Sally Bolton, the chief executive (CEO) of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) body, has announced that she will step down from her role after the 2026 edition of the iconic Wimbledon Championships grand slam tournament.
Richard Atkinson, the AELTC’s financial director, will step in as the interim CEO of the body until a permanent replacement is found, which will be announced "in due course."
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Bolton was appointed CEO in December 2019, having joined the AELTC as head of corporate affairs in 2016. She was then named strategic planning and operations director in 2019 before being promoted to lead the organization the same year.
During her tenure, she saw the body through several pressing challenges, including the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw Wimbledon cancelled in 2020.
Her previous positions include CEO of English rugby league clubs Wigan and Orrell, and in 2013, she served as the general manager of the Rugby League World Cup in England. She also oversaw initial preparations for the 2017 IAAF World Championships in London as managing director of the organizing committee until early 2016.
Addressing her departure, Bolton said: “It has been a great honour and privilege to serve as CEO of the All England Club and to work alongside such a dedicated Board and group of colleagues, partners and the wider tennis community.
“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.”
The 2026 edition of Wimbledon will begin on June 29 and culminate in the men’s singles final on July 12.
One of the AELTC’s most prominent recent efforts has been the plans to expand the Wimbledon grounds, a plan that achieved success in 2025 after the UK’s High Court dismissed a campaign group’s legal challenge against the decision to approve the £200 million ($270 million) project.
The legal action centres around the AELTC’s proposal to build 39 new tennis courts, including an 8,000-seat show court, on the former site of the Wimbledon Park Golf Club, a Grade Two listed heritage site in southeast London partly designed by Lancelot “Capability” Brown, which the AELTC bought in December 2018.
In terms of visitors, the extra site will allow up to 10,000 more people a day to watch qualifying and up to 50,000 to enter the ground during each day of the main fortnight.
