Exclusive: Wimbledon chiefs ready to defend brand amid Saudi tennis complex similarities
Wimbledon chiefs stand ready to defend its distinctive green and purple branding after plans emerged for a Saudi tennis mega-complex with a similar colourway.
Renders for a National Tennis Centre in Saudi Arabia’s Qiddiya giga-project were released in June, showing a central court draped in foliage and 29 other courts decked out in a purple and green colourway similar to the pantone used – and trademarked in the UK and beyond – by the All England Lawn Tennis Club, which runs the Wimbledon Championships.
When asked about the similarities, Wimbledon’s marketing and commercial director Usama Al-Qassab told City AM that “imitation is the finest form of flattery”.
“We’re very proud of what our site looks like and our brand. We defend it rigorously and we promote it with great care and attention. The purple and the green you see, and the cross racket logo are part of the Wimbledon equity.”
He added: “These are just CGI visuals at the moment, and let’s see what turns out. I wouldn’t be surprised if green is in the colour scheme somewhere because that generally seems to be the colour of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
The Indian Wells tournament – dubbed the unofficial fifth Grand Slam – has a lighter purple court with a light green surround, but resembles the Wimbledon brand less than the proposed Saudi complex, designed by renowned architects Populous.
Wimbledon likeness?
Wimbledon holds trademarks for the purple and green colourway in the UK, European Union and a select number of other jurisdictions but does not have a blanket global protection.
“We defend many areas of our brands and equity from our font and logos,” Al-Qassab said, “and when we do see guerrilla activity, we do make sure that we protect both our brand and those stakeholders that invest in it.
“We also make sure that we have integrity within our ballot to make sure that those who are trying to receive tickets to come to Wimbledon are genuine. So there’s masses of integrity checks, more than we know of at any other sports tournament.
“And yes, we also protect the brand for our brand partners, our official partners who work alongside us, who once again invest in the championships, so that others aren’t getting a free ride on the back of Wimbledon when they haven’t actually invested within the sport.”
This year’s tournament saw a record £64.2m in prize money paid out to players with the capital having been boosted to the tune of £300m in additional spend. Wimbledon also expanded its US offering, opening a Central Court attraction in New York’s Central Park.
The Qiddiya mega-city is also set to feature a Six Flags theme park, Formula 1 track, a 2034 World Cup stadium and a Mercedes-AMG World of Performance.