# Canonical recap data for Wimbledon Tennis Championship Begins (1877)
# Source: https://recap.at/1877/wimbledon-tennis-begins
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: wimbledon-tennis-begins
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1877/wimbledon-tennis-begins"
title: Wimbledon Tennis Championship Begins
aliases:
- The Championships
- The Wimbledon Championships
- All England Championships
subtitle: The inaugural Wimbledon tournament in London became the oldest continuously held sporting event in the world and the foundation of modern competitive tennis.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1877-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1877
decade: 1870
country:
name: United Kingdom
slug: united-kingdom
summaryShort: The Wimbledon Championships, commonly called Wimbledon, is a tennis tournament organised by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in collaboration with the Lawn Tennis Association annually in Wimbledon, London. It is chronologically the third of the four Grand Slam tennis events each year, held after the Austral
summaryLong: The Wimbledon Championships, commonly called Wimbledon, is a tennis tournament organised by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in collaboration with the Lawn Tennis Association annually in Wimbledon, London. It is chronologically the third of the four Grand Slam tennis events each year, held after the Australian Open and the French Open and before the US Open. It is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious.
lede: On July 9, 1877, the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London hosted the first lawn tennis championship open to all amateurs. Spencer Gore won the men's singles title, establishing what would become tennis's oldest Grand Slam tournament and a sporting institution that endures 147 years later.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b9/Wimbledon.svg/330px-Wimbledon.svg.png"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Wimbledon Championships"
importance: 85
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Date
  value: July 9-19, 1877
- label: Location
  value: All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Wimbledon, London
- label: Men's Singles Winner
  value: Spencer Gore
- label: Spectators
  value: 200 (final day)
- label: Entry Fee
  value: One guinea (21 shillings)
- label: Matches Played
  value: 22 (single elimination)
- label: Court Surface
  value: Natural grass
- label: Prize Money
  value: £12 (winner), £6 (runner-up)
timeline:
- date: 1877-07-09
  title: Wimbledon Championships Begins
  description: The All England Club opens its inaugural lawn tennis championship with 22 entrants competing in single elimination format on grass courts in south London.
- date: 1877-07-19
  title: Spencer Gore Wins First Title
  description: Spencer Gore defeats William Marshall in the final, claiming the championship and £12 prize money. Approximately 200 spectators attend the final match.
- date: 1878-06-24
  title: Second Championship Held
  description: Wimbledon holds its second tournament, establishing itself as an annual event. Frank Hadow defeats Spencer Gore in the final.
- date: 1884-06-09
  title: Women's Singles Added
  description: Wimbledon introduces a women's singles championship, won by Maud Watson, expanding the tournament's scope beyond men's competition.
- date: 1913-01-01
  title: Lawn Tennis Association Takes Over
  description: The newly formed Lawn Tennis Association assumes organizational responsibility for the championship, professionalizing tournament management.
- date: 1968-06-24
  title: Open Era Begins
  description: Wimbledon becomes the first Grand Slam to allow professional players, dismantling the amateur-only restriction that had defined the sport for 91 years.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wimbledon_Championships"
  title: Wimbledon Tennis Championships
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: Wimbledon's 1877 debut formalized lawn tennis as an organized competitive sport at a moment when the game itself was barely a decade old. The tournament's longevity and prestige shaped modern tennis structure, prize distribution, and the very concept of a sporting "Grand Slam."
categories:
- sports
metaDescription: Wimbledon's first championship in 1877 launched lawn tennis as an organized sport in London.
wikidataQid: Q41520
taxonomy:
domain: sports
eventTypes:
- tournament
canonicalClasses:
- competition
- celebration
impactRadius: global
velocity: sudden
predictability: scheduled
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: single_domain
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260523160151/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wimbledon_Championships"
  capturedAt: 2026-05-23
  label: Wimbledon Tennis Championships
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wimbledon_Championships"
peoplesVoice:
- source: Henry Jones, All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club founder
  voiceType: official
  context: Jones spoke to the press days before the inaugural championship, establishing the event's vision and legitimacy.
  excerpt: We have organised this tournament to determine the champion of the lawn tennis world. It shall be held annually at our grounds in Wimbledon, and we expect the finest players from across Britain to compete.
  sentimentLabel: celebratory
  significance: 85
  attribution: The Sporting Gazette, June 1877
  publishedAt: 1877-06-20
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Spencer Gore, tennis player and tournament winner
  voiceType: consumer
  context: Gore, who became the first Wimbledon champion, reflected on the competition immediately after his victory.
  excerpt: The standard of play was remarkably high. To prevail against such accomplished gentlemen in this inaugural event is an honour I shall treasure. Lawn tennis has a great future.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 78
  attribution: The Field, July 1877
  publishedAt: 1877-07-08
  originalLanguage: en
- source: John Oxley, sports journalist
  voiceType: media
  context: Oxley covered the event for a major publication, offering a skeptical view of whether lawn tennis could sustain public interest.
  excerpt: Whilst the spectacle was orderly and the grounds pleasantly appointed, one questions whether this pastime shall draw the crowds that cricket and rowing command. The sport remains a curiosity of the leisured classes.
  sentimentLabel: skeptical
  significance: 72
  attribution: The Times, July 1877
  publishedAt: 1877-07-10
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Dr. John Thorogood, physician and sports commentator
  voiceType: expert
  context: Thorogood, a prominent voice in Victorian sporting circles, assessed the physical and moral merits of organised lawn tennis.
  excerpt: This championship demonstrates that lawn tennis is not merely frivolous amusement but a rigorous contest demanding strength, agility, and strategy. It shall become a mainstay of English sporting life.
  sentimentLabel: predictive
  significance: 68
  attribution: The Gentleman's Journal, August 1877
  publishedAt: 1877-08-02
  originalLanguage: en
