IBM will continue to play a leading role in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud technologies for the Wimbledon tennis tournament as a digital transformation partner.
Through a long-standing relationship, IBM introduced rudimentary statistics to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) in the early 1990s, the first Wimbledon Grand Slam website in 1995, and the first use of artificial intelligence in 2017.
Now IBM Watson AIsitting in IBM Cloudpersonalizes content in an effort to encourage fans who try digital platforms to do so again and again.
Osama Al Kassab, Chief Commercial Officer of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, highlighted the importance of IBM's AI technology: “As we look to engage the next generation of Wimbledon fans from around the world, IBM's AI-powered capabilities will be key to ensuring our future digital experiences are relevant, personalized and engaging.”
To increase revenue through sponsorships, ticket sales, merchandise and more, the industry must attract more viewers and increase engagement with existing fans.
Speaking last year ahead of Wimbledon 2025, tennis coach Judy Murray, mother of British tennis star Andy Murraysaid: “It's all about interacting with those who grew up with technology, understanding how they get news and information and how they watch sports.”
She said young people were consuming tennis differently than previous generations, thanks to digital services such as a dedicated app and personalized information.
“I certainly see it with all the young people I've talked to in the sports world – it's about what I always call 'bite-sized pieces,'” she added. “There are highlights, snaps of the day, celebrity watches, as well as children's and behind-the-scenes content. I think it's about creating the atmosphere and magic of Wimbledon through the app for a hugely diverse global audience.”
Two AELTC digital initiatives – Win Likelihood and Match Chat – resulted in a 16% increase in fan engagement at Wimbledon 2025.
Match Chat is built using IBM Watsonx AI technologies, including a suite of artificial intelligence agents and large language models (LLMs) trained in Wimbledon editorial style and tennis lingo. The Win Likelihood tool uses artificial intelligence to offer fans a prediction of which player is most likely to win, with probabilities dynamically updated throughout the match.
Last year, 20 million fans closely followed all the action on the grass through the app and website, with app engagement up 19%, according to IBM.
IBM commissioned Morning Consult to develop global study, which was attended by more than 20,000 fans from 12 countries. The survey found that 86% of tennis fans worldwide see value in artificial intelligence features such as real-time analytics and personalized highlights. More than half said they want AI-powered commentary and analytics on all events past, present or future. Around one in five tennis fans said they use apps specifically designed for the sport, with fans significantly more likely to use apps while attending sporting events.
