| Abbreviation | WTT |
|---|---|
| Formation | 2019; 7 years ago (2019) |
| Website | worldtabletennis |
World Table Tennis, stylized asWTT, is an organization created by theITTF in 2019 that runs commercialized table tennis tournaments.[1] Its inaugural tournament was held in November 2020 inMacao. It is distinguished from the predecessorITTF World Tour by various rules changes and big prize money for commercialized purposes.[2][3][4] The head of its council isLiu Guoliang, a former Olympic gold medalist and former head coach of China.[2] The WTT is headquartered in Singapore, with other offices in China, Europe, and the US.
In 1926, the ITTF was founded by William Henry Lawes ofWymondham and Ivor Montagu[5]. The nine founding members wereAustria,Czechoslovakia,Denmark,England,Germany,Hungary,India,Sweden and Wales. The first international tournament was held in January 1926 inBerlin, and the firstWorld Table Tennis Championships was held in December 1926 in London.[6] It was the only event for over 50 years that was run and managed commercially by the ITTF.
In 1980, theITTF World Cups was introduced, followed by theITTF World Tour in 1996. Until 2003, commercial rights for these events were passed on to the local organising committees (LOC) but a different approach was taken to centralise rights through the creation of TMS.[clarification needed] TMS was tasked to manage these rights on behalf of ITTF, until 2017 when ITTF decided to buy back the rights to be taken in house.[7]
In 2018, professional consultantsDeloitte andWithers were engaged to assist with remodelling the way that the ITTF does business.[8] Through full models and financial understanding of our events and other worldwide properties, ITTF sought to understand the untapped commercial potential oftable tennis. One key finding led to the idea of separation between the management of the professional and institutional structures of table tennis.
On 30 May 2019, ITTF announced the idea of World Table Tennis (WTT),[9] a new commercial vehicle for table tennis. To launch WTT, the ITTF executive committee appointed a selection panel. The panel included ITTF PresidentThomas Weikert, ITTF Deputy President Khalil Al-Mohannadi, ITTF Executive Vice President for FinancePetra Sorling, ITTF CEO Steve Dainton, and ITTF Marketing Director Matthew Pound.[8][10]
WTT also announced the hire of Philippe Le Floc’h, former Chief Commercial Officer atFIFA and marketing director atUEFA, as Senior Commercial Strategy Consultant, in line with WTT's aim to commercialise the sport.[11][10] Shortly afterwards, Stephen Duckitt, who had 15 years of sports management experience, primarily withWTA andATP, was announced as WTT Event Strategy Director.[8]
On 29 June 2020, WTT announced that China Table Tennis Association President,Liu Guoliang had accepted the role as Chair of the WTT Council. The WTT Council is tasked to ensure the healthy development of WTT and to be at the helm of the future development of table tennis.[12][13] WTT Macao was announced on 11 September 2020 to be held between 25 and 29 November 2020.[14] The debut event was a promotional showcase featuring 16 of the world's best male and 16 of the world's best female players. The event implemented a brand new format with innovative scoring methods. It also featured a prize purse of US$800,000 with players paid a minimum of US$15,000, and earning more prize money per match they win.[15][16]
Next to join was Melissa Soobratty. Announced on 4 December 2020, the former vice president, Media at Football Marketing Asia joined as WTT Senior Media Director to oversee all areas related to content, to further professionalise the organisation's expanding media operations.[17]
| Tournaments | 2019−present | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tiers | I | Grand Smash | ||
| II | WTT Series | WTT Finals (WTT Cup Finals) | ||
| III | WTT Champions (WTT Champion Series) | |||
| IV | WTT Contender Series | WTT Star Contenders | ||
| V | WTT Contenders | |||
The Grand Smashes will become the pillars of the sport and the most important events in the table tennis calendar. The events will feature both Men's and Women's singles draws with more players now receiving automatic entry into events. There will be fewer seeded players and a separate qualifying draw to ensure that the excitement kicks off right from the start. Doubles and Mixed Doubles events will also be played during the Grand Smashes.[18][19]
Dates: Fixed dates on the annual WTT Calendar
Players: 64 Men's & Women's Singles, Doubles & Mixed doubles draw
Length of event: 10 Days + Qualification
Prize Pool: Up to US$3 million
Number of events: Up to 4
| Singapore Smash | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Men's singles | Women's singles | Men's doubles | Women's doubles | Mixed doubles | |
| 2022 |  Fan Zhendong | Chen Meng | Fan ZhendongWang Chuqin | Wang ManyuSun Yingsha | Wang ChuqinSun Yingsha | |
| 2023 | Sun Yingsha | |||||
| 2024 | Wang Chuqin | Wang Manyu | Ma LongLin Gaoyuan | Chen MengWang Manyu | ||
| 2025 | Lin Shidong | Sun Yingsha | Wang ChuqinLin Shidong | Wang ManyuKuai Man | Lin ShidongKuai Man | |
| 2026 | ||||||
| Saudi Smash | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Men's singles | Women's singles | Men's doubles | Women's doubles | Mixed doubles | |
| 2024 | Wang Chuqin | Chen Meng | Ma LongWang Chuqin | Chen MengWang Manyu | Wang ChuqinSun Yingsha | |
| China Smash | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Men's singles | Women's singles | Men's doubles | Women's doubles | Mixed doubles | |
| 2024 | Lin Shidong | Sun Yingsha | Liang JingkunWang Chuqin | Qian TianyiChen Xingtong | Lin ShidongKuai Man | |
| 2025 | Wang Chuqin | Wang Manyu | Wang ChuqinLin Shidong | Wang ManyuKuai Man | Wang ChuqinSun Yingsha | |
| 2026 | ||||||
| United States Smash | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Men's singles | Women's singles | Men's doubles | Women's doubles | Mixed doubles | |
| 2025 | Wang Chuqin |  Zhu Yuling |  Lim Jong-hoonAn Jae-hyun | Wang YidiKuai Man | Lin ShidongKuai Man | |
| 2026 | ||||||
| Europe Smash - Sweden | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Men's singles | Women's singles | Men's doubles | Women's doubles | Mixed doubles | |
| 2025 |  Truls Möregårdh | Sun Yingsha |  Wong Chun TingBaldwin Chan | Wang ManyuSun Yingsha | Lin ShidongKuai Man | |
| 2026 | ||||||
The WTT Series serves as the primary platform for professional table tennis players to compete at the international level. It is divided into three tiers — Cup Finals, Champion Series, and Contender Series — to provide athletes with sufficient competitive opportunities. WTT also focuses on hosting events in distinctive venues worldwide, such as theatres, bars, clubs, and stadiums, aiming to create engaging and intimate experiences that bring fans closer to the athletes.[19][20]
The WTT Finals are split into Men's and Women's events that will be held separately. The top 16 players of the year will qualify for this year-end event together with the best 8 pairs. Qualification will be determined by the player's performance throughout the WTT season and reflected through their Table Tennis World Ranking.
The first two editions of WTT Finals (2021 and 2022) was known as WTT Cup Finals. WTT stated that the winners of the WTT Cup Finals would win the prestigiousITTF World Cup trophies in March 2021, but the winners have been actually presented with WTT Finals specific trophies since the inaugural edition.
Players: 16 in Men's & Women's Singles, Top 8 pair in doubles
Length of event: 5 days
Prize Pool: Up to US$1.5million each
Number of events: 2
| Year | Host city | Men's singles | Women's singles | Men's doubles | Women's doubles | Mixed doubles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Singapore | Fan Zhendong | Sun Yingsha | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2022 | Xinxiang, China | Wang Chuqin | ||||
| 2023 | Doha, Qatar(men) Nagoya, Japan(women) | Xiang PengYuan Licen | Wang ManyuSun Yingsha | |||
| 2024 | Fukuoka, Japan | Wang Manyu |  Alexis LebrunFélix Lebrun |  Honoka HashimotoHitomi Sato | ||
| 2025 | Hong Kong, China | Tomokazu Harimoto | N/A | N/A | Lim Jong-hoonShin Yu-bin | |
| 2026 | Hong Kong, China |  | | | | |
The WTT Champion Series is exclusive to the top 32 men and women in the world. Four separate men's and women's event will be held with up to US$5million up for grabs. The matches will be played on one table to ensure that the best TV production and best entertainment is presented to fans.
Players: 32 Men's & Women's Singles
Length of event: 6 days
Prize Pool: Up to US$5million
Number of events: 4 men & 4 women
| Tour | Host city | Men's singles | Women's singles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | |||
| WTT Champions European Summer Series | Budapest, Hungary | Tomokazu Harimoto | Wang Manyu |
| WTT Champions Macao | Macau | Wang Chuqin | Sun Yingsha |
| 2023 | |||
| WTT Champions Xinxiang | Xinxiang, China | Fan Zhendong | Sun Yingsha |
| WTT Champions Macao | Macau | Wang Chuqin | Wang Manyu |
| WTT Champions Frankfurt | Frankfurt, Germany |  Lin Yun-ju | Wang Yidi |
| 2024 | |||
| WTT Champions Incheon | Incheon, South Korea | Liang Jingkun | Sun Yingsha |
| WTT Champions Chongqing | Chongqing, China | Fan Zhendong | |
| WTT Champions Macao | Macau | Lin Shidong | |
| WTT Champions Montpellier | Montpellier, France | Félix Lebrun | Satsuki Odo |
| WTT Champions Frankfurt | Frankfurt, Germany | Lin Shidong | Wang Manyu |
| 2025 | |||
| WTT Champions Chongqing | Chongqing, China | Wang Chuqin | Sun Yingsha |
| WTT Champions Incheon | Incheon, South Korea | Xiang Peng | Wang Yidi |
| WTT Champions Yokohama | Yokohama, Japan | Tomokazu Harimoto | Chen Xingtong |
| WTT Champions Macao | Macau | Wang Chuqin | Sun Yingsha |
| WTT Champions Montpellier | Montpellier, France | Truls Möregårdh | Wang Yidi |
| WTT Champions Frankfurt | Frankfurt, Germany | Sora Matsushima | Hina Hayata |
| 2026 | |||
| WTT Champions Doha | Doha, Qatar | Lin Yun-ju | Zhu Yuling |
| WTT Champions Chongqing | Chongqing, China | ||
| WTT Champions Yokohama | Yokohama, Japan | ||
| WTT Champions Macao | Macau | ||
| WTT Champions Montpellier | Montpellier, France | ||
| WTT Champions Germany | TBC, Germany | ||
WTT Star Contenders will consist of 6 events throughout the year featuring 48 men and 48 women. These events will serve as the platform for the next best in the world to earn ranking points to make the step up into the WTT Champions Series.
Players: 48 Men's & Women's Singles
Length of event: 6 days + Qualification
Number of events: 6
Then the final tier, the WTT Contenders, allows the rest of the professional players throughout the world rankings to develop their talents in up to 14 events per year, each one lasting for four days.
Players: Flexible playing system
Length of event: Flexible playing system
Number of events: Up to 14 events
