New Delhi will host the 2026 BWF World Championships, the sport’s most prestigious individual tournament. The confirmation came on Monday from the Badminton World Federation (BWF) during the closing ceremony of the 2025 edition in Paris.

The global showpiece will return to Indian soil for the first time since 2009, when Hyderabad hosted the event. The 2026 edition in New Delhi will also mark the tournament’s return to Asia after an eight-year gap, with Nanjing, China, having hosted it last in 2018.

The symbolic handover ceremony in Paris featured BWF President Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul, Federation Francaise de Badminton chief Frank Laurent, and Badminton Association of India (BAI) general secretary Sanjay Mishra. During the ceremony, Mishra assured the badminton world that India would uphold the standards set by Paris.