The Wimbledon Championships is set to have a roof placed over Court One by 2019 with the help of a £175M loan.
In the All England Club’s annual report, they confirmed that £71M of the sum will be used for the implementation of the new roof. The development will also see an increase in the seating capacity from 11,500 to 12,400.
The ‘master plan’ of the tournament outlines what improvements they aim to do with the site at Church Road. Besides a new roof, who will make SW19 the second grand slam to have both major courts covered, the investment will also be used to fund more clay and covered hard courts in the area. Those courts will not be used for the championships.
“In September 2016, the company extended the £175 million loan with HSBC to July 31, 2023 to finance the Number One Court project and aspect of the Master Plan,” the annual report says.
“The loan is secured on the grounds at Church Road.”
Repaying the loan is expected to be straightforward for The All England club. Over a five-year period they make £125m from debenture sales and will use the profit generated to pay back the borrowed cash. They will also be supported by extra income from ticket sales, sponsorship and general ticket sales.
Despite the ongoing developments, the report stated that there will be no rise in ticket prices to compensate for the cost.
Last year the club made £33.2M in profit and paid off a £75M loan in 2015. That loan was used to build a roof over Centre Court, which has been in use since 2009.
