Announcement
Closed Tournaments (Grade 4) Sanction Application
Following the BWF Council Meeting in April 2026, regulations were approved regarding the implementation of Closed (Grade 4) Tournaments and the awarding of World Ranking points to those tournaments that meet the regulated criteria.
Closed tournaments are restricted to a predefined group of Member Associations, linked by regional, institutional, or organisation affiliation.
Sanction applications will follow a nine (9) month sanction period. However, for the first year of implementation, a shorter sanction application window is being applied.
Only two (2) Grade 4 tournaments will be approved per Continent per calendar year.
Acceptance Criteria
When determining which two Grade 4 tournaments per Continent may be eligible to receive BWF World Ranking Points, the following criteria will be considered:
Eligibility Criteria: The tournament must be open to seven (7) or more Member Associations.
Historical Delivery: The host Member Association must be able to demonstrate that they have held previously established badminton tournaments.
Participation Spread: Participation spread may include the number of participating Member Associations, balance of entry distribution, and geographical representation within the eligible group.
This will also consider the number of Grade 4 tournaments that a Member Association can access to ensure that a proportion of Member Associations do not have unfair access to multiple closed tournament opportunities.
Development value: for the sport of badminton.
Endorsement: from the respective ‘hosting’ Continental Confederation.
How to apply
Application requests must be made through the Host Member Association and using the following forms link.
The deadline for applications for those wishing to be considered for hosting a Closed Tournament between 1st January 2027 and 30th June 2027 is 23:59 hr (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia time zone) Monday 31st August 2026.
More Information / Contact Person
We would encourage Member Associations to familiarise themselves with the new regulations relating to Grade 4 tournaments.
General Competition Regulations (Section 5.1) – Updated to reflect the implementation of Closed (Grade 4 Tournaments) – see Chapter 5 – Competition Regulations – Section 5.1 (linked here).
World Ranking System (Section 5.3.3.1) – Regulation adjustments relating to the implementation of Closed (Grade 4 Tournaments) (linked here).
Please contact Fern Gilders – Head of Tournament Development – ([email protected]), should you have any questions.
