13 Wimbledon Facts That Made Me Go Wait, What?

    This is stuff you'd never guess.

    Arsheen Kaur Sahni
    by Arsheen Kaur Sahni

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Wimbledon’s just ended for the year, the trophies are handed out, the strawberries are gone, and everything looked picture-perfect on TV.

    Wimbledon / Via giphy.com

    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.

    The Democrats / Via giphy.com

    1. There is a pineapple on the trophy and nobody knows why.

    A gold tennis trophy and a silver tray on a table draped with a Union Jack-themed cloth, in an outdoor setting
    Visionhaus / Visionhaus via Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    Some say it’s because pineapples were a symbol of wealth and hospitality in 17th-century England. Others think it’s a nod to colonial explorers who flexed by bringing back “exotic” fruit. 

    2. Wimbledon's “all white or go home” dress code.

    Tennis player on grass court, wearing a white outfit and cap, preparing to hit a backhand shot
    Ezra Shaw / Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    Wimbledon’s dress code is basically Victorian-core gone wild. Players can’t just wear white, it has to be blindingly white. Not ivory, not eggshell, not “oops-it-was-in-the-wash-with-a-blue-sock” white. And if your outfit has a coloured stripe thicker than a centimetre? You’re out. Why? Because back in the 1800s, visible sweat stains were a scandal, and pure white was the ultimate sweat-camouflage.

    3. Yes, there are nail techs at Wimbledon.

    Giphy / Via giphy.com

    I used to think Wimbledon is just stiff upper lips and grass courts? Well, I just learned something shocking. Behind the scenes, players are out here getting manis, pedis, blowouts, and beard trims like it’s Fashion Week. There are full-on beauty services available on-site, and yes, they’re booked.

    4. The grass gets mowed daily to 8mm.

    Tennis match in progress at Wimbledon with a large crowd. The stadium roof is open, revealing a clear sky. Players are positioned for a serve
    Clive Brunskill / Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    The lush green courts? Yeah, those are mowed every single morning to exactly 8mm. Not 7.5, not 8.2—exactly 8. A full team of groundstaff babies that lawn year-round like it’s the Queen’s front yard. And while it used to be a blend of grasses, now it’s 100% ryegrass because apparently, even grass needs to be durable under pressure.

    5. The strawberries used for Wimbledon’s famous strawberries and cream are carefully handpicked.

    Hand holding a Wimbledon-branded box of strawberries with a special badge, against a blurred background
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    Not just any strawberry gets into Wimbledon. Only Grade 1 English strawberries from Kent, picked just the day before, are allowed in. They're inspected, chilled, and served with cream like it’s 1877, because that’s literally when the tradition started. Oh, and fans eat about 2 million of them every year. 

    6. A trained Harris’s Hawk named Rufus flies around Centre Court each morning to scare away pigeons.

    Person with a hawk on an outstretched arm stands in an empty stadium
    Jordan Pettitt - PA Images / PA Images via Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    Rufus even has his own Wimbledon security pass. Just wow.

    7. The ball boys & girls are trained like athletes.

    A tennis player receives a ball from a ball girl during a match, both focused and prepared for play
    Peter Van Den Berg/ISI Photos / ISI Photos via Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    They’re called BBGs (Ball Boys and Girls) and they don’t just show up and wing it. These teens go through months of intense training, we’re talking drills on how to kneel, roll, sprint, and throw with military-level precision. Honestly, the selection process is so intense, it’s almost harder to become a BBG than a junior tennis champ.

    8. Umpires are told to avoid saying ‘love’ too loudly.

    A tennis umpire in a blazer and sunglasses sits in a chair on a court, focused and holding a microphone, with spectators in the background
    Clive Brunskill / Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    Because of the crowd noise and the word's ambiguity, umpires are trained to say “love” (as in 15–love) clearly but not dramatically, so it doesn’t get mistaken for cheering or comments.


    9. The tennis balls are kept in refrigerated containers at 20°C.

    Hands picking tennis balls from grass court, wearing wristbands and sneakers
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    Tennis balls are switched every 7–9 games to maintain consistency in bounce. They are kept in a refrigerated container at exactly 20°C for optimal performance. And those old balls? Some are sold to fans in the Wimbledon shop as souvenirs.

    10. The champions can't keep their trophies.

    A woman in a blue dress presents a golden trophy to a tennis player on a court, with a crowd in the background
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    Unlike many trophies, the men's and women's trophies stay at Wimbledon. The winner only gets a replica about 3/4 the size. The original cup has been awarded since 1887, and no player, not even Federer, has ever taken it home.

    11. Bees & foxes can interrupt matches.

    National Geographic TV / Via Inside Gen Z’s Treat Culture, From Labubu to Lattes

    You’d think Centre Court drama would come from tie-breaks or broken racquets, but sometimes it’s foxes strolling across the grass or swarms of bees crashing the party. Yep, wild animals have stopped play. Groundskeepers now do off-hour sweeps to make sure no unexpected guests have moved in. 

    12. Centre Court got bombed during WWII.

    A crowded tennis stadium with players in action on the court. Spectators fill the seats under a retractable roof on a clear day
    Tim Clayton / Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    During World War II, a 500-pound German bomb hit Centre Court and destroyed over a thousand seats. The tournament was put on hold, and the club grounds turned into a civil defense hub with carparks converted into mini farms to grow food. Tennis took a backseat until 1946 because, well, there was a war going on.

    13. This Wimbledon court got such a bad rep, they rebuilt it and renamed it.

    A tennis player in a tracksuit triumphantly holds up a trophy at a crowded sports event
    PA Images / PA Images via Getty Images / Via gettyimages.in

    Court Two at Wimbledon was so infamous for top seeds getting knocked out early, it earned the nickname “The Graveyard of Champions.” Big names would walk in confident and walk out stunned. It got such a rep that by 2009, they renamed it Court Three and then fully rebuilt it in 2011, probably hoping the bad juju wouldn’t carry over.