The Wimbledon championship may have been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic but the organisers of the prestigious grass-court tennis tournament are set to get almost $141 million as insurance thanks to their farsightedness, the Times has reported.
The All-England Lawn Tennis Club, which hosts the tournament, has been paying an insurance premium for over a decade to cover infectious diseases, pandemics included, and are now putting together a massive claim.
Wimbledon reportedly paid $2 million a year for pandemic insurance for the last 17 years
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) April 8, 2020
(Total: $34 Million)
For this year's cancellation as a result of the Coronavirus, Wimbledon will reportedly receive $141 million from the policy.
In contrast, the French Open organisers were facing a possible loss of over $250 million if the tournament was to be cancelled and hence rescheduled the it from May to September this year.
The paper said that the payout will be slightly lower that the revenue the club was expecting from the tournament this year as they have to beat the cost of staff salaries and prize money.
“Of course, we are fortunate to have insurance,” Richard Lewis, the All England chief executive, was quoted as saying. “It helps but it doesn’t solve all the problems.”
Lewis said that concerns about the Sars outbreak in 2003 prompted officials to ask for a virus-related clause. Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam to have insurance for pandemics.