The Princess of Wales poses for a selfie with a fan at Wimbledon. Photograph: Andrew Matthews/Pool PA/AP View image in fullscreen The Princess of Wales poses for a selfie with a fan at Wimbledon. Photograph: Andrew Matthews/Pool PA/AP Wimbledon How social media is changing Wimbledon from eminent tournament to ‘bucket list’ event From high-profile influencers to live ticket-queue tracking, some fear aggressive marketing is ruining championships
Rachel Hall Wed 8 Jul 2026 21.12 CEST First published on Wed 8 Jul 2026 20.32 CEST Share Prefer the Guardian on Google F rom photos of influencers in crisp white linen dresses posing in front of floral displays at Centre Court to videos promising hacks to beat the queues and secure tickets, the hype around Wimbledon has never been bigger on Instagram and TikTok.
The social media frenzy has caused concerns that Wimbledon is increasingly becoming a tourist event rather than a tennis tournament, overrun with influencers using the championship’s iconic aesthetic to build their profiles and attracting attenders more interested in dressing up and taking photos than watching the games.
Many visitors said they had been inspired by social media posts and that they were coming more to enjoy the experience than for the sport.
Wimbledon has deliberately courted influencers in recent years to shake off its reputation for exclusivity and gain relevance for a younger generation.
View image in fullscreen Stormzy attends the championships. Photograph: Dave Benett/Getty for evian UK Wimbledon’s director of marketing, Usama Al-Qassab, said the approach was working, with visitors “generally inching about a year younger year on year” over the past decade, and now averaging at mid-40s for those who obtain tickets in the ballot and about 35 in the queue.
View image in fullscreen Wimbledon’s director of marketing, Usama Al-Qassab. Photograph: Rob Kim/Getty for AELTC Wimbledon works with content creators in the run-up to the tournament, but most people are invited by brands, he said. This year Wimbledon invited 12 people to attend the event from Japan, Germany and India, countries where it was hoping to boost awareness. In recent years the tournament has had a “slight growth in international attendees”, saidAl-Qassab, reaching 20% of the total.
Although some heritage sports tournaments do not permit cameras or telephones, such as the Masters golf championship at Augusta National in the US, Wimbledon allowed people to use their phones as it was “bucket list”, he said.
Al-Qassab said demand for the event had surged in recent years, with ballot tickets becoming more competitive. The first week this year reached nearly 300,000 visitors, making it busier than the first week in 2025, which was a record year.
He added that the All England Club’s planned expansion was intended to respond to the demand. “There is this appetite which we are struggling to [meet] without that opportunity,” he said.
View image in fullscreen Concerns have been raised that visitors are more concerned with taking photos than watching the tennis. Photograph: John Patrick Fletcher/Action Plus/Shutterstock Wimbledon’s growth reflects the explosion in popularity of tennis, with the number of people who play the game globally rising by nearly a quarter in the five years preceding 2024. The sport has been further boosted through films such as Challengers starring Zendaya in 2024, and the Tenniscore fashion trend on TikTok and Instagram.