I sent you.
Hey Friends,
Wimbledon is one of the most exclusive sporting events in the world. Held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) in London, England, the historic tournament first took place in 1877 and is the world’s oldest tennis tournament.
But similar to The Masters at Augusta National Golf Club, tournament organizers appear to be leaving tens of millions of dollars on the table to protect that prestige.
Let’s have a look.
AELTC reported $360 million in revenue last year with a profit of $54.2 million (~15% margins). That encompasses year-round operations for the club, but given revenue fell from $365 million in 2019 to less than $5 million in 2020 when Wimbledon was canceled due to COVID, the vast majority of their revenue comes via the tournament.
Fun Fact: The AELTC still recorded a $50 million profit in 2020 because its insurance policy paid out $200 million-plus in up-front and deferred payments due to COVID cancellation.
But most of Wimbledon’s revenue comes from sponsorships, broadcasting rights, tickets, concessions, and merchandise. And based on historical estimates provided by Forbes, the annual breakdown probably looks something like this:
Wimbledon’s Estimated Revenue Breakdown
Global broadcast rights (56%): $202 million
Ticket sales (16%): $58 million
Sponsorships (16%): $58 million
Concessions and merchandise (12%): $42 million
So let’s run through each revenue stream.
Wimbledon’s Global Broadcast Rights
Like many other large-scale sporting events, Wimbledon makes most of its money selling global broadcasting rights. For example, an estimated $200 million-plus of their $360 million in revenue (56%) currently comes from broadcasting agreements—both domestically in the United Kingdom and internationally in countries like the US.
But the interesting part is that ESPN currently pays much more for the US Open ($75 million annually) than Wimbledon ($42 million annually).
ESPN: U.S. Open vs. Wimbledon U.S. Broadcast Deals (source)
U.S. Open: 11 years, $825 million ($75 million per year)
Wimbledon: 12 years, $500 million ($42 million per year)
Part of that is likely due to the U.S. Open’s home country popularity, but it also speaks to the total dollar amount Wimbledon can command for its international rights.
Wimbledon’s Ticket Sales Bring In $50 Million-Plus
Ticket sales are the second largest revenue driver for Wimbledon, but it’s also one of the areas where they leave a lot of money on the table. For example, about 500,000 people attended Wimbledon over 13 days in 2019 for its last full-capacity tournament.
That brought in roughly $50 million in revenue. But Wimbledon hasn’t changed its courts too much to expand seating, which means the tournament attracts about 130,000 fewer spectators than the U.S. Open (~631,000) and 312,000 less than a full-capacity Australian Open (~812,000).
Main Court Max Capacity Seating
Wimbledon’s Centre Court: 15,000 spectators
U.S. Open’s Arthur Ashe Stadium: 23,771 spectators
So while tickets on the primary market range from $10 for a ground pass to $300 for Center Court access for the Finals, Wimbledon could be making much, much more.
Wimbledon’s (Long-Term) Sponsorship Strategy
After attending Wimbledon or watching it on TV, my guess is that most people probably couldn’t name a single sponsor of the event—and that’s how they want it.
Wimbledon is estimated to leave tens of millions of dollars on the table because, unlike other tournaments (like The U.S. Open), not only do they favor long-term partners, but they intentionally limit the exposure that sponsors receive in public.
For example, Wimbledon has 14 official sponsors this year—Slazenger receives the most inventory & has sponsored the event since 1902— but logos on most courts are black, which are barely visible when situated next to the lush green courts at Wimbledon. And even though the logos on Centre Court and Court No. 1 are white, they are hardly visible to anyone that isn’t situated within the first few rows.
In simple terms: Wimbledon’s brand is clean, green grass courts. So they intentionally limit the number of partners they work with (& accept less money), so that they can control the terms of the partnership and optimize for long-term relationships.
Wimbledon’s Famous Concessions & Merchandise
Concessions and merchandise may represent just 12% of Wimbledon’s overall revenue, but the category still brings in roughly $40 million annually.
My guess is that most of that comes through merchandise. The AELTC sells its Wimbledon merchandise online, unlike The Masters, and it’s not exactly cheap — shorts, t-shirts, sweatshirts, and jackets range from $50 to more than $250 per item.
But don’t forget about concessions also! Wimbledon reportedly sells around 190,000 servings of its famed strawberries and cream each year. But here’s the best part—it will only cost you $3 per serving, despite UK’s inflation hitting a 40-year high at 9%.
In total, Wimbledon sells ~$570,00 worth of strawberries & cream over the two weeks.
So when you add everything up, it’s likely Wimbledon could drive an additional $50 million $100 million in annual revenue without much effort. But when you operate one of the world’s oldest and most exclusive sporting events, money isn’t everything.
I hope everyone has a great day. We’ll talk tomorrow.
Your feedback helps me improve Huddle Up. How did you like today’s post?
Loved | Great | Good | Meh | Bad
If you are not a subscriber of Huddle Up, join 59,000 other professional athletes, business executives & casual sports fans that receive it directly in their inbox each morning — it’s free.