IFA World Tour 2024: Top teams secure their position – First major tournament in Europe

The IFA Fistball World Tour 2024 has successfully arrived in Europe. Following the successful staging of the second Major tournament in Porto Alegre and the first World Tour tournament of the year in Argentina, the first World Tour stop in Europe was also on the program last weekend. This is the start of a whole series of tournaments up to the beginning of May – including two Major tournaments.

Porto Alegre (Major)

SG Novo Hamburgo (men) and SOGIPA/Cargo Way (women) were also unbeatable at the second Major tournament of the year. SOGIPA, winners of the 2023 World Tour, also prevailed at their home tournament after their success the week before. Second place went to Clube Morgenau, who are also SOGIPA’s closest rivals in the current ranking.

SG Novo Hamburgo celebrated in the men’s competition. They relegated Clube Mercês (Brazil), CCAA Rosario (Argentina) and FG Elgg-Ettenhausen (Switzerland) to the next places and thus secured important points for the World Tour ranking.

Rosario (500)

The men from SG Novo Hamburgo were unstoppable not only in Brazil, but also in Argentina. Last year’s World Tour winners beat Clube Mercês in the Brazilian final to win for the fourth time in their fourth tournament appearance. Mercês also currently occupies second place in the IFA rankings (2,000 points). Third place went to CCAA Rosario, who moved up to third place in the overall standings (1,500 points).

A Brazilian team, SOGIPA/Cargo Way, also celebrated at the top of the women’s podium. The team thus extended its lead in the IFA World Tour ranking to 2,750 points. Punta Chica secured second place in Rosario, with CCAA Rosario in third.

Karlsdorf (500)

DSG UKJ Froschberg was the first European team to celebrate victory at an IFA World Tour tournament in 2024. The Austrians beat their German rivals at the traditional European opener in Karlsdorf. Froschberg beat NLV Vaihingen 2:0 (11:9, 11:4) in the final and leapt into the top 10 of the current World Tour rankings with this triumph. Third place was secured by TV Vaihingen/Enz, who won the placement match against TV Schweinfurt-Oberndorf (14:11).

In the women’s competition, TSV Calw came out on top, winning the final against TV Stammheim 18:10, while TV Käfertal won the match for third place against TV Unterhaugstett (12:10).

Elgg (Major)

The first Major tournament in Europe will take place this weekend in Elgg, Switzerland. The 56th International Eulach Tournament will once again provide a top-class field of participants this year. Over 150 teams from Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland have entered in a total of ten categories; the men’s and women’s competition is traditionally part of the World Tour as a major event.

IFA Fistball World Tour Finals: Club World Cup 2024 in Mannheim

The 2024 Men’s and Women’s World Tour Finals will take place in Mannheim: From July 18 to 21, 2024, the fistball scene will thus return to the venue of the 2023 Fistball World Championship. A total of 16 teams from four countries will take part over the four days of the event.

When the best fistball club teams in the world meet in July 2024, fistball fans are likely to be reminded of the summer of 2023. The Rhine-Neckar Stadium, the venue for the men’s Fistball World Championship, will host the top eight men’s and top eight women’s teams. The 2024 World Tour Final will be organized by the Förderverein Faustball² and VfR Mannheim.

“The discussions about hosting the event in Mannheim have been consistently positive with everyone involved,” says Sönke Spille, Head of Events at the International Fistball Association (IFA): “Everyone in Mannheim still has great memories of the World Championship. We are all the more pleased that the best club teams can now benefit from the optimal conditions around the Rhein-Neckar Stadium.” All matches will be played in the Rhein-Neckar Stadium, which has a capacity of up to 5,000 spectators for the fistball event. There are no plans for an additional grandstand like at the Fistball World Championships; instead, the covered seating grandstand will provide the ideal setting for the center court. “Floodlit matches are also possible in the stadium, which can once again provide a very special flair for the top matches,” says Spille.

“We enjoyed the warm and great atmosphere at the Fistball World Championships over the days in the Rhein-Neckar Stadium,” says Boris Scheuermann, President of VfR Mannheim. The traditional club is known for its success in soccer and its intensive youth work. The men’s team currently plays in the Baden Oberliga. Although the club does not have a fistball department, the VfR managers were inspired by a certain enthusiasm for fistball during the World Championships. “During the World Championship, we had the idea of once again hosting a fistball event in our stadium,” says Scheuermann: “We are delighted that it worked out so quickly and that we will be able to welcome the best club teams from all over the world to Mannheim in July 2024.”

The city of Mannheim is also very much looking forward to welcoming another international fistball event to the city of squares. “I am delighted that the hosting of the finals will further strengthen Mannheim’s reputation as the capital of fistball after last year’s successful World Championships,” said Mannheim’s sports mayor Ralf Eisenhauer.
“It’s great that we are back in Germany after the premiere event in Vaihingen/Enz in 2018,” says Christoph Oberlehner, IFA General Secretary. The first edition of the new World Cup format took place in Vaihingen/Enz five years ago. In 2019, the best club teams in the world were then hosted in Salzburg (Austria) before the final event fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic twice in a row. The IFA relaunched the event in October 2022 in Curitiba, where also the fourth edition was held last October.

The field of participants for the 2024 World Tour Finals has now also been finalized. In addition to defending champion and the winner of the 2023 World Tour, SG Novo Hamburgo (Brazil), TSV Pfungstadt (Germany), SOGIPA/Cargo Way (Brazil), Union Tigers Vöcklabruck, UFG Sparkasse Grieskirchen/Pötting, DSG UKJ Froschberg, AWN TV Enns (all Austria) and the Mannheim club TV Käfertal will also be competing in the men’s competition.

The women’s field will be led by defending champions TV Jahn Schneverdingen (Germany). They will be joined by TSV Dennach (Germany), SOGIPA/Cargo Way, Clube Duque de Caxias (both Brazil), FG Elgg-Ettenhausen (Switzerland), Faustball Kreuzlingen, SVD Diepoldsau-Schmitter (all Switzerland) and FBC Linz-Urfahr (Austria).

IFA ball list valid 1 April 2024

The IFA is pleased to announce the release of the approved fistballs from April 1, 2024. With a choice of five ball manufacturers – Sportastic, Ludwig, Drohnn, Errea and HAWE – we can offer our athletes a wide range of high quality balls.

This selection of approved fistballs is in line with our commitment to continuously improve the standards and quality of the game. Extensive testing and trials have confirmed that all approved fistballs meet quality and performance standards. Athletes can therefore rest assured that every ball is a reliable tool for exciting and fair games.

We would like to express our thanks to Sportastic, Ludwig, Drohnn, Errea and HAWE for their continuous work and commitment to our sport!

List of approved Fistballs valid from 1 April 2024: DOWNLOAD

The INTERACT+ Project is in full swing!

As the INTERACT+ Project goes into it’s second year, the first meeting of 2024 was hosted in Linz, Austria by Project Partner International Fistball Association March 13-14th. The meeting had updates from all work packages. After the successful submission of Literature Review and Theory of Action, University of Limerick updated the Partners on the next stages on testing the Theory of Action as well as the Evaluation process.

Work Package 3 had updates on planning the capacity building trainings for the next two years of the programme. If you are an International Sports Organisation and would like your representatives or employees to learn more about implementing Sport for All in your organisation, please reach out to the capacity building coordinators at geschaefte@frisbeesportverband.de and mbsaibes@foundation.ittf.com. This training is being offered free of charge for any participants who would like to join and will have online trainings for participants not able to travel.

The INTERACT+ Label is an exciting part of the project. We will be launching an online dashboard where organisations can self-evaluate their Sport for All activities, initiatives, and areas of interest in June. To inform and refine the Label, an INTERACT+ Conference with International Sport Organisations and National Sport Federations will be held in Lausanne, Switzerland on October 1st where we can collect expert feedback about the INTERACT+ Label Certification. The next project partner meeting will be online in June.

Brazilian teams dominate first major tournament

The first major tournament of the 2024 World Tour has been played. The international Victor Körbes Cup took place for the 27th time on 16 and 17 March in Novo Hamburgo (BRA).
With 43 teams from Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Germany and Switzerland, a total of over 220 athletes took part in 8 categories. Despite recurring rain showers and sometimes poor pitch conditions, the spectators were treated to spectacular matches and fistball at the highest level.

Men’s competition
After the preliminary round matches on Saturday, the home team Ginastica Novo Hamburgo emerged as the favourites. In the semi-final against the argentinian team from Rosario, the young Brazilians lived up to their role as favourites and qualified for the final. The team from Club Merces (BRA) also secured a place in the final. They won the 2nd semi-final against Condor (BRA) with a 2:0. In a very evenly balanced match, the two brazilian teams fought a duel at eye level. In the end, however, Merces were defeated 3:1 and the victory of the first elite tournament and thus 1000 points for the World Tour went to Ginastica Novo Hamburgo. Rosario took bronze and Condor finished in fourth place.

 

Women’s competition
The women’s competition was just as exciting. The ladies from Sogipa Porto Alegre (BRA) emerged as the favourites. They qualified for the final without losing a set after beating the chilean team Llanquihue in the semi-finals. The second semi-final was won by Team Morgenau (BRA). A 2:0 victory against Duque secured them a place in the gold medal match. The women from Sogipa Porto Alegre finally won the tournament. The favourites from the preliminary round prevailed with a clear 3:0. The ladies from Club Duque were delighted with third place and the bronze medal, while the chilean team Llanquihue finished in fourth place.

With the former WADA Presidents Richard Pound (WADA Founding President 1999-2007) and Sir Craig Reedie (WADA President 2014-2019) as well as AIMS President Stephan Fox and the new AIMS Executive Administrator Zhuldyz Baimagambet.

IFA congratulates WADA to 25th anniversary at 2024 Annual Symposium

As part of its 2024 Annual Symposium, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) celebrated its 25th anniversary in Lausanne, Switzerland. “Since its establishment in 1999, WADA has been a basis for our mission to organize a doping-free sport”, said IFA President Jörn Verleger, who represented IFA in Lausanne.

The 25th Anniversary Gala gathered 1,100+ Symposium attendees and other invited guests to celebrate WADA’s first quarter century, the accomplishments of the global anti-doping community and some of its key contributors.

WADA President Witold Bańka thanked everyone that has contributed to the work of the global anti-doping movement over the past 25 years. “Today, we want to celebrate the collective, because we are proud of how many people have recognized the importance of, and have joined, our global collaborative movement for doping-free sport. We know that the roles and responsibilities of our various stakeholder groups are complementary to the goal of protecting clean sport; and that, as ONE TEAM, we are stronger”, he said.

Mr. Bańka then highlighted how certain stakeholder groups and individuals had been particularly instrumental to the creation, evolution and strengthening of WADA and Clean Sport, which the Agency wanted to acknowledge with inaugural “Play True Awards,” to recognize long-lasting and significant contributions to the anti-doping movement.

The 2024 Play True Awards were presented to:
• Ben Sandford, former Chair of WADA’s Athlete Committee, on behalf of Athletes of the World;
• Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, on behalf of the Sport Movement;
• Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the White House National Drug Control Policy and Chair of One Voice, on behalf of the Public Authorities;
• Richard Pound, WADA Founding President 1999-2007;
• The late Honorable John Fahey, WADA President 2008-2013; and
• Sir Craig Reedie, WADA President 2014-2019

For this first year of WADA’s Play True Awards, WADA identified a short-list of important contributors over the past 25 years. Going forward, the Agency will launch a Play True Award program that will encourage the global anti-doping community to submit nominations for individuals or teams, based on certain categories and criteria that will be established and communicated over the coming months. Those that would then be selected by a jury as Play True Award winners will be publicly recognized and awarded during a dedicated session of WADA’s future Symposiums.

Novo Hamburgo and Club Duque de Caxias win the first World Tour Tournament 2024!

Last weekend (2 and 3 March), Curitiba (BRA) hosted the 8th Copa Merces and thus the opening tournament of the 2024 World Tour.
The teams played exciting matches for the first World Tour points in numerous junior categories as well as in the men’s and women’s categories.
Despite an altercation between the fans of two teams, the tournament was able to continue and finish in accordance with the rules.

In the men’s competition, the team from Novo Hamburgo (BRA) finished on the winners’ podium. They were followed by the home team from Merces (BRA) and Sogipa (BRA).

 

Duque de Caxias was crowned the winner of the women’s competition. The silver medal went to the ladies from Team Morgenau A and bronze went to the host team from Club Merces (BRA).

Fistball Women’s World Championship 2024: 12 nations compete in Argentina

The field of participants for the 10th Women’s Fistball World Championship has been finalized: Twelve nations from all continents will compete in the world championships in Montecarlo, Argentina, in November. Never before have there been so many participating teams at a Women’s World Championship.

From New Zealand and Australia to the USA, from defending champion Germany to Namibia and from Denmark to host nation Argentina – the list of participating nations is long. When the world’s best female fistball players compete for the world championship title in Montecarlo (Argentina) from November 7 to 10, there will be more teams at the World Championships than ever before. Twelve nations from all continents have registered for the tenth Women’s Fistball World Championship in history. The title fights are being organized by Club Guatambú from the province of Misiones.

Record champions, returners and world championship newcomers

The defending champion, the national team from Germany (9 World Championships participations), will compete in Montecarlo at the beginning of November. The record world champion has won seven of the nine titles awarded to date, including at the last four events. Their opponents in the finals in recent years have been Austria (9), Switzerland (9/World Champions 2002) and Brazil (8/World Champions 2010). The two South American representatives from Argentina (8) and Chile (8) have also been permanent World Championship guests in recent years. The Chileans in particular have proven in recent years with their semi-final appearances in 2016 and 2021 that they are hot on the heels of the top four nations.

This will be Denmark‘s second World Championship appearance in a row, following their debut in Austria in 2021. Four nations will be returning to the international stage. New Zealand (1) last competed at a Women’s World Championship in 2018, while for Australia (1) it will also be their second appearance at a Women’s World Championship after 2016. The United States (1) took part in the 2014 World Championship in Germany, while Namibia (1) will return to an international event after an 18-year break. In 2006, the Africans finished a strong fifth in Switzerland. The starting field is completed by India, who are planning their premiere at a women’s World Championship for Argentina.

“Fistball is played with great enthusiasm on all continents of the world. The starting field for the Fistball World Championship proves this once again. We are delighted that we will see such a large and top-class starting field in November,” says Jörn Verleger, President of the International Fistball Association: “We are convinced that the positive development of women’s fistball worldwide will continue and that the event will provide an additional boost.”

Qualifying event for the World Games

The tenth Women’s Fistball World Championship will be held on the grounds of Club Guatambú in Montecarlo. “The club and its many volunteers have begun intensive preparations for the event,” says Sönke Spille, IFA Head of Events: “We are convinced that the participating teams will provide a great competition that all fans can look forward to.”

The 2024 Women’s Fistball World Championship in Argentina will also serve as a qualifying competition for the 2025 World Games in Chengdu, China. “In addition to the continental champions, the best-placed teams at this World Championship will secure their ticket to Chengdu,” explains Spille. After the premiere in 2022 in Birmingham (USA) with six teams, a total of eight nations will qualify for Chengdu in 2025.

An overview of the participating nations at the IFA 2024 Women’s World Championship (Argentina): Austria, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland (Europe), Argentina, Brazil, Chile, USA (Pan-America), Australia, New Zealand (Oceania), Namibia (Africa), India (Asia)

IFA awards Men’s Fistball World Championship 2027 to Germany again

The 2027 Men’s Fistball World Championship will be held in Germany: The International Fistball Association has once again awarded the biggest fistball event to the country of the current world champion at its most recent Executive Committee meeting. After 1972, 1982, 2007 and 2023, Germany will host the best men’s fistball teams for the fifth time.

It was the highlight of a unique Fistball World Championship 2023: 10.000 spectators created an impressive atmosphere in the final match between Germany and Austria in Mannheim’s SAP Arena. The organizers had installed natural turf in the multifunctional arena just for the event, in which Germany celebrated the world championship title with an impressive performance at the end of the eight-day tournament. In 2027 Germany will host the top international event again. “The 2019 and 2023 World Championships in Switzerland and Germany, but also national national events such as the recent Final4 in Switzerland have shown that fistball has the potential to leave its existing niche and become an attractive team sport in its own right,” says Jörn Verleger, President of the International Fistball Association, on the unanimous decision by the IFA Executive Committee to award the 2027 World Championship to Germany once again: “We want to do this not least because of the sport-political investment made at the 2023 World Championship. For this we see the conditions in the country of the reigning world champions are best suited for this.”

In July 2027, the World Championship is scheduled to take place in July 2027 – where exactly will be will be decided in the coming months. “There will be a call for tenders in which the bidding for a city or a region is possible,” explains Torsten Woitag, member of the board at Faustball Deutschland: “The aim is to find the venue by the end of the year.” The renewed bid for the for the World Championship is part of the 2028 strategic plan that the German association has announced in order to increase the visibility of fistball in the long term. The plan is also to organize further international events to be held at the World Championship venue before 2027. “This general approach of the German bid convinced us,” says IFA President Verleger: “In the coming years, we see the opportunity to refinance the investment and still not have to give up the fistball values.”

Kick-off at the weekend: IFA World Tour also starts in Curitiba in 2024 – 120 teams again

The IFA Fistball World Tour starts its sixth season with the IFA 500 tournament at Clube Mercês in Curitiba. Over the next seven months, 25 tournaments in eight countries are on the calendar. Highlights of the tour will be the major tournaments in Novo Hamburgo (BRA), Porto Alegre (BRA), Elgg (SUI), Stammheim (GER), Jona (SUI) and Widnau (SUI). More than 120 teams have registered to take part.

It is now the traditional start: this weekend, the IFA World Tour 2024 will kick off for the fourth time in Curitiba, Brazil. At the Copa Mercês organized by Clube Mercês, the winning teams in both the men’s and women’s competitions can collect 500 points each for the World Tour – and thus also take over the first top position in the IFA World Tour Ranking 2024.

The tournament in Mercês is the first of four South American tournaments in a row. After a free weekend, the two Brazilian Major tournaments in Novo Hamburgo and Porto Alegre as well as a 500 category tournament in Rosario (Argentina) will take place. The first European tournament on the World Tour will then take place in Karlsdorf (Germany) at the beginning of April, before the next two Major tournaments are held as a double-header on two weekends in a row in Elgg (Switzerland) and Stammheim (Germany). In August, the World Tour will then make its traditional stop in Jona and Widnau (both Switzerland). There will also be other tournaments in Europe and South America, as well as in the USA and India.

“In 2024, we will once again see many exciting tournaments all over the world,” Gastao Englert, Chairman of the IFA Sports Commission and the newly established World Tour Commission, is convinced: “I am delighted that many organizers have established themselves as permanent tour locations and I am excited to see which teams will be able to top the world rankings this year,” says Englert. IFA President Jörn Verleger is also looking forward to the next edition of the World Tour: “It’s great that the tour continues to be an integral part of the fistball calendar.”

Over 120 teams have registered to take part in the IFA World Tour 2024. This means that just as many teams as last year will take part in the tournaments around the world. The best teams in the final ranking in the autumn will also qualify for the World Tour Finals 2025, the Club World Championship in Fistball. Here, the top World Tour teams complete the starting field, to which the continental champions are also admitted.