Wimbledon and Visas: Grand Slamming UK Immigration

As the gates officially opened for the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, many professional tennis players had to navigate through the UK’s immigration system to enter the country and participate in the tournament.

Professional players spend their time in the UK attending the competition, training camps and other promotional events throughout Wimbledon’s duration. In an effort to be as prepared as possible for favourable outcomes, top-seeded players do not travel alone, bringing with them an entourage of coaches, medical teams, management, private chefs and others. The larger the entourage, the more likely it is to be comprised of individuals from various countries who hold differing immigration statuses in the UK.

Game, set, visa match

Fortunately, the sports visit visa, a special sub-category of the standard visit visa, provides tennis players and other professional and amateur sportspersons, their personal or technical staff and sports officials with permission to visit the UK and to undertake permitted sporting activities for a stay of up to six months.

A sportsperson can also travel to the UK to carry out an activity directly relating to their profession, where they have been invited by a UK sports organisation, agent or broadcaster. If personal or technical staff are travelling with the sports player, they can also support permitted activities, such as:

• Taking part in a sports tournament or event, individually or as a team.
• Making personal appearances and taking part in promotional activities.
• Taking part in trials, provided they are not in front of a paid audience.
• Taking part in short periods of training provided they are not being paid by a UK sporting body; and
• Joining an amateur team or club to gain experience in a particular sport if they are an amateur in that sport.

A visa application must be made to the UK Immigration and Visas authorities prior to travelling to the UK. However, certain nationalities (non-visa nationals) can also seek entry as a visitor upon arrival to the UK. Whether applying in advance or seeking entry on arrival, any individual travelling to the UK as a visitor must be able to demonstrate that they meet the visa requirements, including sufficient funds for travel, maintenance and accommodation, and that they are genuinely seeking to enter the UK as a visitor and will leave at the end of their visit.

If a sportsperson is looking to relocate to the UK and be paid by a UK sporting body, a visit visa is not the appropriate immigration category. Instead, the sportsperson will need to apply for the international sportsperson visa, which allows them to remain in the UK under the sponsorship of a UK sporting body.

Staying in the game – visa validity period

As with other categories of visit visas, an application can be made for a validity of six months, two years, five years or 10 years, with each visit to the UK during the validity not exceeding a period of six months. It is possible to enter and leave the UK multiple times during the validity of the visa unless this is endorsed as a single entry.

Gaining the upper hand in the processing times

An application for a visit visa by a visa national must be made prior to travelling to the UK, and the earliest that this application can be made is three months before the date of travel. To date, the current processing times are three weeks however priority services may be available to allow for a faster decision.

It is important to seek professional assistance when making an application, particularly for professional sportspersons, to allow for strategic planning to align with an applicant’s commitments in the sporting calendar and avoid disappointment for both the player and their fans. With such large entourages accompanying professional sportspersons, further care must be taken to allow for smooth travel for all.

Need to know more?

Our immigration team are experienced in assisting sportspersons, their entourages and sports officials to secure appropriate visa authorisation to visit and relocate to the UK. For questions or assistance on sporting visa options, please reach out to Director Olga Nechita at [email protected], Manager Alexander Hood at [email protected] or Lawyer (Foreign Qualified) Lara Hannaway at [email protected].

This blog was published on 6 July 2023, and due to the circumstances, there are frequent changes. To keep up to date with all the latest updates on global immigration, please visit our dedicated COVID-19 site, subscribe to our alerts and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.