Numbers dip amid volley of fury at empty seats
FANS have condemned the number of empty seats on the biggest courts in the opening days of the tournament.
Some 114,573 spectators poured into SW19 over the first three days – with 36,603 on Monday, 39,450 on Tuesday and 38,520 on Wednesday.
That is more than 14,000 below the equivalent figure of 128,934 in 2019, the last time Wimbledon was fully open to crowds.
The event was cancelled in 2020 and went ahead in 2021 with only 50 per cent capacity. It is the first time overall daily attendance has not topped 40,000 for the first three days since 2007. Organisers expected 42,000 tickets to be sold daily this year.
Hospitality seats left empty, technical glitches affecting re-sales (after someone leaves) for Centre Court and unsettled weather have all contributed.
Fans yesterday told of their fury, saying more should be done to ensure every seat is full for the big matches.
Stefania Carella, 28, a trainee teacher, said: “There should be a system that notifies you if people are going to be a no-show. And in the queue, they should give you a ticket with a number and let you go, so you don’t have to just stand here.”
Eleanor Martin, 24, said: “There have been loads of empty seats so it’s annoying while we’re standing here waiting after actually getting in.”
An All England Club spokesperson said: “Our mobile ticketing systems and processes are working well. Any guests who contacted us to express discomfort with mobile ticketing were offered paper tickets.Ticket resales has been in line with previous years.”