The Oldest Badminton Tournaments Still Played Today

Last checked: August 2026 · Written by the Badminton House player-led team.

Lists of the oldest badminton tournaments often blend three different questions: when an event first appeared, whether every later edition took place, and how it is classified today. A useful history separates them. A first-held year establishes age; a documented record start is narrower; gaps qualify continuity; present status confirms that the event identity remains active now.

This article includes four events with usable official or event-owner records. It does not fill the list with a date repeated by unsourced secondary pages, and it does not turn current schedules or prize money into a measure of historical importance.

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Which are the oldest badminton tournaments still played?

The documented chronology begins with the All England's first event in 1899, followed by the Scottish Open in 1907 and Denmark Open in 1936. The fourth date, 1957, is when Badminton Canada's combined Nationals and Canada Open record begins. Label it as a record milestone, not a proven founding year.

All England, 1899. Badminton England's facts and records distinguishes an open tournament at Guildford in 1898 from the first All England Championships in 1899. It says the five events were held annually from 1900 except during both world wars. Badminton England's current All England page reports that the 2026 champions have been crowned and invites interest for 2027, confirming the event's current identity.

The event's age supplies the setting for many later milestones; it does not make every champion story interchangeable. Our article on the first Indian All England champion follows one of those later threads without retelling the tournament's founding.

Scottish Open, 1907. The official Badminton Scotland event page says the tournament was first held in 1907 and presents a 2026 edition. That one page supports both the founding statement and continued event identity. The article does not repeat the page's comparative “third-oldest” label because establishing a worldwide rank would require a complete, consistently defined candidate list.

Denmark Open, 1936. The official Denmark Open history places the first event in Copenhagen in 1936, records the Second World War stop, and states that the tournament returned in 1946. That supports a founding date and one verified interruption, not every gap that might appear in a winners table.

Canada Open record, 1957. Badminton Canada's senior champions record changes its heading to “Canadian National Championships & Canadian Open together” beginning in 1957. That establishes the combined record's starting point, not the tournament's founding year. Badminton Canada's 2026 completion report confirms the event's active modern identity. Current-edition details belong in our Canada Open 2026 guide.

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What interruptions belong in the record?

Include an interruption when an authoritative record states it, and narrow the continuity wording to what that record supports. For these four events, Badminton England explicitly notes both world wars, while Denmark Open identifies its wartime stop and 1946 return. Do not infer every cancellation from a blank winners-table row.

When an official source states it, “first held in” followed by the year is the safest phrase. When the source only shows where a combined record begins, use that narrower wording. “Held continuously since” is a different and much stronger claim. “Annual from” also needs its exceptions. The All England source permits annual-from-1900 wording only with both world-war exceptions.

Denmark Open demonstrates the same distinction. The event began in 1936, stopped during the Second World War, and returned in 1946. Its official history supports that break. This article does not add a supposed 1956–1965 suspension because the event-owner narrative used here does not establish it.

Names, venues, event programmes, and governing structures can change without automatically creating a new tournament identity. The record must show that continuity rather than assuming it. A founding date is most useful when the article makes those changes visible instead of pretending the modern event arrived fully formed.

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How do old events fit the modern badminton calendar?

Treat present circuit level as a time-stamped status, not as evidence of historical age or permanent prestige. Tournament classifications, sponsors, venues, and calendar positions can change while the event's documented identity continues. For current planning, check the organiser's latest page; for history, keep the founding and interruption record separate.

This separation prevents two common mistakes. The first is assuming an older event must occupy a higher present tier. The second is projecting a modern tier backward through decades when that circuit structure did not exist. Age and present classification answer different questions.

A current event guide can responsibly cover dates, venue, draw, and viewing information because it is stamped to one edition. A history article should not copy that volatile detail. That is why the Canada Open entry above stays short and hands readers to the dedicated 2026 guide.

The same principle applies to team championships. The Thomas Cup format history follows how one competition changed across eras, rather than using its age as a shortcut for explaining today's format. For the sport's earlier rule development, see our history of the first badminton rules.

This also explains why an uncertain fifth entry is worse than a careful four. A date repeated across secondary listicles may be interesting, but without an authoritative record confirming the event's founding and continued identity, it cannot carry the same weight as the four sources used here.

A candidate therefore needs two checks before joining the chronology. First, an official federation, organiser, or institutional record must identify the event and its earliest documented milestone. If that source only establishes a record start, label it exactly that way. Second, the same authority or a current official event record must show that the tournament identity still exists.

That test is why this is not advertised as a complete worldwide top four. It is a carefully evidenced four-event comparison. Another tournament may belong between these dates, but it should be added only when its governing body or event owner supplies a clear founding record and current identity. The evidence standard is more important than stretching the list to a round number.

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Why does tournament age matter without deciding prestige?

Tournament age matters because it connects changing generations, rules, venues, and competitive structures through one documented event identity. It does not objectively rank the quality of today's field or the value of one title. Historical weight becomes meaningful when readers can see both the long line and its interruptions.

An old event gives historians a sequence of champions and organizers to study. It lets fans place a current winner beside earlier eras, while still acknowledging that equipment, scoring, travel, draw size, and competition structures changed. The comparison is a story of continuity through change, not a claim that all editions were equivalent.

The four dates trace a historical sequence rather than a worldwide ranking: the All England (1899), Scottish Open (1907), Denmark Open (1936), and Badminton Canada's combined-record milestone (1957). That chronology is descriptive; it does not claim these were the only important places or events in the sport.

Use age to ask better questions: What survived? What stopped and returned? Which name or programme changed? What does the organiser document, and what is only repeated elsewhere? Those questions produce a more honest history than a prestige ranking disguised as a list.

The clean conclusion is four dates with four evidence trails: 1899, 1907, 1936, and 1957. Their value lies in keeping distinct what is documented: three first-held years, a Canadian combined-record start, and current-event evidence.