Wimbledon’s just ended for the year, the trophies are handed out, the strawberries are gone, and everything looked picture-perfect on TV.
But the more I dug in, the more I realised there’s a whole other side to this tournament. Behind the neat lawns, there’s a bunch of quiet rules and odd little traditions that barely anyone talks about. Here’s everything I found.
1.
There is a pineapple on the trophy and nobody knows why.
2.
Wimbledon’s “all white or go home” dress code.
3.
Yes, there are nail techs at Wimbledon.
4.
The grass gets mowed daily to 8mm.
5.
The strawberries used for Wimbledon’s famous strawberries and cream are carefully handpicked.
6.
A trained Harris’s Hawk named Rufus flies around Centre Court each morning to scare away pigeons.
7.
The ball boys & girls are trained like athletes.
8.
Umpires are told to avoid saying ‘love’ too loudly.
9.
The tennis balls are kept in refrigerated containers at 20°C.
10.
The men’s trophy can’t be kept.
11.
Bees & foxes can interrupt matches.
12.
Centre Court got bombed during WWII.
13.
This Wimbledon court got such a bad rep, they rebuilt it and renamed it.