The Wimbledon tournaments have been held annually since 1877, but the new arm has expanded the reach of tournament support. Since 2013, the Wimbledon Foundation has acted as the official charity of the All England Lawn Tennis Club and The Championships, distributing grants, donations and programs in various fields within and outside of tennis.
Unlike large foundations such as the Gates Foundation in the US or the Wellcome Trust in the UK, the Wimbledon Foundation operates as a charitable organization that distributes productive resources. Its funding comes primarily from the Championship’s annual profits and related revenue streams, and does not follow a fixed fee requirement.
Not to be confused with the football-affiliated AFC Wimbledon Foundation, the organization is partially funded by the All England Club, ticket resale, the sale of used tennis balls, and partners such as Barclays and IBM. By 2025, it donated £4.76 million ($6.37 million), bringing its charitable giving to over £24 million ($32.1 million).
Rather than being established by individual donors, the foundation was created jointly by the All England Club to formalize its charitable work. From 2022, it was led by foundation chief Paige Murphy, with a team and board of trustees supporting growing sustainability beyond its local base in Merton and Wandsworth in south-west London.
The people who run the Wimbledon Foundation
Although the foundation is managed by the All England Club, its trustees, staff and ambassadors carry out their day-to-day operations.
Paige Murphy joined as head of the foundation in 2022. With a background in nonprofit grantmaking and community engagement, she oversees programs such as the national expansion of Set for Success and the foundation’s long-term strategic planning.
On the board side, retired PwC executive Bruce Weatherill has served as chairman since 2020. Other board members include:
- Sir Keith Ajegbo: A retired university official, fighting for education services
- Anne Keothavong: Retired tennis player and current commentator
- Kevin Havelock: Retired president of Unilever
- Deborah Jevans: Retired professional tennis player and sports official, including the International Tennis Federation
- Ruth Shaw: Former sports administrator, including the Sports Grounds Safety Authority, and current independent consultant
- Sir Nick Young: Retired attorney, experienced in cancer care services
- Sam Oslen: A public sector official
In June 2025, British tennis players Katie Boulter and Jack Draper were named the first champions of the Wimbledon Foundation, official ambassadors tasked with raising awareness of their work.
That is supported by the Wimbledon Foundation
The foundation distributes its funding through four main programs, which greatly benefit the communities surrounding the Championships.
Its largest initiative, the Homelessness Fund, provides multi-year funding to organizations that address housing insecurity. Launched in 2019 to mark the completion of the roof of Court No. 1, the fund awarded seven major grants totaling £740,000 ($988,700) by 2025, supporting groups such as these. Faith in Action Project Merton Homelessness and Glass Door Homeless Charity.
Additional programs include the Community Fund, which supports local communication programs; the Get Set, Get Active Fund, which focuses on increasing participation in sports; and the Health and Wellbeing Fund, which supports mental and physical health projects. Recipients included Off the Record Youth Advice, Waste Not Want Not Battersea, Youth Sport Trust and the Metropolitan & City Police Orphans Fund. By 2025, the foundation supported 102 organizations with these grants.
In addition to issuing grants, the foundation runs partnerships and programs, including an international clean water program that brings water, sanitation and hygiene infrastructure to eight countries, a national emergency housing partnership and annual donations to the British Red Cross Disaster Fund.
Its initiatives also include Set for Success, a national youth sports campaign in partnership with Barclays and the Youth Sport Trust; the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative, which brings All England Club coaches to local state schools; and Work at Wimbledon, which provides employment opportunities at The Championships for people with disabilities.
