The France-born Brit star with sights set on Wimbledon glory: Wildcard Arthur Fery is the son of millionaire football club owner and grew up in shadow of SW19 where he played as a schoolboy

His mother is a former tennis player, his multimillionaire father bought a French top-flight football club; But England’s Wimbledon wild card Arthur Fery has his sights set on his own sporting success.

Born in a suburb of Paris, he became the last Englishman standing in the singles category at the All-England Club after securing a prominent place in the men’s quarter-final.

And the 23-year-old’s surprise success this summer seems all the more fitting as he grew up just around the corner from prestigious estates in south-west London.

Fans who cheered him on last week, including the Princess of Wales, may well be impressed by Wimbledon’s signature strawberries and cream treat.

But former school friend Honor Millard’s Instagram account serves up a wider range of dishes.

He goes by the name The Honorable Chef online and was photographed alongside Fery in public posts shared as recently as 2024, but it is unknown if they are still in a relationship together.

Fery battled back to successive comeback victories, the last of which came against Grigor Dimitrov in Fery’s first match on Center Court on Monday, despite suffering a series of nosebleeds on the court.

The actor admitted how much he was suffering from these and promised to resolve the issue at hand.

Arthur Fery (centre, right) is seen in a photo shared on Instagram by his father Loïc (centre, left) when the youngster appeared at Wimbledon three years ago.

Arthur Fery was previously photographed on former schoolmate Honor Millard’s Instagram account.

Then comes the SW19 quarter-final match against ninth seed Flavio Cobolli on Wednesday.

Fery has an encouraging track record, having beaten Cobolli at the Australian Open earlier this year.

Born in the southwestern Paris suburb of Sèvres, Fery is one of three children born to now-separated parents Olivia and Loïc Féry.

Competing under her maiden name Gravereaux, Olivia was a tennis player who qualified for the 1991 French Open as a wild card, as her son now does at WImbledon.

His world rankings peak was 225, while his son reached a new peak of 114 last week; Following his subsequent successes at the All-England Club, he is sure to rise quickly to the top.

Although born in France, he grew up in London and attended the £11,940-per-term private King’s College School in Wimbledon, living a 20-minute walk from his current workplace and just a mile from the tennis courts.

His sporting talents displayed at an early age would take him to the prestigious Stanford University in California, where he won a tennis scholarship for a degree in science, technology and society.

Fery’s mother is a member of the All England Club and the pair played together on its courts throughout his childhood.

Arthur Fery is seen celebrating with his businessman father Loïc at Wimbledon

The wild card star of this summer’s tournament had trained for tennis – seen here competing in the 2020 French Open men’s singles event at Roland Garros in Paris.

She has previously said: ‘I was never really forced to play tennis but we lived near a tennis club and my mother was a professional player – very good – so that encouraged me to try tennis.

‘It kind of helped me get started. We had a club called Westside, just over the top of Wimbledon, 50 meters from our house.

‘They had hard courts and artificial clay. But there was a great coach there and I would play with my mother on the weekends. That’s how I started.’

Fery reached the semi-finals of men’s doubles in 2019 and reached the third round of the main event in mixed doubles alongside Tara Moore two years later.

Fery’s father, Loïc, made millions as a hedge fund manager and bought Ligue 1 football club Lorient in 2009, but sold it earlier this year while remaining as chairman.

His net worth is estimated at €320 million (£273 million).

After previously working in Asia, he returned to Europe in 2001 and settled in London, where he founded the Chenavari investment company in 2007. He and Olivia divorced in 2022.

While Arthur has competed as a tennis player for both France and Hong Kong, he has remained committed to Britain, including a role in the country’s Davis Cup team last September.

But this year, he took it to new heights by reaching the second round of the Australian Open in January.

Arthur Fery celebrates earning a point in his five-set victory over Grigor Dimitrov on Monday

WIld card contestant Arthur Fery booked a place in the quarter-finals after winning five sets

And despite not going through the official routes, he earned a wild card entry to Wimbledon this summer.

His performance since then has made him only the fifth wildcard to reach the quarter-finals.

The only wildcard to win the Wimbledon title was Goran Ivanisevic in 2001 – for now.

Fery’s latest victory came in five sets against former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov amid scorching heat on Center Court on Monday.

His second fight in a row makes him the first British wildcard in the open era to reach the quarter-finals of a grand slam.

The Wimbledon native was knocked down twice in the fourth round but pulled himself back on his feet with the relentless support of the Center Court crowd, with chants of ‘Let’s go, Arthur’ echoing through the packed stands.

Speaking about his comeback later, he said: ‘I came really close to losing my last round too, I had a break again in the fourth today.

‘I was just trying to keep fighting, kept a good attitude, committed to what I was trying to do; ‘I played very well with my back to the wall, and it paid off.’

Fery’s father, Loïc, made millions as a hedge fund manager and bought Ligue 1 football club Lorient in 2009, but sold it earlier this year while remaining as chairman

Arthur Fery’s father Loïc was there for surprise run to Wimbledon quarter-finals

Father and son embrace after Arthur’s victory over former world number three Dimitrov

He added: ‘I couldn’t have imagined this a week ago. I would be happy if I won a few matches here.

‘Now it is my dream to win four games and be in the quarters.’

Three hours and 55 minutes later, when Dimitrov’s final backhand hit the goal, Fery looked in disbelief at his family and his team in the stands and said: ‘What’s going on?’

He said of the moment: ‘It was amazing. I had so many friends there, my family, my team, and people I truly trusted and enjoyed spending time with.

‘These matches are very up and down. I always look up. They are contacting me. We are all together in the match.

‘When I get over the line, it’s my first time on Center Court, it’s my first time trying to get to the quarter-finals of a slam, it’s great to share those moments with them.’

Another interested spectator was sitting in the front row of the Royal Box; Fery was aware of the stare of eight-time champion Roger Federer.

The English player said: ‘When I turned on the TV in the dressing rooms for the first match, I saw Roger was in the Royal Box.

The Princess of Wales visited Wimbledon last Thursday and attended games, including appearances for Arthur Fery on Court 18 – pictured with former England number one Tim Henman

Eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer was among the guests who watched Fery defeat Grigor Dimitrov on Center Court at the Wimbledon Royal Box on Monday.

‘I didn’t know you were coming. I sent a message to my team saying, “Yes, look, Roger is in the penalty area, I’m in quite a tight spot.”

‘It’s incredible to be in a position where one of the greatest of all time is watching you, let alone me, in my five-set match against Dimitrov on Center Court at Wimbledon.’

The Princess of Wales attended Wimbledon last Thursday alongside former England players Sir Andy Murray and Tim Henman.

Among the matches he watched was the one he won against Finland’s Otto Virtane at Fery’s Court 18.

Arthur’s mother, Olivia, has a LinkedIn profile that shows she works as a business development manager for the Lawn Tennis Association.

One of his siblings, sister Albane, is the assistant product manager for watches at Christian Dior and is also known for being an avid cross-country runner.

His brother Maxime is a student at Imperial College London and currently works as a runner at Wimbledon, bringing rackets to the players.