Robinsons and Wimbledon have called it quits after their 86-year partnership, one of the oldest in sports.
In a tweet, the soft drink corporation confirmed that it will not extend its contract with the All England Lawn Tennis Club. Robinsons Lemon Barley Water was first publicly introduced in bottles on the steps of the umpires’ seats at Wimbledon.
“Robinsons is no longer sponsoring Wimbledon fortnight and this year will be celebrating the whole of summer with The Big Fruit Hunt – an interactive opportunity to find virtual fruit and win real prizes,” the tweet read.
That year, American Helen Moody and British Fred Perry won the singles titles, and squash was named the official soft drink sponsor for the championships.
A representative for Britvic, which owns a number of beverage brands including Robinsons, said the company was “extremely proud” to have been such a significant partner to this historic tournament for so many years as well as the larger role we have played in enhancing engagement with the game of tennis in the UK.
The company said it was looking to “broadening our summertime reach to beyond the Wimbledon fortnight”.
The All England Lawn Tennis Club said the partnership ended by “mutual agreement”.
“We are tremendously proud of the historic association with Robinsons over so many years, and thank them for the wider role they have played in supporting Wimbledon and tennis across the UK,” a statement said.
Wimbledon and Robinsons have been closely associated ever since, perhaps as close as Wimbledon and strawberries and cream, and in 1988 Robinsons launched the “anything else just isn’t tennis” slogan. The long-running sponsorship deal was surpassed only by Wimbledon’s 120-year link with Slazenger, the official ball supplier.
Robinsons signed a three-year sponsorship agreement with Britvic to sponsor The Hundred, cricket’s 100-ball competition, for the 2022 season last month.
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