Sally Bolton will step down as chief executive of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at the conclusion of Wimbledon 2026, ending a six-year tenure that spanned the pandemic-era reset of the Championships, the move to a 14-day schedule and the unveiling of an Andy Murray statue on club grounds.
Bolton, who took over the role in 2020, will leave after this year's tournament, which runs from June 29 to July 12. Financial director Richard Atkinson will serve as interim chief executive while a successor search continues.
"It has been a great honour and privilege to serve as Chief Executive of the All England Club and to work alongside such a dedicated Board and group of colleagues, partners and the wider tennis community," Bolton said in a statement.
"I am proud of what we have achieved together – particularly bringing The Championships back following the pandemic and in shaping a clear path for the future. The All England Club is a very special institution, and I look forward to seeing it continue to flourish in the years ahead."
Bolton's departure closes one of the more consequential chapters in modern Wimbledon administration. She inherited a club still reeling from the cancellation of the 2020 tournament, the first scrubbed Championships since World War II, and oversaw its 2021 return under tight protocols. The 14-day format she championed, eliminating the traditional middle Sunday rest day, has since been adopted as a permanent fixture.
Longer term, her tenure will likely be judged by the proposed expansion onto the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club site, a project that has cleared planning hurdles but still faces local opposition. The plan would add a third show court and dozens of practice courts, bringing the qualifying tournament onto the main grounds for the first time.
AELTC chair Deborah Jevans paid tribute to her departing CEO. "Sally has made a very important contribution to the success of the All England Club and The Championships for over a decade and particularly as Chief Executive for the past six years," Jevans said.
Bolton joined the club in 2016 as head of operations before being promoted to championships director and then CEO. Her early operational background gave her a granular understanding of how Wimbledon actually runs, from queue management to ball boy and girl rosters, that few of her predecessors had brought to the corner office.
The statue project with Murray, three-time major champion and twice a Wimbledon men's singles winner, was unveiled in 2025 and now stands near the Centre Court entrance. It came together quickly under Bolton's stewardship after Murray's retirement at the Paris Olympics.
Digital and broadcast expansion is another part of the legacy. Wimbledon's social and streaming reach has grown substantially under her watch, with the championship pushing aggressively into short-form content and second-screen experiences without diluting its trademark restraint.
The AELTC has not put a firm timeline on Bolton's replacement. Atkinson, a long-time financial executive at the club, is expected to act as a steady caretaker through the back end of the 2026 calendar.
