Arthur Fery has just won insane amount of money for reaching Wimbledon semi-finals
Arthur Fery has become the first wildcard in 25 years to make it to the semi-finals of the men's singles in Wimbledon, and the first Brit wildcard ever to make it this far.
The 23-year-old's spellbinding progress at this year's grand slam continued into the penultimate stage of the competition with a straight sets win over Italian player Flavio Cobolli.
It puts him on course for a Centre Court meeting with world number two Alexander Zverev, the winner between them will head for the Wimbledon final to face the winner of the other semi-final between world number one Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic.
It sounds like a tall order, but look at how far Fery has come and now only two matches stand between him and Wimbledon glory, at this point it's hard not to at least imagine what might come of stepping onto the court.
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However he does in the rest of the tournament it's been a magnificent display of tennis from Fery and he's bagged some considerable prize money already.
This year Wimbledon will pay out a grand total of £64.2 million to the assorted players, though only £3.6 million of that will go to the winners of the singles titles.
The vanquished finalist will pick up half of that prize money, while the two players who make it as far as the semi-finals will make £900,000.
So whatever happens now, Arthur Fery will be getting a pot of £900,000 in prize money for this year's Wimbledon, and if he can defeat Zverev and then loses the final he doubles it to £1.8 million.
If he can win the lot then his prize pot doubles again, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.
Even getting to Wimbledon is a lucrative thing for a tennis player as it's £80,000 for making it to the first round.
While he no doubt wants to do as well as he can at Wimbledon, Fery won't actually be in dire need of the prize money as he comes from a very wealthy family.
The British wildcard was originally born in France, and while he's spent most of his life living around Wimbledon his father is the financier Loic Fery, who the Mirror reports has an estimated net worth of £275m, making him the 398th richest person in France in 2023.
Fery's father bought the Ligue 1 football club FC Lorient in 2009, and sold it this year.
Even if he doesn't win Wimbledon the prize money from reaching the semi-finals means Arthur Fery will be a very wealthy man, but even winning the whole thing would only boost his family's net worth by a small percentage.
Wimbledon’s strangest rules
Wimbledon has strict rules and regulations for pretty much everything - from the length of the grass to the temperature of the tennis balls, and you can be fined thousands of pounds for certain conduct violations.
Curfew
While at other grand slams, play continues late into the night, at Wimbledon there’s a strict 11pm curfew.
This means tennis fans sometimes have to go to bed on a cliffhanger.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal’s 2018 semi-final clash was suspended after the third set. Meanwhile, Andy Murray was particularly peeved when he was in the lead against Stefanos Tsitsipas in 2023, but went on to lose when the game was paused overnight and restarted the following morning.
Timed toilet breaks
Players are limited to one toilet break for matches up to three sets, and two if it goes on for longer.
They can only go during a set change and they have to be back within three minutes, or they risk giving a point to their opponent.
The longest ever Wimbledon match lasted a whopping 11 hours over three days, so players better get their nervous wees in before the match.
Temper tantrums
Players can be fined up to £36,900 for smashing their rackets. Djokovic is believed to have smashed over 60 of them over the course of his career.
Bad language can also result in the same maximum fine.
Countdown to serve
As soon as the ball goes out of play, the serving player has just 25 seconds to hit their serve, or the umpire can call a violation which could potentially grant a point to their opponent.
Fines for not trying hard enough
Players must demonstrate they’re giving their all to win the match. Australian player Bernard Tomic was fined an eye-watering £45,000 after he was accused of not putting in enough effort to beat French player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, losing after just 58 minutes.
Age limits
Players have to be at least 14 to compete, which means youth sensations like Coco Gauff were initially barred from taking part.
Spectators, meanwhile, have to be accompanied by a guardian if they’re under 16. Under-fives aren’t permitted at all onto show courts.
This meant Serena Williams' two-year-old daughter Adira River couldn't watch her mum's comeback at this year's grand slam, while not all of Andy Murray's four children could watch his final doubles appearance in 2024.
The grass and the balls
Everything at Wimbledon is just so. The grass is cut to 8mm, which is apparently best suited for modern tennis play and for the grass to survive.
Meanwhile, the tennis balls are kept in a fridge in order to maintain a constant temperature of 20°C. A consistent temperature is important because it apparently affects the way the balls bounce. The more you know.
Tennis whites
It was originally just female players who were required to wear all-white on the court. According to Tennis Fashions: Over 125 Years of Costume Change, the rule was introduced because it was ‘quite unthinkable that a lady should be seen to perspire’. OK then…
Eventually, the rule was imposed on men too.
A single trim of colour is allowed around the neckline and sleeve cuffs, but this must be no thicker than 1cm.
In 2022, an exception was made so women could wear dark undershorts to feel more comfortable if they were on their periods.
Joe Harker