The millionaire supporting Wimbledon hope Arthur Fery who nearly bought Leeds United
Arthur Fery is set to carry Britain’s hopes into the second week of Wimbledon as he plays on Centre Court in the biggest match of his career so far. At 23 years old, he’s the last British singles player still in the tournament, after all the other 18 players from the UK were knocked out before the third round.
Fery has already done better than ever before in a Grand Slam by making it this far. Next, he faces former world number three Grigor Dimitrov in the last 16, with a spot in the Wimbledon quarter-finals up for grabs.
This is a special moment for Arthur, who grew up just a short walk from the All England Club and spent his childhood summers at Wimbledon with his French parents. His mom, Olivia, had a successful tennis career herself—winning two singles titles and playing at the French Open in 1991. Later, she worked for the LTA, giving Arthur a unique look at what it takes to succeed in pro tennis from a young age.
Sport runs in his family on his dad’s side too. Loic Fery is the former owner of the French football club Lorient, which he bought in 2009 when he was just 35. He even became good friends with Arsene Wenger during his time in football. Arthur also played junior tennis with the son of Ellis Short, a former Sunderland owner.
Earlier this year, Loic sold his shares in Lorient to Black Knight Football Club but stayed on as president. He’s estimated to be worth around £275 million and even thought about investing in big Yorkshire football clubs Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United before choosing Lorient. He said in 2021, “I looked at Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United and visited the clubs, but Lorient was better value and has done well. When I took over, the club was in trouble financially, but we’ve balanced things over 11 seasons.”
Arthur has already made a name for himself on the ATP Tour, earning around £650,000 in prize money so far, not including sponsorships. He started trying to qualify for Wimbledon in 2021, made the main draw two years later, and has competed in the tournament ever since. He lost in the first round his first two times, then made it to the second round last year. This year’s run to the fourth round is his best Grand Slam result yet.
By reaching the last 16, Fery has already won £300,000. If he beats Dimitrov, he’ll take home £480,000 and move on to the quarter-finals, where he’d play either fifth seed Alex de Minaur or ninth seed Flavio Cobolli. Making it to the semi-finals would be worth £900,000, reaching the final means at least £1.8 million, and winning Wimbledon would bring a life-changing £3.6 million.