Serena Williams Is Returning to Pro Tennis. Here’s What Needs to Happen for Her to Play at Wimbledon

Serena Williams announced her return to pro tennis on Monday. | Susan Mullane-Imagn Images

Serena Williams is back.

The legendary tennis star who retired from the sport almost four years ago announced Monday that she’ll be returning to professional tennis later this month at the HSBC Championships, which is held at Queen's Club in London. The tournament begins on June 8.

The biggest question coming after her announcement has to do with Wimbledon, an event she has won seven times in her career, and whether or not she’ll make her return there when it starts on June 28.

Williams, 44, is going to keep fans guessing about that possibility as she didn’t name any other tournaments that she would be playing in besides the HSBC Championships. But fans have to think she’ll want to play in Wimbledon, too.

What needs to happen for Serena Williams to play at Wimbledon

Williams hasn’t played professional tennis since the the 2022 U.S. Open, so she doesn’t have a world ranking that would make her an automatic qualifier for Wimbledon. Instead, she’ll need to be given a wild-card entry by the tournament, which seems like something that should be a formality if she decides she wants to play.

According to Wimbledon’s official website, here’s how wild-card entries are awarded to players:

Wild cards are players whose world ranking is not high enough to qualify automatically for The Championships but who are accepted into the main Championships draw at the discretion of the Committee.

Wild cards are usually offered on the basis of past performance at Wimbledon or to increase British interest.

Wild cards have been allocated since 1977 and from 2003 some singles wild cards have been determined by competition.

She last won Wimbledon in 2016.

What Serena Williams had to say about her return to the HSBC Championships

Williams is looking forward to getting her “next chapter” started at an event that she loves.

"Queen's Club feels like the perfect place to begin this next chapter," Williams said in an announcement from the tournament. "Grass has given me some of the most meaningful moments of my career, and I'm excited to be back competing on one of the sport's most iconic stages."

That sure makes it sound like she has Wimbledon on her mind, too, considering how much success she has had there in the past.

WTA chair Valerie Camillo had this to say about Williams in a statement released on Monday morning:

"Serena is one of the greatest athletes of all-time, with a legacy that extends far beyond the court," Camillo said. "Her return is an expression of her passion for competition, and I cannot wait to see her face a new generation of top players. Serena is not just a great champion. She's a successful entrepreneur, a powerful advocate for the issues that matter and one of the most iconic women in the world. We are thrilled to welcome her back to the WTA Tour at this hugely exciting moment for women's tennis."

Serena Williams found a fun way to confirm her return to tennis

Williams and Nike teamed up to make the perfect video that went viral shortly after news of her return was made a official.

Check this out:

Good news travels fast. pic.twitter.com/R7x7EFPUJ8

— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) June 1, 2026

We’ll have to wait and see if she makes her return to Wimbledon at the end of the month. If she does, it’s going to be quite a moment.

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