sports📡 The GuardianBy Sarah LeeJul 6, 2026👁 6 views
Wimbledon by Sarah Lee – in pictures
Wimbledon by Sarah Lee – in pictures
The Guardian’s Sarah Lee soaks up the atmosphere at the All England Club as the tennis championship enters its second week
Many people enjoy the social side of Wimbledon as much as or more than the tennis. Photograph: Sarah Lee/The GuardianSarah LeeMon 6 Jul 2026 02.00 EDTShareView image in fullscreen‘I suppose I’m people-watching’ is how I usually answer when I’m asked what exactly I’m doing when I’m photographing at Wimbledon. I know we live in a brave new AI-contorted world. But I’m a 20th-century person and photographer at heart.ShareView image in fullscreenI don’t believe androids dream of electric sheep. Human beings dream, they hope, they thrill, they despair, they get humbled by the frailties of the flesh. ShareView image in fullscreenThey do a lot of this at the All England Club in SW19. With thousands more watching from the stands and Henman Hill.ShareView image in fullscreenI’ve always loved Wimbledon (since I watched with my grandmother as Boris Becker won his first title, him 17, me seven) but all the more now it’s such an antidote to the times we are living in.ShareView image in fullscreenI think, prowling with my Leica, I’m trying to catch a little of what it is to be a human being in SW19 in 2026. ShareView image in fullscreenThis year I was struck again by how impressive the strict visual identity of the tournament is.ShareView image in fullscreenI can’t think of another event as big and as lucrative (in 2025 the tournament was estimated to have generated £370m) that gives as little space and prominence to advertising. What little there is tends to be handprinted and discreet. ShareView image in fullscreenPlayers can often be seen engaging with fans in between matches.ShareView image in fullscreenMany people enjoy the social side of Wimbledon as much as or more than the tennis.ShareView image in fullscreenPimm’s – a British gin-based liqueur – has long been associated with Wimbledon.ShareView image in fullscreenAs a photographer (and punter), the Wimbledon organisers have my deepest gratitude. It’s such a pleasure to be able to focus on people without having to navigate the visual noise of endless adverts and being (figuratively) battered with brand logos and screens.ShareView image in fullscreenNot all spectators have seats.ShareView image in fullscreenGround tickets available on the day mean the public have much greater access to Wimbledon than many other major sporting events.ShareView image in fullscreenBall boys and girls are fast, well-trained and efficient.ShareView image in fullscreenStandards of behaviour and dress at Wimbledon are among the best of any sport. ShareView image in fullscreenAnyone who has worked at Wimbledon will know the intimidatingly long and precise set of rules that must be signed before you can collect your pass.ShareView image in fullscreenSpectators have their own unwritten code of behaviour. Everyone is expected to behave with civility and courtesy. And, pretty much, they do. I found it a corrective balm to the world at large, seeing people in large crowds being considerate and getting on with each other. ShareExplore more on these topics
