Korfball is a ball sport, with similarities to netball and basketball. It is played by two teams of eight (8) players with four (4) female players and four (4) male players in each team. The objective is to throw a ball into a netless basket that is mounted on a 3.5 m high pole.
The International Korfball Federation (IKF) is the governing body of korfball. IKF is responsible for the organisation of korfball's major international tournaments, notably the IKF World Korfball Championship.
European Korfball Championship or European Korfball A-Championship is a korfball competition for European national teams organized by the International Korfball Federation. It was played every four years from 1998 until 2014 and then moved to a tournament every two years, starting from 2016. The number of participated teams has varied between 8 and 16. The Netherlands national korfball team has won each edition.
The Chinese Taipei national korfball team is managed by the Chinese Taipei Korfball Association (CTKA), representing Taiwan in korfball international competitions.
The Australia national korfball team is managed by Korfball Australia (KA), representing Australia in international korfball competitions, including the Asia-Oceania Korfball Championships, the World Korfball Championships and The World Games.
The International Korfball Federation (IKF) was founded in Antwerp (Belgium) on 11 June 1933 as a continuation of the International Korfball Bureau established in 1924 by the Dutch and Belgian Associations.The IKF was officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1993 and is affiliated to Sportaccord (Sportaccord), the Association of the IOC Recognized International Sports Federations (ARISF) and the International World Games Association (IWGA).The IKF aims to spread korfball around the globe. It provides close to sixty (60) affiliated member countries with financial, material, and structural support to achieve this goal. It has established a network of contacts in many countries and actively promotes the game by transferring knowledge internationally by exchange programmes and inviting selected korfball players, coaches, and administrators to its training courses to create a stable local structure in all the affiliated countries on which a flourishing korfball organisation can be built.The IKF is organised in five Continental Confederations – IKF Africa, IKF Americas, IKF Asia, IKF Europe and IKF Oceania – since 2011.The IKF General Meeting is the highest authority in the IKF. The IKF is managed on a daily base by the IKF Executive Committee – 8 members – and the IKF Council – 12 members.The IKF stimulates the global awareness that korfball is a spectator and media oriented mixed gender teamsport.
The Hong Kong national korfball team is managed by the Hong Kong China Korfball Association (HKCKA), representing Hong Kong in Korfball international competitions.
The China national korfball team is managed by the Korfball Promotion Committee of China (KCCP), representing China in korfball international competitions.
The Wales National Korfball Team often referred to as the Welsh Korfball Squad (WKS) is managed by the Welsh Korfball Association/Cymdeithas Pêl-Corff Cymru, and represents Wales in international korfball competition. The Welsh Korfball Squad entered its first IKF ranking competition in 2007, after the Great Britain national korfball team was disbanded to produce three teams: England, Wales and Scotland. Wales is a fully recognised member of the International Korfball Federation and is currently ranked 18th in the world.
Asia-Oceania Korfball Championship is the korfball competition played by the Asian and Oceanian national teams, organized by the Asia-Oceania Korfball Federation and the International Korfball Federation.
The Pakistan national korfball team is managed by the Pakistan Korfball Federation (PKF), representing Pakistan in korfball international competitions.
The South Korea national korfball team is managed by the Korea Korfball Federation (KKF), representing Korea in korfball international competitions.
The 2006 Asia Oceania Korfball Championship was held in Hong Kong with 7 national teams in competition, from July 4 to 9. The top 4 teams qualified for the 2007 World Championships.
The 9th Korfball World Championship was held in Shaoxing, China, on October 27 – November 5, 2011 with 16 national teams in competition.
The 10th IKF World Korfball Championship were held in the Belgian cities of Ghent, Tielen and Antwerp in 2015. Ghent and Tielen hosted the first and second round matches, whilst the placing matches and finals were all held in the Lotto Arena in Antwerp.
The Philippine Korfball Federation is the governing body of korfball in the Philippines.
The 2014 Asia-Oceania Korfball Championship was held in Hong Kong with 10 national teams in competition, from August 17 to 23.
The 11th IKF World Korfball Championship was held in August 2019 in Durban, South Africa and won by the Netherlands. The International Korfball Federation awarded the hosting rights for the tournament to South Africa on 7 November 2015, ahead of the bid by New Zealand.
The 2018 Asia-Oceania Korfball Championship is being held in Saitama, Japan with 10 national teams in competition, from July 29 to August 5. It is the tenth edition of the Asia-Oceania Korfball Championship and serves as a qualifier for the 2019 IKF World Korfball Championship, with the top 6 teams qualifying. Chinese Taipei are the defending champions and have all previous editions, except the edition of 2004 which was won by Australia.
The 12th IKF World Korfball Championship will be held in 2023 in Chinese Taipei. The International Korfball Federation awarded the hosting rights for the tournament to Chinese Taipei on 9 August 2019, ahead of the bids of Czech Republic and the Netherlands. The Netherlands was awarded the hosting rights for the 2027 IKF World Korfball Championship instead.
