The IWBF Wheelchair Basketball World Championship is the biggest international wheelchair basketball competition contested by the best men’s and women’s national teams in the world. The tournament is held every four years.
The first unofficial Men’s Wheelchair Basketball World Championships was held in 1973, with Bruges, Belgium being the first host city. The unofficial Men’s World Championship was won by Great Britain, with a team that included Sir Philip Craven MBE, who would later become the President of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
Bruges, Belgium also hosted the first official Men’s World Championships, which was then known as the Gold Cup tournament, in 1975. The first Women’s World Championships took place 15 years later where eight teams competed St. Etienne, France.
Zonal qualification tournaments take place in each of the four IWBF Zones (America, Africa, Europe and Asia Oceania) to decide the countries that qualify to compete.
The next World Championships will take place in 2022 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Where 16 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams will compete.
