All England: The Wimbledon of Badminton
The greatest sporting event you’ve never heard of.
On a picturesque mid-July afternoon in London, the Princess of Wales presents a shimmering golden trophy to a precociously talented Spaniard. All around them, a sold-out crowd of 15,000, replete with tennis aficionados, royalty, and celebrities alike, along with a worldwide audience exceeding 50 million, erupts into cheers. A mesmerizing two weeks of fierce competition draws to a close.
Four months earlier, on a picturesque mid-March afternoon in Birmingham, the President of the BWF presents a shimmering silver trophy to a precociously talented Chinese player. All around them, a close-to-capacity crowd of 10,000, along with a worldwide audience (which has yet to be reliably counted but is certainly under 5 million), erupts into cheers. A mesmerizing week of fierce competition draws to a close.
Colloquially referred to as “the Wimbledon of Badminton,” the All England Open Badminton Championships is the pinnacle of badminton, gaining its prestige and comparability to Wimbledon from its long and illustrious history, as well as its setting in England, considered the home of both tennis and badminton.
Yet, for all of their apparent similarities, these two tournaments are in reality very far apart, so much so that it’s virtually impossible to talk about the All England without referring to its tennis counterpart so that people understand you.
Numbers: All England vs Wimbledon
- Established: 1899 vs 1877
- Editions (2023): 113 vs 136
- Size (2023): 5 categories vs 24 categories
- Prize Money (2023): $1.25m vs $45m
Wimbledon Is Special
All of that said, Wimbledon is just… different. You can throw around all sorts of numbers about how popular, successful, and enduring it is, but Wimbledon’s true power lies in the intangible: it has a certain aesthetic that makesyou feel a certain way. It’s unlike anything in the sporting world.
If every tennis court is a church of the game, Centre Court is the Vatican. Even if you don’t care much for tennis, it is still understood that whenever two (or four) players step on that grass, it’s no longer a typical match. There is a reverence for the game, place, and occasion that is simply unique.
A lot of that has to do with the history and, yes, tradition that comes with each Wimbledon tournament — think of the strict dress codes, or the famed clubhouse (they have a clubhouse!). No wonder it attracts hugely prestigious, luxury-brand sponsors like Rolex and IBM.
Speaking of tradition and place, it also helps immensely that Wimbledon has never had to change location throughout its history. The All England has had the unenviable task of moving house seven times, the most recent being the shift from Wembley to Birmingham in 1993–94.
The All England Is Similar, But Not The Same
With 136 editions under its belt and counting, the All England is badminton’s oldest and longest-running event. In the absence of a formal world championship event prior to the 1970s, the All England served dutifully in its place. But even once the World Championships were established, the All England continued to hold a very special place in the badminton calendar. Winning here makes you more than just a good player. It makes you a force to be reckoned with. Do it more than once and you’re likely going down in history as a great of the game. Do it eight times in a row like Rudy Hartono once did and you’ll wind up with a biopic and a a wax figure at Madame Tussauds.
In some respect, past editions of the All England had Wimbledon-like characteristics, such as all-white attire. Nowadays, this tournament is characterized by bright colors, screaming fans, and pyrotechnics as many BWF events are — which does raise another sticking point with the All England. Despite its unrivaled historical standing within the sport, it doesn’t really stand out all too much from other events the way Wimbledon, or indeed any Grand Slam, does in tennis.
While much of that can be attributed to the fact that pro badminton is played indoors and so conditions don’t change all that much, it would be interesting to see future All England tournaments try and set themselves apart even further. A small step would be to do something like all-white attire. Yonex flirted with this concept in 2020 and 2021 by asking its sponsored athletes to sport all-white gear, which definitely altered the feel of the tournament. The only issue was that Yonex was the only brand to do this. Another possibility could be to tone down the pyrotechnics and play up the “reverence” or “history” of the occasion. Plenty of other important BWF tournaments (not to mention loads of popular sports franchises like the NFL and MLB) already deal in flashiness, so this could be a notable and meaningful point of variety. Not all sports have the benefit of history and longevity on their side, so to play up to that wouldn’t hurt.
What Does This Mean?
Ultimately, there is a fine line to be trodden here. Wimbledon is clearly an exemplary sporting tournament with so much to admire and learn from. However, to turn the All England into a carbon copy of Wimbledon would be wrong. Badminton isn’t prim and proper. It rarely has been and it certainly doesn’t have to become that. As far as racket sports go, badminton’s comparative advantage is its thrill and flair. Suffice to say, we shouldn’t have to ask fans to come in suits or sit in silence.
That said, the All England would do well to learn from Wimbledon in terms of using aesthetics and emotion to elevate itself to a level that dwarfs even other Super 1000 events. Otherwise, it risks becoming just another badminton event to the eyes of the uninitiated.
