History of Badminton

The history and origin of the Badminton game can be trace back to the ancient Greece and China dated more than 2,000 years ago, where games with shuttlecock were used. A similar game called "Hanetsuki" was also played in Japan in the 16th century.

It is believed that the direct descendent of modern badminton game are from the ancient game of “Battledore and Shuttlecock”. This game is played by 2 or more persons with small racket and shuttlecock. The players will count the number of hits and try to keep the shuttlecock up in the air for as long as possible.

In the 18th century, British Army officers stationed in India, had been reported to be playing a competitive version of the game called "Poona". And when the army was called back in 1860s, they brought back the Indian version of the game to England.

The new sport was gaining popularity and was officially launched in 1870s at the Badminton House in Gloucestershire, owned by Duke of Beaufort. It was called “The Game of Badminton” back then, and had later become known as Badminton as we know now.

The basic rules of the game were drawn up in the 1880s. In 1893, the Badminton Association of England (BAE) was formed, and the standardized rules where published, which is similar to today’s rules.

The modern Badminton game was officially launched in a house called “Dunbar” at 6 Waverly Grove, Portsmouth, England on 13th September 1893. The first badminton competition was All England Open Badminton Championships, which was organized by BAE in 1899.

The International Badminton Federation (IBF) was formed in 1934 with 9 founder member nations - Canada, Denmark, England, France, Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales.

IBF later change its name to Badminton World Federation (BWF) on 24th September 2006. The head office is currently located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.