Wimbledon Eyes Indian Market, Courts Cricket Fans in Strategic Expansion

New Delhi: The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC), the prestigious organizer of the Wimbledon Championships, is strategically targeting the Indian market, leveraging the nation's love for cricket to broaden its reach.

Indian cricket stars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Dinesh Karthik, and Sachin Tendulkar have been frequent attendees at Wimbledon. Sharma's photograph on Wimbledon's Instagram account garnered a record-breaking 4.5 million likes, marking their most engaging post to date.

Carlos Alcaraz prepares for Wimbledon 2025.

According to AELTC Chief Executive Sally Bolton, India and the United States are key markets for expanding the historic brand. Brendan Dinen, Head of Marketing at Wimbledon, emphasized the importance of collaboration rather than competition with cricket in a conversation with TimesofIndia.com.

"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. Both sports are rich in heritage. England and India Test matches are happening now. So I think there's interesting ways to be able to bring that to life for audiences, so that they might want to come and watch it as well," Dinen explained.

Innovative Crossovers and Influencer Engagement

Wimbledon is actively pursuing creative collaborations. For instance, they partnered with an Indian social media influencer, providing them with a unique experience at Lord's during a Test match, followed by a visit to the Championships to document and share their experience with their audience.

Carlos Alcaraz celebrates his Wimbledon 2024 title.

Furthermore, Star Sports, Wimbledon's broadcast partner, created a tennis-cricket crossover trailer that was aired during the Indian Premier League (IPL), capitalizing on the massive viewership of the cricket tournament.

Targeting the Youth

Wimbledon recognizes the potential for growth, particularly in India, with its young population. While Wimbledon had 60-70 million engagements last year on various platforms, it aims to tap into the potential billion who may be interested in the Championships.

Dinen clarified, "Younger audiences and audiences of the future are crucial to us. It's clear in the activity that we focus on and our content strategy, whether that's for Instagram, YouTube and the sort of content we create."

The strategy involves creating engaging content tailored for social media platforms, collaborating with influencers and content creators to connect with younger demographics.

Overcoming Challenges and Embracing Technology

While organizers are keen to host events in India, the monsoon season poses a logistical challenge. To overcome this, AELTC is partnering with PVR INOX to screen the finals in theaters.

Wimbledon also aims to leverage the social media presence of Indian cricket icons like Kohli, Tendulkar, and Sharma by inviting them to the Royal Box.

In line with tradition, Wimbledon is embracing technology to enhance the fan experience. The tournament has partnered with IBM to incorporate Artificial Intelligence (AI) into its app and website. The "Match Chat" assistant provides fans with real-time answers to their questions and match analysis during live matches.

Dinen concluded, "We continue to embrace technology, and it sits at the heart of the balance between heritage and innovation... We've brought experiences to life in places like Roblox. So we absolutely want to make sure we bring the brand and the Championships to life in new and interesting ways."