Game, Set, Watch: ESPN Ready For Wimbledon Grand Slam Center Stage
Saturday, June 28, 2025 at 12:15PM dsBy Barry Janoff
June 28, 2025: At the 2025 Wimbledon Grand Slam, ATP World No. 1 ranked Jannik Sinner and No. 2 ranked Carlos Alcaraz are seeking a rematch of their classic showdown during the recent Roland-Garros Grand Slam final, won by Alcaraz in five sets.
But seeking to crash the London party — and dethrone two-time defending men’s Wimbledon champ Alcaraz — Novak Djokovic, aiming for his career and record-setting 25th Grand Slam and eighth Wimbledon singles title, Alexander Zverev, top-ranked British player Jack Draper and a quartet of Top 15 ranked U.S. players: Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul.
On the women’s side, Hologiic WTA Tour No. 1 ranked and three-time Grand Slam winner Aryna Sabalenka, five-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek and two-time Grand Slam champ Coco Gauff — coming off her title win at Roland-Garros — are among those with plans to capture the 2025 Wimbledon crown.
Wimbledon will run June 30-July 13 exclusively on ESPN and ABC, with ancillary coverage on Tennis Channel.
New this year: For the first time in its nearly 150-year history, there will be no line judges for the Wimbledon Grand Slam, replaced as in a growing number of tennis tournaments with an AI -powered Hawk-Eye technology that determines whether a ball is out, with staff voiceovers used on the call.
Gauff, ranked No. 2 in the world, leads five U.S. women ranked in the Top 15 with strong opportunities to advance deep into the tournament, also including Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys, Emma Navarro and Amanda Anisimova.
Playing for the prestigious title is motivation enough.
Also on the line: Wimbledon's prize money has risen to a tournament record $73 million, and the singles champions will each earn $4 million, according to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
The total amount is $6.8 million more than last year, an increase of 7%.
The 2025 winners' checks represent an 11.1% jump on last year's prizes for the men's and women's singles champions
By comparison, at the 2025 Australian Open, $2.2 million was awarded each for singles’ winners Jannik Sinner and Madison Keys out of a $59.9 million total; and during 2025 Roland-Garros, $2.9 million each was earned by Alcaraz and Gauff from a total of $64 million.
At the U.S. Open 2024, $3.6 million each was earned by Sinner and Sabalenka out of a total $75 million (2025 prize numbers have not yet been released.)
Defending women's champion is Barbora Krejcikova.
Emma Raducanu (currently ranked No. 38 in the world but No. 1 among U.K. players) and Draper are part of a total of 23 British players in the singles draws, the most since 1984, according to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
ESPN has televised Wimbledon since 2003, with exclusivity in the U.S. since 2012. For the third consecutive year, coverage will be presented by Barclays.
In addition to ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes (Spanish) and streaming on ESPN+, ABC will broadcast select live matches on the middle Saturday and Sunday.
Daily marathon coverage from all 18 courts will culminate with the Ladies’ Championship July 12, and the the Gentlemen’s Championship July 13.
Both singles championships will also stream on ESPN+ in English and Spanish.
ESPN Deportes will air more than 100 hours of live action over the tournament in Spanish, including the Ladies’ and Gentlemen’s Semifinals and Championships.
ESPN is supporting its coverage with the multi-media “Quiet Please” campaign, which includes Gauff, Alcaraz, Sinner, Djokovic, Keys, Shelton, Pegula, Fritz, Sabalenka and Tiafoe. It plays to the hard-driving “Take Me Out” by rock band Franz Ferdinand.
“This year’s Wimbledon campaign beautifully elevates the sport’s rising stars and compelling narratives through a powerful and cinematic thematic,” Rachel Epstein, ESPN vp-live sports and audience expansion, said via the network.
“It’s a fresh and distinctive approach that not only captures the elegance and intensity of the tournament, but also underscores the depth of our coverage from day one through the finals.”
The All England Club has launched “There Is Only One Wimbledon,” which it said “captures not only the moments of triumph but also the psychological intensity that defines The Championships.
“From the hush before a decisive point to the weight of legacy that lives within the grass, this is not merely tennis. It is Wimbledon.”
Wimbledon partners activating at the Grand Slam include American Express, Babolat, Barclays, Emirates, Evian, Lanson, Lavazza, Pimm’s, Polo Ralph Lauren, Range Rover, Rolex, Sipsmith, Slazenger, Stella Artois and Vodafone.
In its 17th year of Wimbledon coverage, Tennis Channel has been at the venue every summer since 2008. (The tournament was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.)
The channel will produce nearly 75 first-run hours of Wimbledon Primetime programming during the two-week event this year.
Each night begins with studio-show Tennis Channel Live at Wimbledon from a stage at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. 
Tennis Channel, its app and Web site TennisChannel.com will show Wimbledon Primetime every night June 30-July 13
The ESPN commentators for Wimbledon 2025 include James Blake, Sam Borden, Coco Vandeweghe, Jeff Darlington, Rennae Stubbs, Sam Querrey, Kris Budden, Darren Cahill, Jason Goodall, Pam Shriver, Chris Fowler, Mary Joe Fernández, Patrick McEnroe, Chris Evert, John McEnroe, Chris McKendry, Brad Gilbert and Mike Monaco.
Tennis Channel said its programming block will typically run six hours and offer news, analysis, interviews, features and match-segment re-airs with a team that includes Martina Navratilova, Jim Courier, Lindsay Davenport, Brett Haber, Prakash Amritraj, Steve Weissman and Jon Wertheim.
MEN’S DRAW
WOMEN’S DRAW
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