|
Wimbledon Tickets 2008
These tennis tickets are the hardest in the world to get hold of! If you've ever been then
you'll know exactly why, and if you haven't then book a day off work and enjoy one of the
greatest sporting events of the year.
But for now, read our tried and tested methods of obtaining tickets to this amazing tournament below.
Public Ballot
Enter the Wimbledon public ballot. We're not about to to kid anyone here... your chances of obtaining tickets
under this method are slim to none. From our experience you'll get lucky once ever 4-5 years - it's supply and demand baby!
Here are some questions we are frequently asked:
Question : What details should I send the AELTC?
Answer : A polite letter stating you would like to enter the public ballot, and your name and address only.
Question : Can I enter if I'm not in the UK?
Answer : Yes, but why it isn't restricted to UK applications is ridiculous - it's a UK tournament!
Question : Can I choose the amount of tickets I want?
Answer : No, each application is for one pair of tickets.
Question : Can I choose tickets for the court I want to be on?
Answer : No, it's a random ballot. If successful you will be offered one pair of random tickets for either Centre Court, No.1 Court, or No.2 Court.
Question : Can I make multiple applications to increase my chances?
Answer : No, only one application per household/address is allowed. Multiple applications will be disregarded, so don't waste your time or that of the AELTC.
Question : If I don't like the tickets I am offered can I swap them?
Answer : No, you either accept the tickets offered or reject them. If rejected someone else will be offered them.
Having read and understood the above you will need to send a letter and stamped addresses envelope
to the AELTC requesting an official application form. These are to be sent between 1st August and 31st
December (postmark no later than 15th December) to the following address:
The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club,
PO Box 98,
Wimbledon,
London SW19 5AE
The Wimbledon Public Ballot draw is held in January, and successful applicants are informed
from February, but if you have not heard anything by March of the year of the tournament then
you should assume your application has not been successful. As declined and returned tickets
are re-balloted up to the day of play, it is possible that you may be offered tickets at a later stage.
LTA Advantage Ballot
Enter the LTA Advantage ballot.
If you join LTA Advantage
you are automatically entered into the Wimbledon ticket ballot. Signing up for an
"Adult" membership entitles you to one draw entry, but signing up for a "Family" membership
entitles you to two draw entries.
Tickets available on Centre, No.1, and No.2
LTA Affiliated Tennis Club
LTA Affiliated Tennis Clubs are given an allocation of Wimbledon tickets. You must be
a member of an affiliated club in order to be considered for their own private draw for tickets.
Enquire at your local LTA affiliated club.
Tickets available on Centre, No.1, and No.2
Official Tour Packages
Without a doubt we would recommend The Wimbledon Experience Tours Programme.
We first went on a "Wimbledon Championship Tour" back in 1999 and it was superb. The prices have gone up quite significantly
since then, but they're still well worth it.
Queue On The Day
Even if you get there super-early you'll be queuing for hours and hours
so don't let anyone tell you otherwise!
We should know, we've even camped out tent on Church Road overnight in order to
secure the very limited number of Centre Court tickets available on the day. The good news is that
camping on the street is so much fun, it's just one big party with lots of BBQs and lots of alcohol!
To all the Australians we've met while queuing: "You guys and girls are awesome!"
The official queues are at Gate 3, from both north and south sides. Equal ticket allocations are
given to each queue.
Tickets available on Centre, No.1, No.2, and Ground Passes.
Debenture
So you're feeling flush, and have money to burn, so what better way to spend it than to
buy either a Wimbledon Centre Court Debenture (£23,150+), or a Wimbledon No.1 Court Debenture (£9,900+).
These figures represent the original prices for 5 year debentures, but as all debentures have now been
snapped up you'll have to contact Barclays Capital Limited or UBS Warburg who have a made a second-hand market for
the sale of these debentures. See the official details here.
eBay Auction
Ok, so by this time your read this you're desperate for a ticket but don't want to queue up for one! Try
eBay.co.uk as people are always selling them on there, but quite often
they'll go for extortionalte prices so only bid what you can afford. We have some pre-defined eBay searches for you to click on which
will open in new windows:
Note that only debenture tickets can be legally transfered to another owner. Please read the following:
WARNING!
We were informed (3 July 2002) that the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club (AELTC)
threatened eBay with legal action unless they hand over the personal details of all eBay
members selling non-debenture Wimbledon tickets on eBay. As a result, eBay obliged and the AELTC
have been contacting the sellers of such tickets threatening them with legal action and cancelling their tickets.
This is our understanding of the situation:
Sellers - Every Wimbledon ticket sold in advance of the championships has an official registered owner.
Upon obtaining tickets directly from the AELTC the original purchaser has entered into a contract with the AELTC which
prohibits the original purchaser from re-selling his/her ticket(s). If you are the original purchaser and sell your
non-debenture tickets on eBay, the AELTC will now be able to obtain your address and find out exactly which
tickets were issued to you. They will then contact you threatening legal action and cancel your tickets. If you are not
the original purchaser of the tickets then you will probably just be threatened with legal action, as the AELTC will
not (initially) be able to link your address with the ticket numbers issued.
Buyers - Beware! The tickets you purchase may have already been cancelled by AELTC. This may not cause you an
initial problem upon entering the grounds as they do not scan tickets (why not AELTC??) or if you are just watching the play
on outside courts. However, if you were to try and sit in your showcourt (Centre, No.1, No.2) seat then you will probably
find that someone else will also have the same seat number on their ticket! The reason being that your cancelled ticket
will have been re-issued. Once this is discovered you will be treated as a trespasser and ejected from Wimbledon immediately.
CANCELLED original eBay auction listings!
Click here to view:
1 - 2 -
3 - 4 -
5 - 6 -
7 - 8 -
9 - 10 -
11 - 12 -
13 - 14 -
15 - 16 -
17 - 18
Ticket Tout
We do not recommend this method! Being the buyer of such a ticket, even if you obtain a ticket successfully,
you will face the same problems as above in the eBay Auction WARNING section.
Ticket touts operate in the area from Southfields underground
station, along Wimbledon Park Road and Church Road, to the gates of Wimbledon. Just walking down
there you will hear a number of people offering to buy and sell tickets.
Please also note that touts have been known to sell stolen and forged tickets. Once discovered at the gate
you will not gain access to the grounds and will have lost your money.
Resale Tickets (once inside Wimbledon)
Once you are already inside the grounds of Wimbledon, whether on a Ground Pass or any showcourt ticket,
you will have the opportunity to purchase re-sold showcourt tickets. These are tickets which the original
owner no longer requires (perhaps he/she has gone home early or just has a spare ticket) and wishes to give
someone else the opportunity of sitting on a showcourt.
Sellers - Take your ticket to one of the Wimbledon Officials at any exit gate and ask him/her to
scan your ticket for you in order for it to be re-sold. The great news is that (a) you get to keep your original
ticket; (b) your ticket is re-printed and re-sold to someone who wants to experience a showcourt; and (c) all monies
raised through the re-selling of tickets is donated to charity!
Buyers - Re-sold tickets are always in demand and you will have to queue up for them. The ticket
re-selling booth located at the top of Wimbledon Hill (aka Henman Hill, Rusedski Ridge, Mount Philippoussis) at the north end of
the grounds, and opens at 3pm. Be prepared for very long queues, but they can be worth the wait!
[ back | top ]
|
