The 1877 Wimbledon Championship was a men's tennis tournament held at the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club (AEC<C) in Wimbledon, London. It was the world's first official lawn tennis tournament, as well as the inaugural edition of what was later to be called a Grand Slam tournament or Major. The AEC<C was founded in July 1868 as the All England Croquet Club and lawn tennis was introduced in February 1875 to compensate for the waning interest in croquet. In June 1877 it decided to organise a tennis tournament to pay for a new pony roller which was needed for maintenance of the lawns. A set of rules was drawn up for the tournament which was derived from the first standardized rules of tennis issued in May 1875 by the Marylebone Cricket Club.
The Gentlemen's Singles event was the only competition held and was contested by 22 competitors who paid one guinea entrance fee. The grass court tournament started on Monday, 9 July 1877 and the final, which was delayed three days due to rain, took place on Thursday, 19 July in front of a crowd of about 200 people. The spectators paid an entry fee of one shilling each, and the prize money for the winner was 12 guineas, plus a silver challenge cup valued at 25 guineas donated by the sports magazine The Field. Spencer Gore, a 27-year old rackets player from Wandsworth, won the first Wimbledon title, after defeating William Marshall, a 28-year old real tennis player, in three straight sets in the final that lasted 48 minutes. The tournament made a profit of £10.