Why is Wimbledon expanding?

This week, the High Court ruled against Save Wimbledon Park, a campaign group which had taken action after Greater London Authority green lit the expansion last year.

It means that the former Wimbledon Golf Club is set to make way for 38 tennis courts and an 8,000-seat stadium, although the group has pledged to fight on.

Since its foundation in 1853, the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club has been modified many times - the roof on Centre Court in 2008 being one such major innovation.

However, the “masterplan” outlined in 2013 has been one of the most significant overhauls in the 170-year history.

The reforms included a roof for No. 1 Court, which was completed in 2019, but the £200m expansion to the east has been a contentious local debate.

Read also: Wimbledon’s legal showdown could rewrite the rules on London’s green space

Why does Wimbledon want to expand?

Around the time of the 2013 masterplan being announced, the Australian Open and French Open both announced expansion plans.

Wimbledon is currently the only grand slam tournament to not have tournament qualification on-site, with preliminary rounds being held in Roehampton, three miles away.

A major draw of this scheme would be to bring the qualification rounds in house for the first time. At present, 128 matches are played over four days before the slam begins.

Under the expansion, there will also be more practice courts and media facilities as well as greater car parking space. Courts would also open for community use.

Wimbledon head honchos have said the scheme is vital to futureproof the tournament and also open up the park to members of the public to look around, with much of the green space currently only being accessible for golf club members.

Seven-time men’s singles champion Novak Djokovic backed expansion as a “win-win”, while twice men’s singles winner Carlos Alcaraz called it a “great idea”.

Why has the development been controversial?

The development will not be on Wimbledon Park, which is owned by Merton Council (nor the separate Wimbledon Common), but on the 30-acre Wimbledon Park golf club.

Golf club members voted in 2018 to sell to the All England Tennis Club, and every member received £85,000 as a result, including celebrities such as Piers Morgan and Ant & Dec.

Save Wimbledon Park have instead angled their opposition on what they fear will be damage to the biodiversity of the park and pollution in the area.

Plans were approved by Merton Council but rejected by neighbouring Wandsworth - which elevated the case to Sir Sadiq Khan’s office. Deputy mayor Jules Pipe made the decision to press ahead with the mayor unable to, having previously expressed support.

The Greater London Authority approved plans last year that will see the All England Club press ahead - a decision that opponents challenged with a judicial review.

Mr Justice Saini threw out the challenge on Monday. He stated: "In short, the defendant's decision on the relevance of deliverability, applying to both the statutory trust and the restrictive covenants, was a planning judgment rationally exercised and having regard to appropriate and relevant factors."

The news of the quashing was welcomed by Sir Sadiq, the mayor of London, calling it “welcome news that will cement Wimbledon’s reputation as the greatest tennis competition in the world”.

What now?

After the judgement on Tuesday, Christopher Coombe, director of Save Wimbledon Park, said: “This judgment would, if it stands, set a worrying precedent for the unwanted development of protected green belt and public open spaces around London and across the country.

“The (All England Club) will surely have noted the considerable public outrage about this development, most recently expressed outside the law courts, and we continue to hope that they could be persuaded to engage constructively with us, with a view to achieving a resolution of this four-year-old dispute.”

The group has now said it will now seek an overturn at the Court of Appeal.

Should the appeal fail, the All England Club will commence with the project with a view to completion in the mid 2030s.

Modifications were already set to be made to enhance Henman Hill banking by 2028.