Home of Championship targets a younger audience with a host of themed games, apps, and clothing lines
The tennis that made running when computer games were young. The oldest and most basic screen challenge ever invented, tennis for twohe capitalized on the popularity of the sport.
Now, in an attempt to call game, set and match once more, Wimbledon’s All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) ventures onto the virtual court. The London club is launching a barrage of new games to ensure the younger generation keeps up with the tournament and its competitive challenge.
Served to the beat for the first time, this Wimbledon is an online, branded event Fortnite racing game, with Andy Murray. It is also new an updated Wimble Roblox World experience, introduced for younger players, and a tennis app called Wimbledon slam. TO colaboration with tennis clasha leading mobile game, has also been introduced.
“It’s important to have a strong presence at the games,” said Chris Clements, who heads the club’s digital products arm. “We wanted to involve some of our core elements, like grass and strawberries and cream, as well as ultimately the tennis itself.”
“We have always said that Wimbledon transcends sport, but we needed to develop ways to engage with new people,” he added. “There’s a great heritage beyond just enjoying the sport, to people who don’t really enjoy the sport, or even any other sport.”
players of race to wimbledonthe new Fortnite title, will hit Center Court on foot, by road, and by air, while the Roblox platform offers younger players the chance to mow the grass and paint the baseline in Wimble World. Proceeds will be invested in youth tennis.
With the Fortnite In the game, players start in the lobby alongside a virtual Murray, and then head out into the suburbs, through the parks towards the city, through the golden mailbox marking Murray’s Olympic triumph, past landmarks known as the Big Ben and the London Eye. , through Wimbledon village and around giant obstacles like giant strawberries and tennis rackets.
“Tennis lends itself to games. We saw it from the beginning,” Clements said, speaking just as Murray lost on Friday night. “But the way people enjoy gaming has changed drastically, so we called in specialists.”
If video games don’t take teenagers directly to the local tennis court, the AELTC hopes to develop new fans of the championship. Live stream audiences for the tournament remained high, despite a surge on media platforms, Clements said.
“If Wimbledon isn’t always watched on terrestrial TV anymore, then it’s watched on a phone. And if a parent is watching TV, there may be a child in the same room as they are watching while they are playing. worldwimble on Roblox. And, above, we hope that an 18-year-old boy is playing race to wimbledon in Fortnite.”
Changes to Roblox gameplay, including the ability to tend the lawn or earn a virtual falcon that will sit on the shoulder of a player’s avatar on the platform, were introduced just before the tournament began.
Wimbledon slamThe app now also offers a renowned tennis experience app, which allows players to “serve” a tennis ball, with the weather inevitably affecting the match.
The Wimbledon brand also reaches young people through fashion. Born into the heyday of sporty looks, nicknamed tenniscore, the club launched its first “semi-formal” capsule wardrobe of outfits in May, sold exclusively online. It was a clever move to tap into a broader general trend of short pleated skirts, long white shorts, and vintage sports brands like Slazenger and Dunlop.
While video games have taken the AELTC a long way from the croquet and teas of its founding year of 1868, some of the traditional tennis gear being worn on the catwalks this summer might have been acceptable at least 100 years ago.
{{up to the left}}
{{down left}}
{{top right}}
{{Bottom right}}
{{/heart}}
{{qualification}}
{{#paragraphs}}
{{.}}
{{/paragraphs}}{{highlighted text}}
{{#choiceCards}}{{/choiceCards}}