World Singles Tiddlywinks Championships have been held since 1973, and World Pairs since 1978.
World Singles Tiddlywinks Championships™
The winner of each IFTwA-accredited tiddlywinks association's Singles championship, which ordinarily is held once a year, garners a challenge to compete for the World Singles title against the standing World Singles champion winker title holder. IFTwA should be promptly informed of plans and arrangements for conducting World Singles challenges, any issues requiring IFTwA attention or resolution, and results.
World Singles Challenge Eligibility
All pairs playing in an association's Singles championship are not eligible for a World Singles challenge.
In the case where the winner of an association's Singles championship played one or more games with another winker as a pair, the winning winker is not eligible for a World Singles challenge.
In the case where a singles winker (as per the above) playing in an association's Single championships is not eligible for a challenge, the next eligible winker, if within the top quartile of finishers, garners a challenge. Otherwise, no challenge ensues from that championship.
Substitutions
No substitutions of winkers are permitted to challenge for, or defend existing World Singles titles.
Once a World Singles Championship is underway, it is not permissible to introduce any substitutions for any competing winkers, nor to add any winkers to either side.
World Pairs Tiddlywinks Championships™
The winners of each IFTwA-accredited tiddlywinks association's Pairs championship, which ordinarily is held once a year, garners a challenge to compete for the World Pairs title against the standing World Pairs champion winker title holders. IFTwA should be promptly informed of plans and arrangements for conducting World Pairs challenges, any issues requiring IFTwA attention or resolution, and results.
World Pairs Challenge Eligibility
In the case where the winner of an association's Pairs championship is a single winker, the winker is not eligible for a World Pairs challenge.
In the case where the winning pair of an association's Pairs championship involved a total of more than two winkers during the course of the match, that pair is not eligible for a World Pairs challenge.
In the case where the winning pair of an association's Pairs championship had one or more games where one or the other winker of the winning pair played singles, [to be determined].
In the case where a pair (as per the above) playing in an association's Pairs championships is not eligible for a World Pairs challenge, the next eligible pair, if within the top quartile of finishers, garners a challenge. Otherwise, no challenge ensues from that championship.
Substitutions
In the case where one of the current World Pairs champions is unable to play and is willing to permit the partner champion to select a substitute winker to defend the title, such plans should be submitted to IFTwA for approval.
In the case where one of the current association Pairs champion challengers is unable to play and is willing to permit the partner champion to select a substitute winker to challenge for the title, such plans should be submitted to IFTwA for approval.
In the case where a winker is both part of a current World Pairs champion pair and an association Pairs champion challenger pair, with different partners, the winker may offer to one of his/her partners the option to select a substitute winker to compete in a challenge. Such plans should be submitted to IFTwA for approval.
Since the World Pairs Championship is a tournament for pairs, it is not permissible to substitute a single winker to play both colors of a pair.
It is not permissible to substitute for both winkers who are current association Pairs champions. It is not permissible to substitute for both winkers who are current World Pairs champions.
Once a World Pairs Championship is underway, it is not permissible to introduce any substitutions for any competing winkers, nor to add any winkers to either side, nor to remove any winkers from either side. Therefore, for example, it is not permitted for one winker of a pair to play both colors of the pair during the match.
Conduct of World Singles and World Pairs Championships
Each World Singles and World Pairs Championship match must have a referee (or umpire), agreed to by all winkers competing in the match. The referee serves as the principal umpire for match conduct, mechanics, and interpretation of the official rules as well as the principal shot judge during the match. The referee may delegate such duties periodically throughout the match to one or more winkers not playing in the match. The referee may elect to consult IFTwA members (the heads of each national association and the Secretary-General of IFTwA) for resolution of disputes or questions that may arise during the match.
Each World Singles and World Pairs Championship match must have a referee, agreed to by all winkers competing in the match. The referee serves as the principal umpire for match conduct, mechanics, and interpretation of the official rules as well as the principal shot judge during the match. The referee may delegate such duties periodically throughout the match to one or more winkers not playing in the match. The referee may elect to consult IFTwA members (the heads of each national association and the Secretary-General of IFTwA) for resolution of disputes or questions that may arise during the match.
Points Required to Win
The winner is the side with the majority of points in 7 games.
- Should one side garner more than 24½ points in 7 games or fewer, that side wins the match, and no further games are played or recorded for the match.
- Should the match be tied at the conclusion of 7 games, an additional game is played until one side has more aggregate game points than the other side, in which case that side wins the match.
- Note that the number of games won and lost do not determine the winner of a match; it is possible for a match to be won by a side that has lost more games than it has won.
Order of Challenges
In general, the winker(s) with the oldest open challenge to a world title is (are) first in order to challenge for the world title, and remaining open challenges are conducted in the order of the time the association championships were held.
When the winner of an association Pairs championship consists of one or two winkers from a nonhosting tiddlywinks association, the top association pair (see Top "National" Challengers below) in the tournament, if any, has precedence in challenging for the World Pairs over the winner.
A challenger may consult with the one or more challengers ahead of them in the challenge order should they wish to garner agreement to arrange and conduct a challenge out of the regular time order, subject to IFTwA approval.
World Team Tiddlywinks Championships™
World team championship matches are not conducted on a challenge basis. They are arranged by two or more tiddlywinks associations in consultation with IFTwA and require IFTwA approval.
In recent years, world team championships have generally consisted of 8 winkers per team, playing as pairs.
Upon approval by IFTwA, a team may include a pool of additional winkers who may play in substitution for winkers who have already played in the match.
Timely Challenges
IFTwA strongly encourages association champions and standing world champions to promptly and regularly arrange and conduct world tiddlywinks championship challenges. In fact, IFTwA expects such association champions to have a duty to participate in world tiddlywinks championship challenges.
A general rule of thumb, subject to IFTwA-approved modification, is that a challenge opportunity by association champions expires a year after the championship was held, or upon completion of the subsequent tiddlywinks association championship if it is held in the following year, whichever is later.
IFTwA may, at its option, declare a world title to be vacant if the current champions do not, or are unable to, accept and play a challenge in a timely manner.
Association Championships
Each accredited tiddlywinks association is encouraged to conduct annual singles and pairs championships.
The winner of each association's singles and pairs championships garners a challenge (subject to the exceptions cited above) to the standing World Singles and World Pairs champions, respectively, so long as the association championship match has at least 5 finishing sides (singles or pairs), unless IFTwA, at its option, permits an exception.
Top "National" Challengers
In the case where an accredited association championship competition is won by a member of another association (including when a winning pair consists of winkers from two different associations), a direct member (or pair of winkers) of the association conducting the tiddlywinks event also garners a world title challenge, but only when the winker or winkers are the top competitors from the association in the final standings for the match, and the side finishes within the top quartile (the top one-fourth) in the standings.
In the case where the association affiliation of a winker may not be obvious to other winkers in an association match, the winker should state his/her affiliation prior to the start of the tournament.
Suspension and Abandonment of Play or Title
Suspension of Play During a Match
Should circumstances require that one or more winkers playing in a world championship match suspend play, one of the following options applies:
- The same set of winkers agree to resume the match on a later date, and promptly inform IFTwA of the situation and plan.
- Should there be no timely agreement by the same set of winkers for a date to resume the match, IFTwA, at its option, may declare the match to be abandoned.
It is not permissible to substitute a winker to play in any resumption of the suspended match.
Abandonment of World Championship Match Play
Should a world championship match be abandoned, no side is considered to be the winner or loser of the match. The games played are included in the Tiddlywinks Ratings.
Abandonment of Championship Title
A singles winker or both winkers of a pair may expressly abandon a championship title (association or world), in which case the title becomes vacant.
When a world title is vacant, current association champions are expected to arrange to play a world title match, with IFTwA approval.
Mat Selection
(IFTwA Finding effective • 24 October 2024)
In a world championship tiddlywinks match, one side may request that two mats be selected for play during the match. If so requested, the defending champion side chooses the mat for the first and subsequent odd-numbered games, while the challenger side chooses the mat for even-numbered games.
At most two different mats should be used throughout each match unless both sides agree to replace a mat during the course of the match (for example, due to damage to the mat).
Issue Resolution
Disputes or concerns regarding the conduct or results of a particular match should be reported promptly to IFTwA.