Chapters
- 01. Wimbledon Men Winners: Singles
- 02. Who Won The Most Wimbledon Men's Singles Titles?
- 03. The Amateur Era Of Wimbledon
- 04. What Is The Prize Money For Wimbledon?
- 05. What Is The Wimbledon Trophy Made Of?
- 06. Quick Facts About Wimbledon
- 07. Learn To Play Tennis And Become Future Wimbledon Men's Winners
Wimbledon is the biggest event in the history of tennis. Therefore, being involved in it as a player, spectator, managing staff, or corporate partner is a matter of prestige.
Every tennis player wants to win Wimbledon once in their life. Wondering why? Primarily because winning Wimbledon is the 'highlight' of any players' career.
Like the Super Bowl or the world series, Wimbledon attracts a lot of attention from dedicated fans and seasonal neutrals.
Since its inception, both Wimbledon men's singles and women's singles have been epics to watch. Want to know about who won Wimbledon men's singles since 1968?
Read on!
Wimbledon Men Winners: Singles
Here's the list of all Wimbledon winners (men's singles) since 1968:
Multiple Winners
- Rod Laver (2): 1968, 1969
- John Newcombe (2): 1970, 1971
- Jimmy Connors (2): 1974, 1982
- Bjorn Borg (5): 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980
- John McEnroe (3): 1981, 1983, 1984
- Boris Becker (3): 1985, 1986, 1989
- Stefan Edberg (2): 1988, 1990
- Pete Sampras (7): 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
- Roger Federer (8): 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017
- Rafael Nadal (2): 2008, 2010
- Andy Murray (2): 2013, 2016
- Novak Djokovic (6): 2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021
One-time Winners
- Stan Smith: 1972
- Jan Kodes: 1973
- Arthur Ashe: 1975
- Pat Cash: 1987
- Michael Stich: 1991
- Andre Agassi: 1992
- Richard Krajicek: 1996
- Goran Ivanisevic: 2001
- Lleyton Hewitt: 2002
Who Won The Most Wimbledon Men's Singles Titles?
Three names are at the top right now, with one who can soon surpass the other two. Read on as we elaborate:
Roger Federer: The King
With eight Wimbledon men's single titles to his name, Roger Federer is, so far, the best performing Wimbledon champion ever.
Meanwhile, when it comes to Wimbledon women winners, Martina Navratilova is top with nine women's singles titles.
Moreover, the signature grass courts of Wimbledon are known to favor players with a quick tennis service, but this changed with Roger Federer.
He didn't become the king of Wimbledon by serving the fastest serve; he ruled the event with variation, accuracy, and a well-rounded game, the likes of which have never been seen before in tennis history.
Interestingly, Federer is the only player after Bjorn Borg, who won five consecutive Wimbledon men's singles titles.
The first title he won was in 2003 when he beat Andrew Stephen Roddick. In the finals of the 2004 and 2005 Wimbledon championships, the Swiss wizard had to surpass the same opponent again.
Furthermore, he won the championships again in 2006 and 2007, defeating Rafael Nadal – the popular Spaniard.
Their tennis rivalry was very famous. Like Ali vs. Frazier, Messi vs. Ronaldo, or the Red Sox vs. The Yankees, this bout had it all!
The 2008 Wimbledon men's singles were a treat for the fans as the final was between the same rivals; five-time winner Roger Federer and his nemesis, Rafael Nadal.
This final is known to be the best Grand Slam match ever in the history of tennis matches, partly because it saw a setback as Federer lost the first time since 2003, and Rafael Nadal won his first-ever Wimbledon men's singles titles.
Pete Sampras: The Former
Before Roger Federer, the master of Wimbledon was Pete Sampras – the famous American tennis player.
Known for his big serves, he won the mega tennis event seven times from 1993 to 2000. Yet, despite his consistent playing style, no one knew how to end his dominance.
His record was only surpassed after Federer came and won consecutively for five years. Therefore, Sampras is number two, right behind Roger Federer
Novak Djokovic: The Contender
Sampras' reign as the second-most successful Wimbledon player can be overtaken by the Serbian maestro, Novak Djokovic. Djokovic won the 2021 championships and now stands with six titles.
He defeated Federer in two consecutive finals: 2014 and 2015. And both finals had extraordinary moments of sportsmanship, especially 2014 final that saw a five-set shocker.
Federer's rivalry with Djokovic can be likened to his former enmity with Nadal.
In 2019, Djokovic again won the title, defeating Roger Federer. However, this time, it was more spectacular than the 2014 edition as Djokovic won the title over the 5th set (13-12).
Bjorn Borg: The First Dominant Force
Bjorn Borg won five men's singles titles and is the only player other than Roger Federer to win five consecutive Wimbledon championships.
From 1976 to 1980, the most famous tennis tournament was at the whim of this Swedish powerhouse.
Worthy Mentions
John McEnroe of the US and Boris Becker of Germany are two other tennis players with two singles titles.
John McEnroe succeeded Bjorn Borg in 1981 and made it to the final of the following three Wimbledon championships.
Meanwhile, the rivalry between Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe was the talk of the town in the 1980s.
Connor defeated McEnroe in 1982. And even though he made it to the finals six times, he only won on two occasions.
Boris Becker won two consecutive men's singles titles in 1985 and 1986. After that, he made it to the finals four-time between 1988-1991.
However, he lifted the championship only once more. In 1990 and 1991, he lost the finals to Stefan Edberg and Michael Stich.
Six players, including Rod Laver, John Newcombe, Jimmy Connors, Stefan Edberg, Andy Murray, and Rafael Nadal, have won Wimbledon championships twice each.
An interesting thought: Though homegrown players often dominate the US Open, Wimbledon has not seen a British winner after Andy Murray in 2016.
The Amateur Era Of Wimbledon
The Amateur epoch of Wimbledon started in 1877 and ended in 1967. The most prominent man in this period was William Charles Renshaw – a British tennis player – who won seven titles.
However, it's important to note that many of his titles were won in an altogether different format.
From his seven wins, two were in the complete draw; however, the remaining five winning games were in an intricate challenge-round format.
Norman Brookes – the famous Australian tennis player – won his first Wimbledon in 1907 and became the first non-Britisher to have won the tournament. He lifted the trophy again in 1914.
After some time, many other countries started capitalizing on Wimbledon's Amateur Era. This included six back-to-back French winners and a few American champions as well.
In 1966, Manuel Santana won Wimbledon and became the only Spaniard to have won the championship until Rafael Nadal almost half a century later.
What Is The Prize Money For Wimbledon?
There are substantial earnings for every tennis player who partakes in Wimbledon, even those who don't make it past opening matches. They may get a £48,000 consolation cheque.
However, if players progress past the second round or finals, their take-home prize money increases significantly.
So, what's the prize money for Wimbledon at different stages?
Despite a tradition of annually increasing the prize money, the 2021 pool saw a considerable slash of 5.2%, primarily to compensate for the losses due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.
A few other reasons to cut the prize money include selling limited tickets and installing a testing program.
Nevertheless, in 2021, Novak Djokovic and Ashleigh Barty received a handsome amount of £1.7 million for winning the singles category for their gender.
It's still a big paycheque, but it is lower than 2019 Wimbledon winnings: 2.35 million. To put it into context, Djokovic won 1.4M Euros (approximately £1.2 million) for lifting the title of 2021 French Open.
As a side note: Wimbledon decided to award female and male tennis players the same cash prize to avoid any discrimination, like other major Grand Slam events.
Without any further ado, here's the prize money for Wimbledon:
Men's Singles
- Winner: £1,700,000 (About $2,314,185)
- Runner-up: £900,000 (About $1,225,157)
- Semi-finalists: £465,000 (About $632,997)
- Quarter-finalists: £300,000 (About $408,416)
- Fourth round: £181,000 (About $246,411)
- Third round: £115,000 (About $156,526)
- Second round £75,000 (About $102,090)
- First-round £48,000 (About $65,338)
Women's Singles
- Winner: £1,700,000 (About $2,314,185)
- Runner-up: £900,000 (About $1,225,157)
- Semi-finalists: £465,000 (About $632,997)
- Quarter-finalists:£300,000(About $408,416)
- Fourth round:£181,000 (About $246,411)
- Third round: £115,000 (About $156,526)
- Second round: £75,000 (About $102,090)
- First-round: £48,000 (About $65,338)
What Is The Wimbledon Trophy Made Of?
The Wimbledon men's singles title is made from silver-gilt or gilded silver and is approximately 18-inch high. And the first iteration of the trophy was built in 1887.
Meanwhile, runners-up are given silver plates with their names inscribed on them.
Moreover, the Wimbledon women's singles award is a silver salver, often referred to as the Rosewater Dish or Venus Rosewater Dish, adorned with figures from folklores.
Whereas the runner-up in women's singles gets a similar silver plate like the men's.
Additionally, winners of doubles receive silver cups. Also, since 1949, winners of men's singles receive a replica of an actual trophy that they can take home.
The trophy is embellished with decorated knobs and a unique design on its lid. Funnily enough, it looks similar to a pineapple.
Quick Facts About Wimbledon
Here are a few quick facts about Wimbledon that will leave you in awe:
- Though there are many tennis tournaments these days, the first (and the oldest) tennis tournament is Wimbledon
- The first championship was played in 1877, and it was a men's singles tournament
- The women's singles, as well as men's doubles, were introduced later in 1884. Some years later, the mixed doubles and women's doubles were also added
- Tennis was invented by Major Walter Clopton Wingfield of the UK, and it was initially named "sphairistikè"
- Wimbledon was first televised in 1937 on BBC
- The matches at Wimbledon can last longer than you think. For example, the longest game of Wimbledon lasted 11-hours and five-minute
- The winner doesn't keep the trophy. They get replicas of the original trophy
- Martina Navratilova holds the most wins at Wimbledon. She won 9 times, whereas Roger Federer has won 8 times
- Approximately 250 ball girls and boys are recruited and undergo extensive training to monitor tennis balls on the court
- About over 50,000 balls are used during the entire tournament. Balls are changed after every eight to ten games to ensure they're in great shape during the match. Balls that aren't used are kept in a cooling container, so they remain in perfect condition
Learn To Play Tennis And Become Future Wimbledon Men's Winners
If you've been left in awe of the accomplishments of some of the finest tennis players in Wimbledon history, you're not alone.
Perhaps, to think you can become a Wimbledon-level player are farfetched; however, you will never know if you don't find out!
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