An exodus of England fans from Wimbledon left hundreds of seats empty at Centre Court as they ditched the tennis for the World Cup. A number of spectators inside Wimbledon’s main court could be seen watching England take on DR Congo on their phones as Barbora Krejčíková faced French Open champion Mirra Andreeva.
Lines for seats at courts across Wimbledon had subsided in the buildup to the Three Lions’ last 32 crunch tie in Atlanta, USA. A staff member said the queue for one court was “definitely shorter” about an hour before Thomas Tuchel's men kicked off, adding it usually went around the corner. The number of people basking in the sun on Henman Hill had also dissipated, it is claimed, while one of the main bars was said to be quiet.
The wait for Court 3 — featuring 19-year-old rising star Joao Fonseca — was also believed to be smaller than previous times.
Many queueing were Brazilian, hoping to catch a glimpse of their compatriot in action.
The line for the queue had earlier stretched past a number of courts, but by around 4pm, it was significantly smaller.
At a similar time, there was no queue for Court 12 and large groups of people could be seen leaving the grounds to watch the match nearby.
The All England Club has a football blackout in place across Wimbledon, including the players’ lounge.
However, Chief Executive Sally Bolton on Monday confirmed it would not “prevent” people from watching the action on their phones.
England fan Guy McQueen, who was wearing a Three Lions shirt, was tuned in on his phone inside the grounds just as DR Congo took a 1-0 lead.
He said: “We’d been watching tennis all day, so we felt it was fine just to take a little break.”
The 29-year-old said he believed Wimbledon’s football policy was “fair”, adding: “I was actually surprised, there’s not many people actually here wearing any football shirts.”
Nearby, fellow supporter Daryl Bleach, 41, gave a worrying omen. He said: “The last time I came here, we played Iceland in the Euros and we lost!”
Marek Maynard, 35, said he will “likely” watch on his phone during the tennis but said no football policy at Wimbledon had “split the crowd”.
Adam Porter, 25, who was on Henman Hill before the game kicked off, said he planned to watch on his phone.
He said: “I think they probably could [show the match], considering it’s a World Cup, it’s a tournament that happens once every four years.
“I probably think they could show it, even if it’s not on one of the main screens.”
The 2026 World Cup is the first to coincide with Wimbledon since the 2018 tournament held in Russia, when England reached the semi-finals.
