Wimbledon serves up resusable and refillable water options

As per the UK Government, large-scale sporting events can result in the production of up to seven tonnes of waste.

Wimbledon and evian, a Danone brand, have launched a new refillable system pilot for players, that will enable some of the world’s biggest tennis starts to ditch single-use plastics bottles during the tournament.

Players will receive reusable bottles to be refilled with evian natural mineral water on the court and at designated player areas, including practice courts, dressing rooms, and restaurants.

The All England Club’s chief executive, Sally Bolton, said: “Wimbledon remains firmly committed to becoming environment-positive by 2030. We continue to make improvements year-on-year to reach this ambition. Throughout, we have been working together with evian to evolve and move towards delivering evian water in the most sustainable way.”

On-court dispensers positioned beneath the umpire chair will be available at courts 2-18, allowing players to refill their bottles themselves. Ball boys and girls will also be available to assist with refills.

On Centre court and the no.1 court, prefilled reusable bottles will supplement the players’ personal bottles.

Off-court, spectators are still able to purchase bottles of water, but evian has stated that the bottles will be made from100% recycled plastic and a 33cl recyclable aluminium can of evian sparkling water is also available

The vice president of marketing at Danone UK & Ireland, Sarah Dossett, said: “Together through collaboration, we are excited to pilot this new system for 2023. The development of a refill solution to deliver our evian water to players demonstrates evian’s continued commitment to innovate. Together with Wimbledon, we are continuing our journey towards our circularity ambitions.”

As the Official Water of The Championships, evian has pledged to transition from a linear model to a circular one by 2025, ensuring that all bottles are crafted from recycled plastic.

In addition to evian, Barclays has unveiled its plans for its inaugural year as the Official Banking Partner of The Championships.

In a collaboration with Unreasonable Impact company CLUBZERØ, Barclays will offer customers complimentary juice options served in reusable cups, which will undergo daily washing and redistribution throughout the tournament.

As per the UK Government, large-scale sporting events can result in the production of up to seven tonnes of waste.

CLUBZERØ’s returnable packaging service aims to offer a zero-waste solution that cuts CO2 emissions by 50%.

CLUBZERØ’s founder and chief executive, Safia Qureshi, said: “Thrilled to be supporting one of the world’s greatest sporting events in achieving zero-waste. Through our partnership with Barclays, visitors will enjoy every serve with zero-waste.”