briefsports.net
Competition · Wrestling · National Teams

World Wrestling Championships

United World Wrestling's senior world championships in freestyle, Greco-Roman and women's wrestling; the 2026 edition, first awarded to Manama, is scheduled for Astana from 24 October to 1 November.
✓ Last reviewed: September 2026
SportWrestling — freestyle, Greco-Roman and women's wrestling
OrganizerUWW (United World Wrestling)
2025 editionZagreb, Croatia, 13–21 September 2025
2026 editionAstana, Kazakhstan, 24 October–1 November 2026 — upcoming (Manama, Bahrain, was the original host)
2027 editionLas Vegas, 11–19 September 2027 — first phase of LA 2028 Olympic qualification, per UWW

What are the World Wrestling Championships?

The World Wrestling Championships are the senior world championships of United World Wrestling. Each edition contests three styles, freestyle, Greco-Roman and women's wrestling, with a world champion crowned in each weight class; UWW's medal summary for the 2025 championships in Zagreb covers all three styles at the one event.[2] In some Olympic years UWW has held a separate championship in the non-Olympic weight classes only: Tirana 2024 had twelve such weight classes, four in each style.[3]

Who organizes the World Wrestling Championships?

The championships are organised by United World Wrestling, the international federation for wrestling. UWW publishes the entries and results on its own site, where the event pages carry the dates and host of each edition.[5][2] For the 2027 edition UWW made the announcement jointly with USA Wrestling, the host federation.[11]

When and where are they held?

The date window moves from edition to edition: Zagreb 2025 ran from 13 to 21 September, Nur-Sultan 2019 from 14 to 22 September at the Barys Arena, and Oslo 2021 from 2 to 10 October.[2][7][6] The 2026 edition was awarded to Manama, Bahrain. On 22 May 2026 UWW announced Astana, Kazakhstan, as the replacement host, citing "the current geopolitical situation, particularly the ongoing uncertainty and impact on international travel", with the championships scheduled from 24 October to 1 November 2026 at the Barys Arena; on 27 September 2026 they have not yet taken place.[1] The 2027 championships are scheduled for the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas from 11 to 19 September 2027.[11]

SeasonPool / FormatHost cities
2026Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingAstana, Kazakhstan, Barys Arena — 24 October–1 November 2026 — upcoming; replacement host for Manama, Bahrain, announced 22 May 2026
2025Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingZagreb, Croatia — 13–21 September 2025
2024Non-Olympic weight classes only (12)Tirana, Albania — 28–31 October 2024
2023Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingBelgrade, Serbia — 16–24 September 2023
2022Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingBelgrade, Serbia — 10–18 September 2022
2021Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingOslo, Norway — 2–10 October 2021
2019Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingNur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, Barys Arena — 14–22 September 2019
2018Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingBudapest, Hungary — October 2018
2017Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingParis, France — 20–25 August 2017
2016Non-Olympic weight classes onlyBudapest, Hungary
2015Freestyle, Greco-Roman, women's wrestlingLas Vegas, United States — 7–12 September 2015

Season, programme and host city with dates, from UWW's event pages and announcements; the 2026 change of host is given as UWW announced it.[8][9][10]

Since when do they exist?

UWW's history of the sport and the federation records that the International Amateur Wrestling Federation was created during the IOC Olympic Congress in Lausanne in 1921, and that "Greco-Roman World championships were organised in Helsinki (1921) and in Stockholm (1922)."[13] The same history does not give a first year for freestyle or women's world championships. UWW records that its non-Olympic-weights championship in Tirana in 2024 was the first held since 2016, when Budapest was host.[3]

How do wrestlers qualify?

Wrestlers are entered by their national federations, and UWW publishes the entry lists ahead of the championships.[4] For the Olympic Games, UWW announced on 2 February 2026 a four-phase qualification process for Los Angeles 2028: "The first phase of qualification will be the 2027 World Championships that will award 72 quotas for the Olympics. Each medalist [gold, silver, two bronzes] in the 18 Olympic weight classes will earn LA 2028 spots for their respective National Olympic Committees (NOC)."[12] The later phases, as UWW describes them, are places from the UWW rankings, continental qualifiers and a final World Olympic Qualifier for countries without a quota.[12] A quota belongs to the National Olympic Committee, not to the wrestler who wins it; see Olympic qualification.

Why do they matter?

The measurable proxy UWW publishes is the Olympic quota value: UWW states that the 2027 championships in Las Vegas "will also serve as the first Olympic qualifier for 2028 LA Games".[11] UWW names the 2027 championships, not the 2026 edition in Astana, as the first phase of Olympic qualification for Los Angeles 2028.[12] Prize money for the championships was not published on the UWW pages retrieved.

Who competes?

Men compete in freestyle and Greco-Roman, and women in women's wrestling.[3] UWW's Zagreb 2025 pages retrieved give no total count of nations entered.

Russian and Belarusian wrestlers entered the 2023 championships in Belgrade as "AIN", the neutral designation UWW's entry lists used for them.[4] UWW's announcement of 15 May 2026 recounts the sequence that followed: "In February 2025, UWW announced that all eligible wrestlers from Belarus and Russia would compete under the UWW flag, removing the “Individual Neutral Athletes” designation", and in January 2026 UWW approved their participation under national flags up to the U23 age-group level.[14] The Zagreb 2025 medal summary accordingly lists some medallists under "UWW" rather than a country.[2] In the same announcement of 15 May 2026, UWW stated that wrestlers from Belarus and Russia "will compete under their respective national flags at all age-group levels, including senior", with immediate effect.[14] See national suspensions and neutral athletes.

References

  1. UWW — Astana announced as replacement host for 2026 World Championships (22 May 2026). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  2. UWW — Senior World Championships 2025 (Zagreb, 13–21 September 2025): medal summary. Accessed 2026-09-27.
  3. UWW — Croatia to host 2025 World Championships, non-Olympic Worlds returns (15 February 2024). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  4. UWW — Freestyle entries released for 2023 World Championships (25 August 2023). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  5. UWW — World Championships 2022 results (Belgrade, 10–18 September 2022). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  6. UWW — World Championships 2021 results (Oslo, 2–10 October 2021). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  7. UWW — Schedule announced for 2019 Senior Wrestling World Championships in Nur-Sultan. Accessed 2026-09-27.
  8. UWW — United World Wrestling Announces 2018 Host Cities and Dates (8 September 2017). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  9. UWW — World Championships 2017 results (Paris, 20–25 August 2017). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  10. UWW — World Championships 2015 results (Las Vegas, 7–12 September 2015). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  11. UWW — Las Vegas to Host 2027 World Championships (10 May 2026). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  12. UWW — UWW announces new Olympic qualification process for LA 2028 (2 February 2026). Accessed 2026-09-27.
  13. UWW — History of Wrestling & UWW. Accessed 2026-09-27.
  14. UWW — UWW Lifts Restrictions on Belarus, Russia Wrestlers (15 May 2026). Accessed 2026-09-27.