Wimbledon has announced it will not hold a public ballot for the 2021 Championships after cancelling the 2020 edition of the tennis event due to COVID-19.
The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) said it would transfer all tickets for this year’s event, which was scheduled for June 29 to July 12, to enable the successful applicants to purchase tickets for the same day and court for the 2021 Championships.
The organisation said that the public ballot had been fully allocated and will therefore not be staging the same sales process for next year’s event, which will now be held from June 28 to July 11, 2021.
The provision of any additional tickets will be considered within the AELTC’s scenario planning.
AELTC said in statement: “Alongside our contributions to the response and recovery from the pandemic, the AELTC has also begun to consider scenarios for The Championships 2021 and beyond.
“These conversations cover many aspects of our operational delivery, including potential arrangements for the various stakeholders involved in the event, whether they be players, spectators, staff or media. While the next Championships is still 12 months away, we will be taking the opportunity to watch and learn from the experience of other sports organisations and entertainment events as they return in order to prepare for every possible outcome.”
The ballot, which first launched in 1924, is intended to be the fairest means of obtaining tickets for The Championships and went fully online for the first year this year.
Entry into the ballot does not automatically entitle applicants to tickets, but to a place in the draw. It is not possible to request tickets for specific days or courts, as the day and court offered are chosen randomly by a computerised selection process.
In addition to the ticketing announcement, AELTC announced it will distribute its £10m prize money to the 620 players whose world ranking would have enabled them to gain entry into Wimbledon 2020.
Image: Wimbledon
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