Wimbledon Serves Up India Strategy: Courts Cricket Fans for Global Expansion

Wimbledon, the prestigious tennis tournament, is strategically targeting the Indian market to expand its global footprint. Leveraging the immense popularity of cricket in India, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) is exploring innovative collaborations to capture the attention of Indian audiences.

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates Wimbledon 2024 title (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Indian cricket stars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar, and Dinesh Karthik have been frequent visitors to Wimbledon, highlighting the existing connection between the two sports. Rohit Sharma's photo on Wimbledon's Instagram garnered unprecedented engagement, demonstrating the potential for crossover appeal.

Sally Bolton, AELTC Chief Executive, has identified India and the US as key markets for brand expansion. Brendan Dinen, Head of Marketing at Wimbledon, emphasized the importance of collaboration rather than competition with cricket, acknowledging its dominant position in India.

"Cricket is much loved and certainly king for Indian audiences. So rather than trying to compete with that, I think it's about trying to find interesting ways to collaborate," said Dinen.

Wimbledon is actively engaging with the Indian audience through various initiatives:

• Collaborating with Indian social media influencers to provide behind-the-scenes experiences at both Lord's cricket ground and the Wimbledon Championships.
• Partnering with Star Sports to create a tennis-cricket crossover trailer that aired during the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Despite its prestige, Wimbledon recognizes the potential for further growth. With 60-70 million engagements last year, the tournament aims to tap into the vast Indian market, identifying significant "headroom" among its young population.

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain serves during a practice session prior to The Championships Wimbledon 2025 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Dinen emphasized the importance of younger audiences: "Younger audiences and audiences of the future are crucial to us." He further explained the content strategy focused on platforms like Instagram and YouTube, aiming to engage these demographics.

To overcome the challenges posed by the monsoon season in India, AELTC is partnering with PVR INOX to broadcast the finals in theaters, bringing the Wimbledon experience to a wider audience.

Inviting prominent Indian cricket figures like Kohli, Tendulkar, and Rohit to the Royal Box is another strategy to leverage their massive social media presence and generate buzz around the tournament.

Wimbledon is also embracing technology to enhance the fan experience. The tournament is using Artificial Intelligence (AI), in coordination with IBM, on its app and website. The 'Match Chat' assistant provides real-time answers and match analysis, allowing spectators to engage with the tournament in new ways.

Dinen concluded, "We continue to embrace technology, and it sits at the heart of the balance between heritage and innovation."