Canada’s Leylah Fernandez celebrates a point against Janice Tjen of Indonesia in their first round women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London on June 29.Maja Smiejkowska/The Associated Press
Wimbledon, the oldest Grand Slam tennis tournament, starts Monday on the manicured lawns of the All England Club in London. Here’s what you need to know about this year’s competition, including when tennis superstar Serena Williams is expected to play, what’s new for this edition of the tournament and more.
How to watch Wimbledon
Canadian spectators can view tournament matches on TSN and via the app. In the U.S., ESPN and The Tennis Channel will air Wimbledon games, and in Britain, BBC, TNT Sports and discovery+ will cover the tournament.
What is the singles schedule?
First Round: Monday and Tuesday
Second Round: Wednesday and Thursday
Third Round: Friday and Saturday
Fourth Round: Sunday (July 5) and Monday (July 6)
Quarterfinals: Tuesday (July 7) and Wednesday (July 8)
Women’s Semifinals: Thursday (July 9)
Men’s Semifinals: Friday (July 10)
Women’s Final: Saturday (July 11)
Men’s Final: Sunday (July 12)
When will Serena Williams play?
Serena Williams leaves the practice courts on June 28 in London.Jan Kruger/Getty Images
Serena Williams will be playing singles and doubles as part of her return to tennis after nearly four years out of the sport.
The seven-time Wimbledon singles champion will play Tuesday evening on Centre Court in her first-round match against 20-year-old Maya Joint.
First-round matches in women’s doubles are scheduled for Thursday and Friday. Serena and her older sister Venus will compete in doubles. Their first-round opponents are the pair of Camila Osorio and Solana Sierra.
Who are the defending champions?
Jannik Sinner of Italy and Iga Swiatek of Poland will attempt to repeat as champions.
The No. 1-ranked Sinner beat Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in last year’s men’s final for his first Wimbledon title. Alcaraz will miss this year’s tournament because of a wrist injury. Swiatek routed Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 to win the women’s title — her first at Wimbledon, and coming seven years after she was the girls’ singles champion.
Singles champions get a 20% raise
The men’s and women’s singles champions will earn 3.6 million pounds ($4.75 million) each. The total prize money including player per diems is 64.2 million pounds ($85 million). Both represent 20% increases over 2025.
The significant increases come amid players’ calls for greater shares of revenue from Grand Slam tournaments. Top players complained about prize money at the French Open.
At Wimbledon, some top players are continuing a prize-money protest they started at Roland Garros. It involves limiting their media appearances.
Who are the favourites to win?
Italy's Jannik Sinner reacts as he plays against Serbia's Miomir Kecmanovic during their men's singles first round tennis match on the first day of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships.GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images
Sinner, despite an early exit at the French Open, remains the clear betting favourite with several sportsbooks listing him around -200 to win. Seven-time champion Novak Djokovic (+400) is next as he bids for what would be his 25th Grand Slam title. Alexander Zverev (+900) is trying to win back-to-back majors, though he’s never been past the fourth round at the All England Club and lost his opening match a year ago.
The women’s singles competition is more open, with No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka (+300) a slight favourite ahead of 2022 champion Elena Rybakina (+400). Several sportsbooks put French Open champion Mirra Andreeva at +700 and defending champion Iga Swiatek at +800.
What’s new this year at Wimbledon?
Wimbledon will use video review technology for the first time. The technology will be available on Centre Court, No. 1 Court — the club’s second-biggest stadium — plus four other show courts. Players will be allowed to review specific calls made by the chair umpire — such as double bounces. Video review made its Grand Slam tennis debut at the 2023 U.S. Open.
Wimbledon by the numbers
Soccer legend David Beckham and his mother Sandra Georgina Beckham applaud after the men's singles match between Jannik Sinner and Miomir Kecmanovic on June 29.Kin Cheung/The Associated Press
Wimbledon’s attendance last year was a record-high 548,770, though that’s the lowest among the four majors. The other three feature main-draw action over 15 days; Wimbledon remains at 14 days. The main draw of this year’s Australian Open attracted more than 1.1 million fans. Last year’s U.S. Open surpassed 900,000 for the main draw and the recent French Open had 589,500.
The other three boast even larger attendance numbers when their qualifying events are added. Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam tournament that holds its qualifying rounds at a completely separate location — which would be remedied in the club’s expansion plans. The All England Club hopes to add a new 8,000-seat stadium and dozens of other courts in an expansion that would boost attendance and revenue.