The very first edition of the Wimbledon Championship was held in the summer of 1877, marking a defining moment in the history of tennis. With 1xBet Canada you will also encounter lots of amazing tournaments to bet on everything that this fascinating competition has to offer.
It was organized by the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club, then based on Worple Road in Wimbledon, southwest London. This inaugural tournament is recognised as the world’s first official lawn tennis competition and later retroactively regarded as the first of the sport’s 4 Grand Slam tournaments. The other 3 competitions of this kind are:
- the Australian Open;
- the French Open;
- and the US Open.
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An innovating competition
Lawn tennis itself was a relatively new innovation in the 1870s, evolving from older racket sports and gaining popularity as an outdoor pastime in England. The All England Croquet Club introduced lawn tennis to attract interest beyond croquet and, by 1877, had decided to stage a competitive event partly to raise funds for essential equipment. What they specifically needed back then was a pony roller used to maintain the grass courts. By making your 1xBet account registration, you will also come across plenty of betting options on the modern Wimbledon competition.
Only one event was contested at that first championship: the Gentlemen’s Singles. A total of 22 male players entered the competition, each paying an entry fee of one guinea, a sizeable sum at the time. The tournament began on 9 July 1877, with matches played on outdoor grass courts, a surface that has remained the hallmark of Wimbledon ever since. The account registration procedure at 1xBet is extremely simple, and with it, you can also start betting on other tennis competitions played on grass.
After several days of matches, with weather delays extending play, the final was held on 19 July in front of approximately 200 spectators, who had each paid a shilling to attend. The final saw Spencer Gore, a 27-year-old rackets player from south London, defeat William Marshall, a real tennis player, in straight sets (6-1, 6-2, 6-4) to become the very first Wimbledon champion. In addition to the silver trophy donated by The Field magazine, Gore received 12 guineas in prize money.
Though modest in size and prize compared with today’s standards, the success of the 1877 event laid the foundation for what would become the world’s oldest and most prestigious tennis championship. This is also the only Grand Slam still played on grass.