Crime rates peak in SW19 when the rich and famous arrive for Wimbledon in July, statistics have revealed.
The tennis tournament in the middle of summer is the peak of the season for most fans, but as the world’s best players make their way to south west London, opportunistic thieves are taking advantage.
Analysis from Tennis Around the World shows that crime figures in the area have been peaking in July of every year over the last decade, with anti-social behaviour more common that at any other time of the year and robberies also higher than usual.
In July of 2018 – when Wimbledon spanned from the 2nd to the 15th – there were 638 crimes reported overall in SW19, which immediately dropped to just 587 once the tournament was over in August – a decrease of 8%.
There is also a concerning increase in anti-social behaviour, with the number of recorded offences up 42% (from 94 to 134) from June to July, while robberies are also up 72% in the same period.
2018 statistics in SW19
Month ASB Burglary Robbery Violent Other Theft Public Order Total
Dec-18 118 61 16 115 64 29 568
Nov-18 103 59 8 109 73 29 531
Oct-18 130 64 6 111 57 27 598
Sep-18 93 54 11 114 58 37 531
Aug-18 132 52 11 126 62 24 587
Jul-18 134 58 19 171 56 33 638
Jun-18 94 75 11 138 69 26 629
May-18 116 66 8 108 69 35 605
Apr-18 114 48 11 88 60 24 539
Mar-18 97 46 12 107 59 28 532
Feb-18 73 56 8 90 53 28 501
Jan-18 84 53 9 93 49 24 535
Rates were already up in the month before, coinciding with the time when high-profile players will move to rented houses in the area to begin their preparations for the two-week tennis tournament.
That is a trend that has continued for the last 10 years, with crime rates peaking in June/July of 2011 with 861 and 818 crimes reported respectively.
The high number of ASB and violent crimes suggest that while Wimbledon is recognised as a traditional and clean-cut tournament – the dress code is notoriously strict – there are ongoing issues with the behaviour of fans and local people.
This is possibly made worse by the staggering amounts of alcohol consumed during the championships.
More than 20,000 bottles of champagne are drunk over the two-week period, with over 300,000 glasses of Pimms and 117,000 pints of beer also consumed, meaning for at least two weeks a year, SW19 has a lot of inebriated fans in the area.
With fans currently flocking to Wimbledon anticipation of what could be a ninth title for Roger Federer, new records (and dreams) are set to be broken.
For more information on player form and the background of each tennis tournament across the world, visit here.
