Early morning queues at Wimbledon
Brent Pham, from California, was the first in the queue
Campers form the overnight queue ahead of the 2022 Wimbledon Championship
ennis fans attending Wimbledon say it is noticeably “quieter” compared with previous years.
It comes as attendance figures show spectator numbers are down so far compared with this point in the tournament in 2019, which was the last time full crowds were seen at the tennis championships.
Official figures released by the All England Law and Tennis Club (AELTC) reveal more than 153,000 spectators attended Wimbledon during the first four days of matches.
Some 153,193 fans have poured into SW19 so far, with 36,603 on Monday, 39,450 on Tuesday and 38,520 on Wednesday.
On Thursday, 38,620 people passed through the gates on the day team GB’s Katie Boulter beat last year’s Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova to reach the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time.
However, analysis shows this is more than 18,000 below the equivalent figure of 171,263 in 2019, which was the last time the south-west London tournament was open to full crowds.
Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II in 2020, due to the pandemic, and returned with limited capacity last year.
The AELTC projected record crowds this year as the tournament returned at full capacity for the first time in three years.
Speaking on day one of the championships, Wimbledon chief executive Sally Bolton said they were “expecting a record crowd” because of the addition of play on the middle Sunday.
Desirae Krawczyk of the U.S. and Britian’s Neal Skupski pose for a photograph with their trophies as they celebrate winning the mixed doubles final against Australia’s Matthew Ebden and Samantha Stosur
Katerina Siniakova of Czech Republic and partner Barbora Krejcikova of Czech Republic celebrate match point against Lyudmyla Kichenok of Ukraine and partner Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia during their Ladies Doubles Semi Final match on day twelve of The Championships Wimbledon 2022 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Nick Kyrgios with his girlfriend Costeen Hatzi during practice
Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in the Royal Box on day twelve of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships
Japan’s Shingo Kunieda returns the ball to Belgium’s Joachim Gerard during their men’s weelchair singles semi final tennis match on the twelfth day of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships
David Beckham and his mum Sandra in the royal box
Rajeev Ram of United States of America (L) plays a backhand with partner Joe Salisbury of Great Britain against Nicolas Mahut of France and Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France
Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina and Croatia’s Petra Martic shake hands after their fourth round match
Rafael Nadal signs autographs for fan
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge applaud Cameron Norrie after his victory in the Gentlemen’s Singles quarter-finals against David Goffin on day nine of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Spectators watch the big screens from The Hill during the Men’s Singles Quarter Final match showcasing Cameron Norrie of Great Britain against David Goffin of Belgium
Mia Regan attends the evian VIP Suite, certified as carbon neutral by The Carbon Trust at Wimbledon
Fleur East attends the evian VIP Suite, certified as carbon neutral by The Carbon Trust at Wimbledon
Louise Jacobi after watching boyfriend Cameron Norrie win his Gentlemen’s Singles quarter-final against David Goffin
Tatjana Maria of Germany (L) interacts with Jule Niemeier of Germany after winning their Women’s Singles Quarter Final match
Stefan Djokovic watches father Novak Djokovic of Serbia serve on the practice courts on day eight of The Championships Wimbledon 2022
Venus Williams takes a photo standing between U.S. tennis legend Billie Jean King and Rod Laver during a 100 years of Centre Court celebration
Jennifer Dodds, Eve Muirhead and Tom Daley in the Royal Box during day six of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Australia’s Nick Kyrgios and Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas switch sides during their men’s singles tennis match on the sixth day of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships
Germany’s Jule Niemeier hugs Britain’s Heather Watson
Katherine Jenkins arrives in the royal box on Centre Court
No.1 court with a rainbow behind it during day four of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Jo Whiley and Clara Amfo attend Pimm’s No. 1 hospitality suite at the Championships Wimbledon
Dave Benett/Getty Images for Pimm’s
Ashley Roberts watches the action on centre court
Ken Skupski and Jonny O’Mara in action during their Gentlemen’s doubles match against Julio Peralta and Alejandro Tabilo
Iga Swiatek serves to Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove
Emma Raducanu applauds the spectators after defeat in the second round match
AELTC/AFP via Getty Images
Holly Valance and husband Nick Candy,
Jamie Murray and partner Bruno Soares celebrate winning the first round doubles match on court 15 against Benjamin Bonzi and Arthur Rinderknech
Members of the public wave the Ukraine’s national flag during the women’s singles tennis match between Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko and Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina
Mollie King attends the evian VIP Suite, certified as carbon neutral by The Carbon Trust, at Wimbledon
Dave Benett//Getty Images for evian
Simona Halep shakes hands with Karolina Muchov
Young fans with a tennis ball
Andrea Petkovic in action against Viktorija Golubic as crowds watch the action from the stands
Kim Sears, wife of Britain’s Andy Murray
Staff clear water off the covers on court 2 during a rain delay
A general view of Court 18
Staff prepare the order of play board
A member of the ground staff cuts the grass on court 18 at the start of the first day of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships
Some 42,000 people were expected to attend the Championships each day.
But the drop in attendance had been noticeable to some people queuing for on the day tickets on Friday morning, as the first week of the tournament draws to a close.
Tennis enthusiast Heidi Watson, 52, from Bookham in Surrey, has queued for every Wimbledon for the last 20 years and said the atmosphere was more subdued than previous years.
She said: “I found it quite quiet when we got here. We were number 228, and we’ve queued for two nights.
“I can’t believe how quiet it seems to be. But other than that, it’s been run really well and feels safe in the park.”
Pals Ian Horton, 52, and Emma Cawley, 45, from Cardiff, have queued a couple of times for Wimbledon and also found the queue to be “quieter”.
Ms Cawley said: “We arrived yesterday and it was a lot quieter than we would normally expect.
“We don’t know whether it’s an issue with flights. The atmosphere will still be fantastic in Wimbledon.”
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