The Kabaddi World Cup just began on 17 March, and it has already attracted criticism and controversies. The tournament is being hosted in the West Midlands in the UK, which is the first time it’s being held outside of Asia. The tournament is allegedly unauthorized and lacks endorsement from recognized bodies like the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Asian Kabaddi Federation (AKF). No national sports federation is involved in the event, meaning there is a misrepresentation of countries like India and Pakistan.
Recently, the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF) publicly criticized the ongoing Kabaddi World Cup and stated, “The ongoing so-called Kabaddi World Cup 2025 in the United Kingdom conducted under the aegis of the so-called World Kabaddi Federation; has not been authorized by the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF), that is the international governing body for the sport of Kabaddi as recognized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) as well as the Asian Kabaddi Federation (AKF),”
The OCA, the IKF, and the AKF also oversee and supervise the conduct of the medal competition of kabaddi for men and women at the Asian Games since 1990, and other international kabaddi tournaments. Furthermore, the OCA, IKF, AKF, and the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI) have no dealings or engagement with the so-called World Kabaddi Federation or any of its activities,” the statement added.
“Thus, no national kabaddi federation that participates in the kabaddi medal discipline at the Asian Games is participating in this event. The teams allegedly (mis)representing such countries at the ongoing so-called Kabaddi World Cup in the United Kingdom do not have any sanction from the relevant NSFs for Kabaddi,” the statement mentioned
Further, the statement also added, “IKF has been communicated by AKFI, the so-called India team at the so-called Kabaddi World Cup in United Kingdom does not have any sanction or recognition from the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI), that is the officially recognized custodian body of the sport of kabaddi in India”
This is the second edition of the Kabaddi World Cup, the first one being held in 2019. In both men’s and women’s categories, India won the title. The 2025 Kabaddi World Cup will end on 23 March 2025.
Also Read: Kabaddi World Cup 2025 England: Fixtures, Venues, Timings
