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IKF World Korfball Championship 2027 host cities and logo unveiled

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The International Korfball Federation (IKF) and the Royal Dutch Korfball Association (KNKV) have today confirmed the host cities and unveiled the official logo for the IKF World Korfball Championship 2027, which will take place in the Netherlands from 15 to 24 October 2027.

The announcement was made during the finals of the Dutch Korfbal League in Rotterdam Ahoy, in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 10,000 korfball fans.

The world championship will bring together 24 teams from across the world for the highest level of international korfball competition.

More than two decades after the last World Championship on Dutch soil in 2003, the Netherlands will host the event for the fourth time, following previous editions in 1978, 1987 and 2003.

Across the Netherlands

The IKF World Korfball Championship 2027 will feature a multi-phase format, with matches played across multiple venues in the Netherlands.

The opening phase will take place from 15 to 17 October, with matches played across eight venues throughout the country.

The second phase will follow from 18 to 21 October, with matches hosted at two venues, where teams will compete for places in the final stage.

The tournament will conclude with the final stage from 22 to 24 October, where the semi-finals and final will be played at Rotterdam Ahoy.

As one of the country’s leading indoor arenas, Rotterdam Ahoy will once again host international korfball at the highest level, providing a fitting stage for the final matches of the championship.

Alongside the competition details, the official event logo for the IKF World Korfball Championship 2027 has been unveiled.

Host cities confirmed

Matches during the IKF World Korfball Championship 2027 will take place across 12 cities: Rotterdam, ’s-Hertogenbosch, Ridderkerk, Zaanstad, Hoogeveen, Emmen, Ede, Almelo, Gorredijk, Drachten, Duiven and Oss.

This nationwide structure reflects the scale of the event and the shared ambition to deliver a championship that is accessible supporters from across the world.

Better Together

The structure of the 2027 Championship reflects the shared vision of the IKF and the KNKV to deliver a global event that connects communities through sport.

IKF President Gabi Kool said:

The IKF World Korfball Championship 2027 represents an important moment for our sport as we bring the world’s best teams together in one of korfball’s historic home nations.

With a format that spans multiple locations and ends with the finals taking place at Rotterdam Ahoy, we are creating a championship that is truly Better Together – connecting players, supporters and communities from across the world.

We look forward to welcoming the global korfball family to the Netherlands in 2027.

Irene van Rijsewijk, chairman of the Royal Dutch Korfball Association said:

We are proud to be hosting the IKF World Korfball Championship 2027 in the Netherlands and to welcome the global korfball community.

The nationwide format reflects our shared vision of bringing korfball closer to people and creating opportunities for teams and supporters from many countries to experience the sport at the highest level.

Together with the IKF, we look forward to delivering a championship that reflects the spirit of Better Together.

Further information on match schedules and additional event details will be shared by the IKF and the KNKV in due course.

IKF awards 2023 WKC to Taipei and 2027 WKC to the Netherlands; EKC 2022 to the Czech Republic

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The next IKF World Korfball Championship in 2023 will be held in Taipei (TPE), following a decision of the IKF Council announced here in Durban, South Africa. In a parallel decision, the IKF awarded the 2027 IKF World Korfball Championship to the Netherlands, who had prepared a bid with Rotterdam as the main location. The Netherlands had prepared their bid for 2023, but had confirmed that it would upheld its bid for 2027 after the initial secret vote by the 9 members of the IKF Council.

IKF President Fransoo announces the hosts of the 2023 and 2027 WKC

IKF President Fransoo announces the hosts of the 2023 and 2027 WKC

IKF President Fransoo: “With awarding this series of Championships we reward the outstanding bids received, and also lay out a clear path for the next decade for our global competitions: The World Games in the United States in 2021, the WKC 2023 in Taipei (TPE), TWG 2025 in Chengdu (CHN), and the IKF WKC 2027 in the Netherlands. The next step is to now align this roadmap with the CTKA, ChKA, and KNKV with our strategic roadmap for the next decade. We are very confident this will be great for all athletes and for the sport at large”

Taipei 2023

The bid developed by the Chinese Taipei Korfball Association offers an extensive four year program for further marketing of korfball across Chinese Taipei, and providing extensive hosting support to the participating nations. The competition will be played in Taipei, and has received extensive support from the Taipei City government, with a personal effort by Mayor Wen-Je Ko, and from the Sport Administration on the island. With Chinese Taipei currently ranked 2nd in the world, and missing the final of this year’s World Korfball Championship in South Africa by a mere golden goal loss in the semifinal, the IKF WKC will be held in Chinese Taipei for the very first time. The previous WKCs were held twice in Asia (China and India), once in Oceania (Australia), once in Africa (South Africa). The remaining edition have been held in Europe.

Netherlands 2027

Similar to Chinese Taipei, the Royal Netherlands Korfball Association KNKV had prepared an extensive and professional bid, with support of the Mayor of Rotterdam, The Netherlands Olympic Committee, the Ministry of Sport, among many. The bid excelled in a vision of focusing on sports excellence, with a first-ever athlete village to be created with temporary housing in the Rotterdam Ahoy’s Sports and Convention complex that would be converted to a World Korfball Village, and extensive multi-year partnerships between the strongest clubs in the Netherlands and the envisioned 24 countries that would take part, under the banner “Twinning is Winning”. The IKF and KNKV have agreed to jointly investigate to what extent the partnership program could already start within the next few years. The vision is fully embeded in global korfball’s Olympic ambition, for which the IKF Congress had laid out a first roadmap earlier in the week.

Czech Republic

The Czech bid for the 2023 IKF WKC did not make it. However, the Czech Korfball Association had in parallel submitted a bid for the IKF European Korfball Championship 2022, and the IKF Council awarded the CzKA the elit competition, only second in size and impact after the WKC. The championship is strongly related towards multi-year school development with which the Czechs plan to double their membership in the next 3 years.

 

Images: Marco Spelten