The London Borough of Merton is a borough in south-west London, England. The borough was formed under the London Government Act 1963 in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon along with the Merton and Morden Urban District, all formerly within Surrey. The borough derives its name from the historic parish of Merton, which was centred on the location now known as South Wimbledon. The local authority is Merton London Borough Council.
In line with population estimates made during 2014, the borough has a permanent population of around 203515 individuals. Merton is served by a wide array of National Rail stations across the borough, along with the southern tip of the London Underground's Northern line and also the District line on the Wimbledon branch. It's the only London Borough which has tube, rail and tram services.
The key commercial centres in Merton are Mitcham, Morden and Wimbledon, of which Wimbledon is the biggest. Other smaller sized centres include Raynes Park, Colliers Wood, South Wimbledon, Wimbledon Park and Pollards Hill. Each year, Wimbledon, one of the four tennis Grand Slam tournaments, takes place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Church Road Wimbledon. The occasion occurs over a fortnight at the end of June and beginning of July and it is the largest annual sporting event to take place in the United Kingdom, attracting over 200000 visitors during the Wimbledon fortnight.