Wimbledon report £44 million profit in 2021, despite Covid-19 restrictions
Wimbledon have made a £44 million profit despite a Covid-19 hampered 2021 championships in which they were forced to hold less spectators.
At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2020 championships were cancelled but the monetary blow was neutralised by an insurance policy. However, that insurance policy would not have covered the losses should this year’s event also be cancelled.
Fortunately, this year’s Grand Slam was able to go ahead albeit with reduced capacity crowds for the first week and returned £44 million ($58 million) worth of profits. This amount also comes after further costs were incurred when the organisers block-booked a hotel in Central London.
The figure was released to All England Club members this month and indicates that the Grass-court Slam has overcome the worst of the pandemic with minimal lasting damage.
Whilst the £44 million figure is £6.8 million less than the profits made prior to the pandemic in 2019, where profits reached £50.8 million ($67 million), the profits are still healthy especially amidst a global pandemic.
The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) will receive the majority of the profits, but it was also announced that the British game will receive a £22 million ($29 million) bonus from the Government.
This money is being granted so that public courts can be repaired in a nationwide attempt to ignite interest in tennis, especially in the wake of Emma Raducanu’s shock US Open win.
It was recently revealed that in the months following Raducanu’s Flushing Meadows triumph, an estimated 100,000 Brits picked up a tennis racket, a 119% increase from the previous year.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, Tennis Australia recently announced that they suffered a loss of $100 million Australian dollars ($71 million American dollars or £53 million pounds) after holding this year’s ‘Happy Slam’.
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