The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has announced key updates to its Laws and Regulations following its Annual General Meeting (AGM) and subsequent BWF Council meeting held in late April. The most significant change sees the permanent ban of the controversial spin serve, while new regulations regarding seed withdrawals have been approved for the upcoming BWF World Championships.
The BWF AGM, held on April 26, 2025, ratified the amendment to Law 9.1.5 of the Laws of Badminton, effectively putting an end to the spin serve. The updated law now explicitly states: “the server shall release the shuttle without adding spin, and the server’s racket shall initially hit the base of the shuttle;” This decision formalizes the temporary ban that was previously in place and provides clarity for players and officials moving forward. The spin serve, which gained prominence for its unpredictable trajectory, had sparked considerable debate within the badminton community regarding its impact on the game.
In addition to the law change, the BWF Council, meeting on April 27-28, 2025, approved the inclusion of seed withdrawal movement regulations specifically for the BWF World Championships 2025. This decision follows the successful implementation of similar regulations on the BWF World Tour starting in 2023. The council also indicated plans to extend these regulations to Grade 3 tournaments later in the year. These regulations aim to ensure a fairer and more consistent draw process when seeded players withdraw from tournaments.
The BWF will be communicating the full details of these updates, including the specific regulations and operational procedures for seed withdrawals at the World Championships, to its member federations in due course.
For those seeking more detailed information on specific sections of the BWF Statutes, they are encouraged to visit the official BWF Corporate website at https://corporate.bwfbadminton.com/statutes/. Any specific queries regarding these updates can be directed to the BWF Events Director – Technical Operations, Christopher Trenholme, at c.trenholme@bwf.sport.
These changes mark important developments in the governance of badminton, addressing recent on-court innovations and aiming for greater consistency and fairness in major tournaments.