London, March 21 (IANS) The All-England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has confirmed on Saturday that a new Video Review System (VAR) will be introduced for the first time in the 2026 Wimbledon Championship, which will be held from June 29 to July 12 this year.
The prestigious grass court tournament will use a tennis version of VAR, which will be available for players competing on six courts in the Grand Slam.
VAR technology will be available on Centre Court and Court One throughout the Championships and on the other courts, which include No.2 Court, No.3 Court, Court 12, and Court 18, only when they host the men’s and women’s singles matches.
With this announcement, Wimbledon has become the third Grand Slam after the US Open and the Australian Open to use the VAR technology.
VAR will benefit the players in multiple ways, along with maintaining the accuracy of the decisions made by the on-field umpire. The system allows the participants to challenge a range of controversial decisions, such as those relating to double bounces, foul shots, or hindrance.
The US Open was the first big tournament to use the VAR in 2023, and now it has been available on all courts at the nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments since February 2025.
Wimbledon’s digital upgrade started last year, when the tournament introduced Electronic Line Calling (ELC), which ended the role played by line judges over the previous 147 years.
The tournament has also added a new upgrade to the ELC, and in 2026, there will be visual indicators for live electronic line calling, and it will be shown on the scoreboards at all the courts to make the experience more immersive for the fans.
Meanwhile, AELTC plans to almost triple the size of the Wimbledon tennis site, and has moved a step closer on Friday as the London High Court ruled the development was not restricted by land-use rules.
Jainik Sinner and Iga Swiatek are the defending singles champions at Wimbledon, and they will start their defence on June 29.
–IANS
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