See also: World championship and World cup.
The following is a list of world sports championships, including some sporting events which use a different name with a similar meaning. In some sports, there is a world series, but that term usually has a somewhat different meaning.
Tournaments which are formally defunct or where a further event is not currently planned are marked with a gray background.
| Sport ! Competition name | Competing entities ! First held | Current holder ! Next | Frequency ! Details and notes | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air racing | Red Bull Air Race World Championship | Individuals | 2003 |  Matt Hall (2019) | Defunct | Annual | Not held in 2011–2013, discontinued for 2020 | |||
| Auto racing | ||||||||||
| Nations |  Republic of Ireland (2008–09) | Defunct | Annual | |||||||
| Formula One World Championship |  Max Verstappen | Annual | ||||||||
 Red Bull Racing | ||||||||||
| Individuals |  Brendon Hartley Ryō Hirakawa
| Annual | ||||||||
| Manufacturers | Toyota (2023) | -bgcolor="#DDDDDD" | Individuals | Marc Basseng and Markus Winkelhock (2012) | Defunct | Annual | Annually until 2012 | |||
| Teams | Münnich Motorsport (2012) | |||||||||
| Individuals | 1993 |  Nasser Al Attiyah (2021) | Defunct | Annual | Annually until 2021 | |||||
| Teams |  Overdrive SA (2021) | |||||||||
| Individuals | Nasser Al Attiyah /  Mathieu Baumel (2023) | Annual | Co-sanctioned with FIM; replaced World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies | |||||||
| Teams | Toyota Gazoo Racing (2022) | |||||||||
| Individuals | 2002 | Nasser Al Attiyah / Mathieu Baumel (2023) | Annual | Baja events split off from cross-country rally competition after original bajas competition was combined with rallies world cup in 2012. | ||||||
| Teams | Overdrive SA (2021) | |||||||||
| Individuals |  Kalle Rovanperä (2023) | Annual | ||||||||
| Manufacturers | Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT (2023) | |||||||||
| Individuals | Thed Björk (2017) | Defunct | Annual | changed name to the World Touring Car Cup. | ||||||
| Manufacturers | Volvo (2017) | |||||||||
| Individuals | Yann Ehrlacher (2021) | Defunct | Annual | "World Touring Car Cup" was used between 1993 and 1995 when it was a single event. | ||||||
| Teams |  Cyan Racing (2021) | |||||||||
| Manufacturers | Delage (1927) | Defunct | Annual | Annually until 1927 | ||||||
| Manufacturers; from 1985 teams | Peugeot Talbot Sport (1992) | Defunct | Annual | Annually until 1992. Resumed as FIA World Endurance Championship | ||||||
| Individuals | Yannick Dalmas Derek Warwick (1992) | Annual | ||||||||
| KZ | 1964 | Nasser Al Thani (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||||||
| OK |  Kirill Kutskov (2023) | Annual | ||||||||
| Individuals | 2017 | James Deane (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||||||
| Individuals | 2014 | Jake Dennis (2022–23) | Annual | |||||||
| Closed cars | 2000 |  Dan Michl (2023) | 2023 | Annual | ||||||
| Competition Cars | Sebastien Petit (2023) | |||||||||
| Individuals | 2015 | Pierre Ragues (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||||||
| RX1 | 2014 | Johan Kristoffersson (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||||||
| RX2e | Guillaume De Ridder (2021) | |||||||||
| Bull riding | PBR Global Cup | Nations | 2017 | (2022) | Defunct | Annual | Discontinued after 2022 | |||
| PBR World Cup | Nations | 2007 | (2010) | Defunct | Annual | Discontinued after 2010 | ||||
| Individuals | 1985 |  Ferenc Tóth (2018) | 2019 | Annual | ||||||
| Nations |  (2018) | |||||||||
| Individuals | 1937 | Winners in 6 classes (2018) | 2020 | Biennial | The duration between World Gliding Championships varies slightly, dependent on the hemisphere of the next planned edition. | |||||
| Paragliding | Paragliding World Cup | Individual | 1992 | Winners in 5 competitions (2016) | 2017–18 | Annual | ||||
| MotoE Individual | 2019 |  Mattia Casadei (2023) | 2023 | Annual | ||||||
| Moto3 Individual | 2012 |  Izan Guevara (2022) | Until 2012 as 125cc | |||||||
| Moto2 Individual | 2010 | Augusto Fernández (2022) | Until 2010 as 250cc | |||||||
| MotoGP Individual | 2002 | Francesco Bagnaia (2022) | Until 2002 as 500cc | |||||||
| Moto3 Constructor | 2012 | Gas Gas (2018) | 2023 | Annual | ||||||
| Moto2 Constructor | 2010 | Kalex (2022) | ||||||||
| MotoGP Constructor | 2002 | Ducati (2022) | ||||||||
| Individuals | 2003 |  Jason Anderson (2018) | 2019 | Annual | ||||||
| Motocross World Championship | MX2 Individual | 2003 | Jorge Prado Garcia (2018) | 2019 | Annual | |||||
| MXGP Individual | 2003 | Jeffrey Herlings (2018) | ||||||||
| MX2 Constructor | 2003 | KTM (2018) | 2019 | Annual | ||||||
| MXGP Constructor | 2003 | KTM (2018) | ||||||||
| FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship | Riders | 1999 | Matthias Walkner (2021) | Defunct | Annual | |||||
| Manufacturers | 1999 | KTM (2021) | ||||||||
| World Rally-Raid Championship | Riders | 2022 | Sam Sunderland (2022) | 2022 | Annual | Co-sanctioned with FIA; replaced Cross-Country Rallies World Championship | ||||
| Manufacturers | 2022 | Monster Energy Honda (2022) | ||||||||
| FIM Bajas World Cup | Riders | 2012 | Martin Michek (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |||||
| Manufacturers | 2012 | KTM (2021) | ||||||||
| FIM World Enduro Championship | E3 | 2004 | Steve Holcombe (2018) | 2019 | Annual | |||||
| E2 | 2004 | Eero Remes (2018) | ||||||||
| E1 | 2004 | Brad Freeman (2018) | ||||||||
| Pairs | Jan Hendrickx Ben van den Bogaart (2016) | Annual | ||||||||
| Speedway World Team Cup (1960–2000) Speedway World Cup (since 2001) | National Team | Poland (2017) | Annual | |||||||
| National pair | Sweden (1993) | Defunct | Annual | Annually until 1993 | ||||||
| Individual Speedway World Championship (1936–1994) Speedway Grand Prix (since 1995) | Individuals |  Bartosz Zmarzlik (2020)[1] | Annual | |||||||
| Individuals[2] | Dmitry Koltakov (2017) | Annual | ||||||||
| Nations | Russia (2017) | Annual | ||||||||
| Pairs | 1949 | Ben Birchall (driver) &<br /> Tom Birchall (passenger) (2018) | 2019 | Annual | ||||||
| Team | 1975 | F.C.C TSR Honda France (2018) | 2019 | Annual | ||||||
| Individuals | Jonathan Rea (2018) | Annual | ||||||||
| Manufacturers | Kawasaki (2018) | |||||||||
| Individuals | 1999 | Sandro Cortese (2018) | Annual | |||||||
| Manufacturers | Yamaha (2018) | |||||||||
| Individuals | 2000 | Markus Reiterberger (2018) | Defunct | Annual | ||||||
| Manufacturers | BMW S1000RR (2018) | |||||||||
| Ben Stoeger (2017) | Triennial | Winner(s) of largest division(s) | ||||||||
| United States Production Team (2014) Simon Racaza, Ben Stoeger, Matthew Mink | Defunct | |||||||||
| 2019 | ||||||||||
| - | Josh Froelich (2018) | 2021 | ||||||||
| Russia Standard Team (2018) Roman Anikin, Roman Khalitov, Sergey Orlov Oleg Kudryavtsev | ||||||||||
 Chun Ki Wu (2018) | 2021 | |||||||||
| Hong Kong (2018) | ||||||||||
| Motorboat racing < | -- | Individual Boats | 1992 | Team Abu Dhabi (2016) | 2017 | Annual | ||||
| Individual | 1981 | Shaun Torrente (2022) | 2023 | Annual | 2020 Season got cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | |||||
| Individual | 1996 | Marcus Jorgensen (Runabout GP1) 2022 Valentin Dardillat (Ski Division GP1 Man) 2022, Jasmiin Üpraus (Ski Division Woman) 2022,Rashid Al Mulla (Freestyle) 2022 | 2023 | Annual | 2020 Season was made of only one GP as all the remaining GP were cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | |||||
| Radio-controlled car racing | IFMAR 1:8 IC Track World Championship | Individual | 1977 | Shoki Takahata (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||||
| , 2WD | Individual | 1985 | Spencer Rivkin (2019) | 2021 | Double header single host event | |||||
| , 4WD | Individual | Bruno Coelho (2019) | ||||||||
| IFMAR 1:5 Touring Car World Championship | Individual | 2001 | Marko Grigić (2019) | 2021 | ||||||
| IFMAR 1:8 IC GT World Championship | Individual | 2020 | Jörn Neumann (2020) | 2021 | ||||||
| Individual | 1986 | Davide Ongaro (2018) | 2020 | |||||||
| IFMAR 1:12 Electric Track World Championship | Individual | 1982 | Marc Rheinard (2020) | 2022 | Double header single host event from 2002 up to 2018, triple in 2000 with PRO 10 | |||||
| IFMAR 1:12 Electric Track World Championship, stock | Individual | Andy Murray (2020) | Not held from 1986 through 2016, ran as World Cup event in 2018. | |||||||
| IFMAR 1:10 ISTC World Championship | Individual | 2000 | Bruno Coelho (2018) | 2022 | Double header single host event from 2002 up to 2018, triple in 2000 with PRO 10 | |||||
| IFMAR 1:10 200mm Nitro Touring Car World Championship | Individual | 2004 | Naoto Matsukura (2018) | 2020 | Double header single host event from 2002 up to 2018, triple in 2000 with PRO 10 | |||||
| IFMAR PRO 10 World Championship | Individual | 1992 | Masami Hirosaka (2000) | Defunct | Biennial until 2002 | |||||
| IFMAR 1:10 235mm IC Track World Championship | Individual | 2000 | Brian Berry (2002) | Defunct | Biennial until 1984 | |||||
| Radio-controlled boat sailing | IRSA – 10 Rater World Championships | Individual | 1999 | Brad Gibson (2016) | Undefined | Various | Authorised by World Sailing and the International Radio Sailing Association | |||
| IRSA – A Class World Championships | Individual | Graham Bantock (2005) | Undefined | Various | ||||||
| IRSA – Marblehead World Championships | Individual | Brad Gibson (2018) | Biennial | Various | ||||||
| IRSA – One Metre World Championship | Individual | 1994 | Zvonko Jelacic (2017) | 2019 | Biennial | |||||
| Sailing | Class World Championships | Individuals and Teams | Annual | The majority of sailing 100+ Annual World Championships are none gender specific | ||||||
| Speedcubing | WCA World Championship | Individuals | 1982 | Philipp Weyer (2019) | 2021 | Biannual | Note: The World Championships were started in 1982, but they only became biannual at the second World Championship, in 2003. | |||
| Rubik's Nations Cup | Nations | 2017 | 1 (2019) | 2021 | Biannual | Note: Countries can form multiple teams | ||||
| Sport ! Competition name | Competing entities ! First held | Current holder ! Next | Frequency ! Details and notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aikido | Aikido World Championships | Individuals | 1989 | (2019)r | 2022 | Biennial | Delayed in 2021 due to Covid |
| Alpine skiing | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Downhill | 1931 | Marco Odermatt (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Super G | 1987 |  James Crawford (2023) | |||||
| Giant slalom | 1931 | Marco Odermatt (2023) | |||||
| Slalom | 1931 |  Henrik Kristoffersen (2023) | |||||
| Alpine combined | 1932 | Alexis Pinturault (2023) | |||||
| Parallel giant slalom | 2021 | Alexander Schmid (2023) | |||||
| FIS Alpine Ski World Cup | Individuals | 1967 | Marco Odermatt (2022–23) | 2023–24 | Annual | ||
| Nations | Switzerland (2022–23) | ||||||
| World Para Alpine Skiing Championships | Individuals | 1972 | Several winners in Alpine and Nordic (2023) | 2025 Alpine and Nordic | Biennial | ||
| American football | IFAF World Championship | Nations | 1999 | (2015) | 2025 | Quadrennial | Not held in 2019 |
| Aquatics | FINA World Aquatics Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Most medals (2024) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| World Diving Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 5 events (2025) | 2025 | Biennial | ||
| FINA Diving World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | Most medals: (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | ||
| World Aquatics Swimming World Cup | Individuals | 1988-89 |  Qin Haiyang (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||
| FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) | Individuals | 1993 | Most medals (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| FINA Water Polo World Cup | Nations | 1979 | (2023) | 2026 | Quadrennial | Biennially until 2002 | |
| FINA Water Polo World Championship | Nations | 1973 | (2024) | 2025 | Biennial | Biennially since 2001 | |
| World Para Swimming Championships | Individuals | 1990 | Most medals (2019) | 2025 | Biennial | ||
| Archery | World Archery Championships | Individual recurve | 1931 |  Mete Gazoz (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Individual compound | 1995 |  Ojas Pravin Deotale (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |||
| Team recurve | 1931 | South Korea (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |||
| Team compound | 1995 | Poland (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |||
| World Indoor Archery Championships | Individual recurve | 1991 | Sjef van den Berg (2018) | Defunct | Biennial | ||
| Team recurve | (2018) | ||||||
| Individual compound | Mike Schloesser (2018) | ||||||
| Team compound | (2018) | ||||||
| Archery World Cup | Individual recurve | 2006 |  Marcus D'almeida (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||
| Individual compound | Mathias Fullerton (2023) | ||||||
| World Field Archery Championships | Individual | 1969 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| World 3D Archery Championships | Individual | 2003 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Archery Championship | Individual | 1998 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| Artistic roller skating | Artistic Skating World Championships | Individuals | 1980 | (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Not held in 2020 |
| Athletics | World Athletics Championships | Individuals | 1983 | Most medals
| 2022 | Biennial | 1983–1991 held quadrennially, biennially starting 1993 |
| IAAF Continental Cup | Continents | 2010 | United States (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | ||
| World Athletics Indoor Championships | Individuals | 1985 | (2022) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| World Athletics Cross Country Championships | Individuals | 1973 |  Joshua Cheptegei (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Teams | Uganda (2019) | ||||||
| Skyrunning World Championships | Individuals | 2010 | Spain (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| IAAF World Half Marathon Championships | Individuals | 1992 |  Geoffrey Kipsang (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | Annually until 2010 | |
| Team | 1992 |  Ethiopia (2018) | |||||
| IAAF World Race Walking Cup | Individual 20 km | 1961 | Kōki Ikeda (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Team 20 km | (2018) | ||||||
| Individual 50 km | Hirooki Arai (2018) | ||||||
| Team 50 km | (2018) | ||||||
| IAU 50 km World Championships | Individuals | 2005 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | 2017.2018 Not held | |
| IAU 100 km World Championships | Individuals | 1987 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| IAU 24 Hour World Championship | Individuals | 2001 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Teams | 2003 | (2019) | |||||
| IAAF World Marathon Cup | Individuals | 1985 | 2011 | Defunct | Biennial | ||
| World Athletics Relays | Nations | 2014 | Most medals (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Athletics Championships | Individuals | 1994 | Winners in multiple events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Australian rules football | Australian Football International Cup | Nations | 2002 | (2017) | 2023 | Triennial | |
| Badminton | BWF World Championships | Singles | 1977 |  Kunlavut Vitidsarn (2023) | 2025 | Annual | Annually since 2006; Not held in Summer Olympic years. |
| Doubles |  Kang Min-hyuk & Seo Seung-jae (2023) | ||||||
| Thomas Cup | Nations | 1949 | (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | Since 1984, it has been held concurrently with the women's Uber Cup. Most wins: 14, 11, 5 | |
| BWF Para-Badminton World Championships | Individuals and Doubles | 1998 | Winners in 10 events (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | ||
| Ball Hockey | Ball Hockey World Championship | Nations | 1996 | Canada (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Bandy | Bandy World Championship | Nations | 1957 | (2023) | 2025 | Annual | The second Bandy WCs were held in 1961; from that point, the championships were held biennially until 2003; and annually ever since. |
| Bandy World Cup | Clubs | 1974 | Bollnäs GIF (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Baseball | World Baseball Classic | Nations | 2006 | (2023) | 2026 | Triennial | Started in 1938 (as IBAF Baseball World Cup); Restarted in 2006; the first two of these modern WBCs (MLB approved and sanctioned by WBSC) were separated by three years (2006, 2009); moved to quadrennially until 2017. 2021 postponed to 2023 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most wins: 3, and 1 |
| Baseball World Cup | Nations | 1938 | (2011) | Defunct | Biennial until 2011 | ||
| WBSC Premier12 | Nations | 2015 | (2019) | 2024 | Quadrennial | ||
| Baseball5 | Baseball5 World Cup | Nations | 2022 | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Basketball | FIBA Basketball World Cup | Nations | 1950 | (2023) | 2027 | Quadrennial | Following the 2014 edition, the FIBA Basketball World Cup (but not the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup) has been reset on a new quadrennial cycle. The 2014 (men's) World Cup will be followed by the 2019 World Cup, avoiding conflict with the FIFA World Cup. Most wins: 5, 5, 3 |
| FIBA 3x3 World Cup | Nations | 2012 | (2023) | 2025 | Annual | Biennial until 2016 | |
| FIBA Intercontinental Cup | Clubs | 1966 | Sesi Franca (2023 (Singapore)) | 2024 (Singapore) | Annual | ||
| Wheelchair Basketball World Championship | Nations | 1973 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | ||
| DIBF Basketball World Championships | Nations | 2003 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | ||
| DIBF 3x3 World Cup | Nations | 2020 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| Basque Pelota | Basque Pelota World Championships | Nations | 1952 | Spain (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | |
| Beach soccer | FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup | Nations | 1995 | Brazil (2024) | 2025 | Biennial | Most wins: 14, 3, 3 |
| Beach volleyball | FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships | Nations | 1997 | Perušič – Schweiner (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Beach woodball | Beach Woodball World Cup | Nations | 2019 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Biathlon | Biathlon World Championships | Sprint 10 km | 1974 | Sturla Holm Lægreid (2024) | 2025 | Annual | Not held in Winter Olympic Years |
| Pursuit 12.5 km | 1997 | Johannes Thingnes Bø (2024) | |||||
| Mass start 15 km | 1999 | Johannes Thingnes Bø (2024) | |||||
| Individual 20 km | 1958 | Johannes Thingnes Bø (2024) | |||||
| Relay 4x7.5 km | 1966 | Sweden (2024) | |||||
| Summer Biathlon World Championships | Individuals | 1996 | Czech Republic (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Cancelled in 2020 | |
| Biathlon World Cup | Individuals overall | 1977 | Johannes Thingnes Bø (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| Nations | 2000–01 | Norway (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | |||
| Para Biathlon World Championships | Individuals | 1990 | (2021) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Billiards | WPA World Eight-ball Championship | Individuals | 2004 | Francisco Sánchez Ruíz (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| WPA World Blackball Championship | Individuals | 2006 |  Senzo Gumede (2022) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| IPA World Blackball Championship | Individuals | 2014 | Liam Dunster (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| WEPF Eight-ball Pool World Championship | Individuals | 1993 | Ronan McCarthy (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| WPA World Nine-ball Championship | Individuals | 1990 | Francisco Sánchez Ruíz (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| WPA World Ten-ball Championship | Individuals | 2008 | Wojciech Szewczyk (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| World Billiards Championship (English billiards) | Individuals | 1870 | David Causier (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| IBSF World Billiards Championship (English billiards) | Individuals | 1926 | Pankaj Advani (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| World Straight Pool Championship | Individuals | 1912 | Oliver Ortmann (2010) | Defunct | Annual | ||
| WPA World Artistic Pool Championship | Individuals | 2000 | Chi-Ming Lin (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| World Cup of Pool | Individuals | 2006 | David Alcaide&Francisco Sánchez Ruíz (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Bobsleigh | FIBT World Championships | Four man | 1930 | Francesco Friedrich Candy Bauer Alexander Schüller Thorsten Margis (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Winter Olympic years. |
| Two man | 1931 | Francesco Friedrich Alexander Schüller (2021) | |||||
| IBSF Para Sport World Championship | Nations | 2016 | (2021) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Boccia | World Boccia Championships | Nations | 2010 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Bodybuilding | IFBB World Men's Bodybuilding Championships | Individuals | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| World Amateur Bodybuilding Championships | Individuals | 1979 | (2009) | Defunct | |||
| Bowls | World Bowls Championship | Singles | 1966 |  Shannon McIlroy (2016) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Pairs | Aaron Wilson, Brett Wilkie (2016) | ||||||
| Triples | Andrew Knapper, Jamie Walker, Robert Paxton (2016) | ||||||
| Fours | Blake Signal, Mike Kernaghan, Mike Nagy, Ali Forsyth (2016) | ||||||
| Team | New Zealand (2016) | ||||||
| World Indoor Bowls Championships | Singles | 1979 | Les Gillett (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Pairs | Stuart Anderson, Darren Burnett (2022) | ||||||
| Boxing | World Amateur Boxing Championships | Individuals | 1974 | Winners in 13 weight classes (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Boxing World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | (2020) | 2022 | 2020 resume take place | ||
| Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu | World Jiu-Jitsu Championship | Individuals | 1996 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Cup | Individuals | 2009 | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| Canoeing | ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships | Men's C–1 500 m | 1971 | Conrad-Robin Scheibner (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Summer Olympic years,Men's C-2 200 m.C-4 1000 m.C-4 200 m.C-1 relay.C-1 10000 m.C-2 10000 m. K–2 200 m. K–4 1000 m ;Women's K-4 200 m. K-2 1000 m. K-4 1000 m. K-2 5000 m. K-1 relay,has been not take place. |
| Men's C–1 1000 m | 1938 | Conrad-Robin Scheibner (2021) | |||||
| Men's C–1 5000 m | 2010 | Balázs Adolf (2021) | |||||
| Men's C–2 500 m | 1971 | Nicolae Craciun & Daniele Santini (2021) | |||||
| Men's C–2 1000 m | 1938 | Russian Canoe Federation Kirill Shamshurin & Vladislav Chebotar (2021) | |||||
| Men's C–4 500 m | 1989 |  Vitaliy Vergeles & Andrii Rybachok & Yurii Vandiuk & Taras Mishchuk (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–1 200 m | 1994 | Andrea Di Liberto (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–1 500 m | 1948 |  Mikita Borykau (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–1 1000 m | 1938 | Fernando Pimenta (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–1 5000 m | 2010 | Bálint Noé (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–2 500 m | 1948 | Marcus Walz & Rodrigo Germade (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–2 1000 m | 1938 | Dennis Kernen & Martin Nathell (2021) | |||||
| Men's K–4 500 m | 1977 | Oleh Kukharyk & Dmytro Danylenko & Igor Trunov & Ivan Semykin (2021) | |||||
| ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships | C-1 | 1949 | Václav Chaloupka (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Summer Olympic years. | |
| C-1 team | 1949 | France (2021) | |||||
| C-2 | 1949 | 2019 not take place | |||||
| C-2 team | 1949 | 2019 not take place | |||||
| K-1 | 1949 | Boris Neveu (2021) | |||||
| K-1 team | 1949 | France (2021) | |||||
| Extreme K1 | 2017 | Joe Clarke(2021) | |||||
| Canoe Slalom World Cup | C-1 | 1988 | Denis Gargaud Chanut (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| C-2 | 1988 | 2021 not take place | |||||
| K-1 | 1988 | Vít Přindiš (2021) | |||||
| Extreme slalom | 1988 | Vít Přindiš (2021) | |||||
| Wildwater Canoeing World Cup | Individuals | 1989 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| ICF Canoe Polo World Championships | Nations | 1994 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships | teams | 1988 | Hungary (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Wildwater Canoeing World Championships | teams | 1959 | France (2021) | 2023 | Biennual | ||
| Carom Sports (Billiards) | World three-cushion billiards championship | Individuals | 1928 | Dick Jaspers (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Teams | 1981 | Murat Naci Çoklu/Lütfi Çenet (2019) | |||||
| Three-Cushion World Cup | Individuals | 1986 | Not Awarded (2021) | 2022 | Annual total 7 competitions | ||
| World Five-pins Championship | Individuals | 1965 |  Alejandro Martinotti (2017) | TBA | |||
| World Championship 5 Pins National Teams | Teams | 2019 | Italy (2019) | TBA | |||
| Artistic Billiards World Championship | Individuals | 1937 | Turkey (2012) | Defunct | |||
| Carrom | Carrom World Championship | Men's Singles | 1991 | (2022) | |||
| Men's Doubles | 1991 | (2022) | |||||
| Men's Team | 1991 | (2022) | |||||
| Carrom World Cup | Nations | 2002 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | ||
| Climbing | IFSC Climbing World Championships | Lead | 1991 | Jakob Schubert (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Bouldering | 2001 | Mickaël Mawem (2023) | |||||
| Speed | 1991 | Matteo Zurloni (2023) | |||||
| Combined | 2012 | Jakob Schubert (2023) | |||||
| IFSC Climbing World Cup | Lead | 1989 | Sorato Anraku (2023) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Bouldering | 1999 | Sorato Anraku (2023) | |||||
| Speed | 1998 | Veddriq Leonardo (2023) | |||||
| IFSC Paraclimbing World Championships | Individuals | 2011 | Lead:Winners in 13 events (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| IFSC Paraclimbing World Cup | Individuals | 2021 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| CP football | World CP Football Championships | Nations | 1982 | (2022) | 2024 | Annual | |
| Cricket | ICC Cricket World Cup (ODI format) | Nations | 1975 | (2023) | 2027 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 6, 2, 2,,, 1 each |
| ICC Men's T20 World Cup (T20I format) | Nations | 2007 | (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | Changed from odd-numbered years (2007–2009) to even-numbered years (2010–2016). Biennial until 2016. Quadrennial since 2016. Biennial since 2021. Most wins: 2, 2, 2, multiple countries 1 | |
| ICC World Test Championship (Test format) | Nations | 2019–21 | (2021-23) | 2023-25 | Biennial | 2 year league format concluding with the final | |
| Indoor Cricket World Cup | Nations | 1995 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| ICC Champions Trophy | 1998 | (2017) | Discontinued after 2017, but will comeback in 2025 | No fixed repetition | |||
| Blind Cricket World Cup | Nations | 1998 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | ||
| Blind T20 World Cup | Nations | 2012 | India (2017) | 2022 | once in five years | ||
| Cross-country skiing | FIS Nordic World Ski Championships | 15 km & 18 km | 1925 | Hans Christer Holund (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| 50 km | 1925 | Emil Iversen (2021) | |||||
| Skiathlon 15+15 km | 1993 | Alexander Bolshunov (2021) | |||||
| Sprint | 2001 | Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (2021) | |||||
| Relay 4x10 km | 1933 | Norway (2021) | |||||
| Team sprint | 2005 | Norway (2021) | |||||
| World Para Nordic Skiing Championships | Individuals | 1974 | Winners in 19 events (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| FIS Cross-Country World Cup | Individuals | 1973–74 | Alexander Bolshunov(2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| Curling | World Curling Championships | Nations | 1959 | (2023) | 2024 | Annual | 2020 cancellation |
| Cycling | UCI Road World Championships | Road race | 1927 | Remco Evenepoel (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Time trial | 1994 | Tobias Foss (2022) | |||||
| Team time trial (trade teams) | 2012 | (2018) | Defunct | Annual | |||
| Team time trial (nations) | 1962 | Italy (1994)[3] | Defunct | Annual | |||
| UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships | Individuals | 1950 | Tom Pidcock (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| UCI Mountain Bike World Championships | Cross-country | 1990 | Nino Schurter (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Downhill | 1990 | Loïc Bruni (2022) | |||||
| Four cross | 2002 | Tomáš Slavík (2021) | |||||
| UCI Mountain Bike World Cup | Individuals | 1990 | Mathias Flückiger (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Urban Cycling World Championships | Freestyle BMX | Flatland: Matthias Dandois Park: Logan Martin(2021) | 2021 | Annual | |||
| Cross-country eliminator | 2012 | 2021 Not Take Place | |||||
| Trials 20-inch | 1992 | 2021 Not Take Place | |||||
| Trials 26-inch | 1995 | 2021 Not Take Place | |||||
| UCI Track Cycling World Championships | Individuals and nations | 1893 | Winners in 22 events (2021); Most medals: | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships | Individuals | 2003 | Andreas Seewald (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Trials World Championships | Individuals | 1986 | Men's trials, 20 inch: Borja Conejos Men's trials, 26 inch: Jack Carthy (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI BMX World Championships | Individuals | 1982 | Niek Kimmann (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships | Individuals | 1956 | Lukas Kohl (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup | Individuals and nations | 1993 | Poland (2019–20) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup | Individuals | 1993–94 | Wout van Aert (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| UCI BMX Supercross World Cup | Individuals | 2010 | Simon Marquart (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships | Individuals and nations | 2007 | Winners in 18 events (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships | Individuals and nations | 2009 | Italy (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Darts | |||||||
| BDO World Darts Championship | Individuals | 1978 | Wayne Warren (2020) | 2021 | Defunct | Replaced by WDF World Darts Championship | |
| WDF World Darts Championship | Individuals | 2022 | Andy Baetens (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||
| PDC World Darts Championship | Individuals | 1994 | Luke Humphries(2024) | 2025 | Annual | Most wins: Phil Taylor 14, Michael van Gerwen 3, Gary Anderson 2 | |
| PDC World Cup of Darts | Doubles | 2010 | (Gerwyn Price & Jonny Clayton) (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Most wins: England 4, Netherlands 4, Wales 2 | |
| Dodgeball | World Dodgeball Championships | Nations - Foam | 2012 | Malaysia | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Nations - Cloth | 2019 | Great Britain | 2024 | Biennial | |||
| Dragon Boat | World Dragon Boat Championships | Nations | 2006 | (2019) | 2022 | Annual | |
| World Nations Championships | Nations | 1995 | (2019) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Club Crew World Championships | Nations | 1996 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Fencing | World Fencing Championships | Foil | 1926 | Enzo Lefort (2019) | 2022 | Annual | Championships are not held for Olympic events in Summer Olympic years. |
| Foil team | 1930 | (2019) | |||||
| Épée | 1921 | Gergely Siklósi (2019) | |||||
| Épée team | 1930 | (2019) | |||||
| Sabre | 1922 | Oh Sang-uk (2019) | |||||
| Sabre team | 1930 | (2019) | |||||
| Fencing World Cup | Individuals and Nations | 1972 | (2019–20) | 2020–21 | Annual | ||
| World Wheelchair fencing championships | Individuals | 2010 | (2019) | 2022 | Biennal | ||
| Field hockey | FIH Hockey World Cup | Nations | 1971 | (2023) | 2026 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 4, 3, 3, 3 |
| Men's Indoor Hockey World Cup | Nations | 2003 | (2023) | 2025 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 3, 2, 1 | |
| FIH Hockey5s World Cup | Nations | 2024 | (2024) | 2024 | |||
| Figure skating | World Figure Skating Championships | Individuals | 1896 | Shoma Uno (2023) | 2024 | Annual | |
| Finswimming | Finswimming World Championships | Individuals | 1976 | Russian Underwater Federation (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Finswimming World Cup | Individuals | 2014 | (2019) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Fistball | Fistball World Cup | Nations | 1968 | (2023) | 2027 | Quadrennial | |
| Flag football | IFAF Flag Football World Championship | Nations | 2002 | United States (2021) | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Floorball | World Floorball Championships | Nations | 1996 | Sweden (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Freediving | AIDA World Championships | Individuals | 1996 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Team | 2005 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |||
| Freerunning & Parkour | World Parkour Championship | Individuals | 2022 | 2022 | |||
| Freestyle Skiing | FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships | Moguls | 1986 | Mikaël Kingsbury(2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Dual Moguls | 2001 | Mikaël Kingsbury (2021) | |||||
| Aerials | 1986 | Maxim Burov (2021) | |||||
| Half-pipe | 2005 | Nico Porteous (2021) | |||||
| Slopestyle | 2011 | Andri Ragettli (2021) | |||||
| Ski cross | 2005 | Alex Fiva (2021) | |||||
| Big air | 2019 | Oliwer Magnusson (2021) | |||||
| Football | FIFA World Cup | Nations | 1930 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 5, 4, 4 |
| FIFA Club World Cup | Clubs | 2000 | Manchester City (2023) | 2025 | Quadrennial | Quadrennial since 2025, Most wins: Real Madrid 5, Barcelona 3, Corinthians 2, Bayern Munich 2 | |
| ConIFA World Football Cup | Nations | 2014 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | Replaced the Viva World Cup | |
| Football (Blind) | IBSA Blind Football World Championships – B1 | Nations | 1998 | Brazil (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| IBSA Blind Football World Championships – B2/B3 | Nations | 1998 | Ukraine (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Football (Amputee) | Amputee Football World Cup | Nations | 1984 | Angola (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| Futsal | FIFA Futsal World Cup | Nations | 1989 | (2021) | 2024 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 5, 2, 1 |
| AMF Futsal World Cup | Nations | 1982 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | Originally a triennial event, held quadrennially after 2003. | |
| Goalball | Goalball World Championships | Nations | 1978 | (2018) | 2022 | Qradrennial | |
| Golf | Mission Hills World Cup | Nations | 1953 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| World Golf Championships | WGC Championship | 1999 | Collin Morikawa (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| WGC Match Play | 1999 | Billy Horschel (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |||
| WGC Invitational | 1999 | Abraham Ancer (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |||
| WGC-HSBC Champions | 1999 | Rory McIlroy (2019) | 2022 | Annual | |||
| Grappling | World Grappling Championship | Individuals | 2007 | (2013) | Defunct | Biennial | |
| Gymnastics | World Artistic Gymnastics Championships | Individuals & Teams | 1903 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Olympic Years |
| Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships | Individual & Teams | 1964 | Individual: Yan Langyu Teams: Russian Gymnastics Federation (2021) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships | Pair and Group | 1974 | Russian Gymnastics Federation (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Aerobic Gymnastics World Championships | Individuals | 1995 | Russian Gymnastics Federation (2021) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Artistic Gymnastics World Cup | Individuals | 1975 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup | Individuals | 1983 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Trampoline World Cup | Individuals | 2008 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Wheel Gymnastics World Championships Senior | Individuals | 1995 | Simon Rufener | 2026 | Biennial | All-around champion gym wheel | |
| Handball (Olympic handball) | IHF World Men's Handball Championship | Nations | 1938 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | Most wins: 6, 4, 4 |
| IHF Super Globe | Clubs | 1997 | Magdeburg (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Handball (Beach handball) | World Men's Beach Handball Championship | Nations | 2004 | Croatia (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Ice Climbing | UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup | Individuals | 2000 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| UIAA Ice Climbing World Championships | Individuals | 2015 | (2017) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Ice hockey | IIHF World Championship | Nations | 1920 | (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Not held from 1940 to 1946 during World War II. Cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most wins: 28, and 27, and 12, 11 |
| World Para Ice Hockey Championships | Nations | 1996 | PoolA: (2021) PoolB: (2019) PoolC: China (2018) | Annual | |||
| World Cup of Hockey | Nations | 1976 (as Canada Cup) | (2016) | Unknown | Quadrennial | ||
| Inline hockey | IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship | Nations | 1996 | (2017) | Defunct | Annual | The IIHF cancelled the championship in 2019 and can no longer govern inline hockey.[4] |
| FIRS Inline Hockey World Championships | Nations | 1995 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Indoor Soccer | WMF World Cup | Nations | 2015 |  Mexico (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Irish Dance | Oireachtas rince na Cruinne (CLRG) | Individuals | 1970 | Most medals: Ireland | 2024 | Annual | Not held in 2001 due to the foot and mouth outbreak. Cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| World Irish Dance Championships (An Comhdhail) | Individuals | 2012 | Most medals: Ireland | 2024 | Annual | ||
| World Irish Dance Championships (WIDA) | Individuals | 2012 | 2023 | 2024 | Annual | ||
| Judo | World Judo Championships | Individuals | 1956 | Japan (2021) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Kabaddi | IKF Kabaddi World Cup (Standard style) | Nations | 2004 | India (2016) | |||
| IKF Kabaddi World Cup (Circle style) | Nations | 2010 |  Pakistan (2020) | ||||
| Karate | Karate World Championships | Individuals | 1970 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Kendo | World Kendo Championship | Individuals | 1970 | (2018) | 2024 | Triennial | |
| Kickboxing | W.A.K.O. Amateur Kickboxing World Championships | Individuals | 1978 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Kurash | World Kurash Championships | Individuals | 1999 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Lacrosse | World Lacrosse Championship | Nations | 1967 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| World Indoor Lacrosse Championship | Nations | 2003 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | ||
| Lifesaving | World Life Saving Championships | Nations | 1955 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Luge | FIL World Luge Championships | Men's singles | 1955 | (Russian Luge Federation) Roman Repilov (2021) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Men's doubles | 1955 | Toni Eggert Sascha Benecken (2021) | |||||
| FIL World Luge Natural Track Championships | Men's singles | 1979 | Thomas Kammerlander (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Men's doubles | 1979 | Patrick Pigneter Florian Clara (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |||
| Modern pentathlon | World Modern Pentathlon Championships | Individual | 1949 | Ádám Marosi (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Team | 1949 | (2021) | |||||
| Relay | 2004 | Russia (2021) | |||||
| Modern Pentathlon World Cup | Individuals | 1999 | Valentin Prades (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Mountain running | World Mountain Running Championships | Individuals | 1985 | Joseph Gray (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships | Individuals | 2004 | Jim Walmsley (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| IAU Trail World Championships | Individuals | 2007 | Jonathan Albon (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| World Mountain & Trail Running Championships | Individuals | 2021 | 2021 | ||||
| Muaythai | IFMA World Muaythai Championships | Individuals | 1993 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Nine-pin bowling | Nine-pin bowling Single's World Championships | Single classic | 2006 |  Vilmoš Zavarko (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Sprint | Vilmoš Zavarko (2018) | ||||||
| Combination | Vilmoš Zavarko (2018) | ||||||
| Nine-pin bowling World Team Championships | Team | 2005 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Nordic Combined | FIS Nordic World Ski Championships | 10 km individual normal hill | 1925 | Jarl Magnus Riiber (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| 10 km individual large hill | 1999 | Johannes Lamparter (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |||
| 10 km mass start | 2009 | Todd Lodwick (2009) | Only held in 2009 | N/A | Suspended | ||
| National Team Normal Hill 4 x 5 km | 2011 | Norway (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |||
| National Team Large Hill 2 x 7.5 km | 1982 | Austria (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |||
| FIS Nordic Combined World Cup | Individuals | 1983–84 | Jarl Magnus Riiber (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| Orienteering | World Orienteering Championships | Sprint | 2001 | Isac von Krusenstierna (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Short distance | 1991 | Pasi Ikonen (2001) | Defunct | Biennial | |||
| Middle distance | 2003 | Matthias Kyburz (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Originally biennially, annually since 2003 | ||
| Long distance | 1966 | Kasper Fosser (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Originally biennially, annually since 2003 | ||
| Relay | 1966 | Sweden (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Originally biennially, annually since 2003 | ||
| Orienteering World Cup | Individuals | 1986 | Kasper Fosser (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Unofficial title cups held in 1983 and 1984 (first official cup in 1986); held biennially until 2004, now annually | |
| World Ski Orienteering Championships | Individuals | 1975 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Ski Orienteering World Cup | Individuals | 1989 | (2013–14) | Defunct | |||
| World Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships | Individuals | 2002 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Trail Orienteering Championships | Individuals | 2004 | (2019) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Padel tennis | Padel Tennis World Championship | Nations | 1992 | (2018) | 2020 | Biennial | |
| Pétanque | Pétanque World Championships | Nations | 1959 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Pickleball | World Pickleball Championships | Nations | 2019 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Pitch and putt | Pitch and Putt World Cup | Nations | 2004 | (2016) | 2021 | Quadrennial | |
| World Strokeplay Championship | Individuals | 2009 | Liam O'Donovan (2017) | 2021 | Quadrennial | ||
| Polo | World Polo Championship | Nations | 1987 | (2022) | 2026 | Triennial | Most wins: 5, 3, 2 |
| Powerlifting | World Powerlifting Championship | Individuals | 2011 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| World Para Powerlifting Championships | Individuals | 1994 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Racquetball | Racquetball World Championships | Nations | 1981 | Alejandro Landa (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Real tennis | Real Tennis World Championship | Singles | 1740 | Camden Riviere (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Doubles | 2001 | Camden Riviere & Tim Chisholm (2024) | 2026 | ||||
| Rogaining | World Rogaining Championships | Nations | 1992 | Timmo Tammemäe & Riho Seepõld (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Roll Ball | Roll Ball World Cup | Nations | 2011 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Roller derby | Men's Roller Derby World Cup | Teams | 2014 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Roller derby | MRDA Championships | Teams | 2017 | St. Louis GateKeepers (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Roller hockey | Roller Hockey World Cup | Nations | 1936 | Portugal (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | Current FIRS cups restarted in 1958 |
| Roller Hockey Intercontinental Cup | Clubs | 1985 | Spain (2018) | Defunct | Annual | ||
| Rowing | World Rowing Championships | Nations | 1962 | Winners in 13 events (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Championships are not held for Olympic/Paralympic events in Summer Olympic/Paralympic years |
| World Rowing Cup | Nations | 1997 | Winners in varying numbers of events per stage (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Three stages | |
| World Indoor Rowing Championships | Individual and teams | 2018 | Winners in 54 events (2024) | 2025 | Annual | ||
| Rugby league | Rugby League World Cup | Nations | 1954 | (2021) | 2026 | Quadrennial | Quadrennial after 2013, Most wins: 12, 3, 1 |
| Rugby union | Rugby World Cup | Nations | 1987 | (2023) | 2027 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| World Wheelchair Rugby Championships | Nations | 1995 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | ||
| Rugby sevens | Rugby World Cup Sevens | Nations | 1993 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | In June 2013, World Rugby (then known as the International Rugby Board) announced that it had reconsidered a previous decision to scrap the Rugby World Cup Sevens. After 2013, the next event will be in 2018, and will be held quadrennially afterwards.[5] |
| Sailing | World championships in sailing | Individuals and Pairs | N/A | N/A | N/A | Multiple Annual | Sailing hold multiple male only events See Here mainly in the Olympic discipline |
| Sambo | World Sambo Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Russia (2020) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Sambo World Cup | Individuals | (2020) | 2021 | Annual | |||
| Beach Sambo | World Beach Sambo Championships | Individuals | 2021 | All-Russian sambo federation (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Sepak Takraw | ISTAF World Cup | Nations | 2011 | Thailand (2017) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| King's Cup Sepaktakraw World Championship | Nations | 1985 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Shooting | ISSF World Shooting Championships | Individuals and nations | 1897 | Winners in 18 events(2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| ISSF World Shotgun Championships | Individuals and nations | 1934 | Winners in 6 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| ISSF World Running Target Championships | Individuals | 1961 | (2019) | 2021 | Quadrennial | ||
| ISSF World Cup | Individuals | 1986 | India (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Shooting Para Sport Championships | Individuals | 1994 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Shuttlecock | World Shuttlecock Championships | Individuals and Nations | 2003 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Skateboarding | World Skateboarding Championship | Park | 2016 | Heimana Reynolds (2019) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Street | 2010 | Yuto Horigome (2021) | 2022 | ||||
| Skeleton | FIBT World Championships | Individual | 1930 | Christopher Grotheer (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Winter Olympic years. |
| IBSF Para Sport World Championship | Nations | 2016 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Ski jumping | FIS Nordic World Ski Championships | Individuals normal hill | 1962 | Piotr Żyła (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Individuals large hill | 1925 | Stefan Kraft (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |||
| National Team normal hill | 2001 | Austria (2011) | Defunct | Biennial | Not held in 2007 and 2009, after 2011 mixed team replaced this event | ||
| National Team large hill | 1962 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |||
| FIS Ski-Flying World Championships | Individuals | 1972 | Karl Geiger (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| National Team | 2004 | Norway (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | |||
| FIS Ski Jumping World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | Halvor Egner Granerud (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| Ski mountaineering | World Championships of Ski Mountaineering | Nations, individuals, teams, relays, long distances | 2002 | Winners in 5 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | Relays held since 2004; Long Distance only 2008. |
| Snooker | World Snooker Championship | Individuals | 1927 | Luca Brecel (2023) | 2024 | Annual | This championship is open to both sexes, but no woman has ever won the event.[6] Most wins in modern era: Stephen Hendry 7, Steve Davis 6, Ronnie O'Sullivan 7 |
| IBSF World Snooker Championship | Individuals | 1963 | Muhammad Asif (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Also known as the World Amateur Snooker Championship | |
| Six-red World Championship | Individuals | 2008 | Ding Junhui (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||
| Snooker World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | John Higgins&Stephen Maguire (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Snowboarding | FIS Snowboard World Championships | Big air | 2003 | Mark McMorris (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Slopestyle | 2011 | Marcus Kleveland (2021) | |||||
| Halfpipe | 1996 | Yūto Totsuka (2021) | |||||
| Snowboard cross | 1997 | Lucas Eguibar (2021) | |||||
| Parallel slalom | 1996 | Benjamin Karl (2021) | |||||
| Parallel giant slalom | 1999 | Dmitry Loginov (2021) | |||||
| FIS Snowboard World Cup | Individuals | 1994 | (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| World Para Snowboard Championships | Individuals | 2015 | Winners in 6 Events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Softball | Men's Softball World Championship | Nations | 1966 | (2022) | 2025 | Triennial | Quadrennially from 1970 to 2010, biennially till 2019, now triennially |
| Speed skating | World Allround Speed Skating Championships | Individuals | 1889 | Patrick Roest (2020) | 2021 | Annual | |
| World Sprint Speed Skating Championships | Individuals | 1970 | Tatsuya Shinhama (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| World Single Distance Championships | 500m | 1995 | Laurent Dubreuil (2021) | 2022 | Annual | In Winter Olympic years, the World Single Distance Championships are not held. | |
| 1000m | Kai Verbij (2021) | ||||||
| 1500m | Thomas Krol (2021) | ||||||
| 5000m | Nils van der Poel (2021) | ||||||
| 10000m | Nils van der Poel (2021) | ||||||
| Team Pursuit | 2005 | Netherlands (2021) | |||||
| Team Sprint | 2019 | 2021 Not Take Place | |||||
| Mass start | 2015 | Joey Mantia (2021) | |||||
| World Short Track Speed Skating Championships | 500m | 1976 | Shaoang Liu (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Although the International Skating Union did not conduct an official World Short Track Championship until 1981, it began organising international events in 1976. All annual ISU-sanctioned international championships from 1976 to 1980 are now retrospectively recognised as World Championships. | |
| 1000m | Shaolin Sándor Liu (2021) | ||||||
| 1500m | Charles Hamelin (2021) | ||||||
| 3000m | Defunct | ||||||
| 5000m Relay | Netherlands (2021) | ||||||
| Overall | Shaoang Liu (2021) | ||||||
| World Short Track Speed Skating Team Championships | Nations | 1991 | Korea (2011) | Discontinued after 2011 | Annual | ||
| Soft Tennis | World Soft Tennis Championships | Individuals and Nations | 1975 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Squash | PSA World Championship | Individuals | 1976 |  Ali Farag (2023) | 2024 | Annual | |
| World International Doubles Squash Championships | Doubles teams | 1997 | Declan James & James Willstrop (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| WSF World Team Squash Championships | Nations | 1967 | (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | 2021 Championship cancelled | |
| Sumo | Sumo World Championships | Openweight | 1992 | Batsuuri Namsraijav (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Heavyweight | Atsushi Igarashi (2019) | ||||||
| Light Heavyweight | Konstantin Abdula-Zade (2019) | ||||||
| Middleweight | Badral Baasandorj (2019) | ||||||
| Lightweight | Sviatoslav Semykras (2019) | ||||||
| Team | Russia (2019) | ||||||
| Surfing | World Surfing Championship | Individuals | 1964 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Table tennis | World Table Tennis Championships | Singles | 1926 | Fan Zhendong (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Doubles | Wang Chuqin & Fan Zhendong (2021) | ||||||
| World Team Table Tennis Championships | Nations | 1926 | China (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Table Tennis Championships | Individuals | 1990 | Winners in 16 events (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | ||
| Nations | 1990 | Winners in 11 events (2017) | Quadrennial | ||||
| Taekwondo | World Taekwondo Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 8 events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Nations | (2019) | ||||||
| World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships | Individuals and Teams | Chinese Taipei (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |||
| Tchoukball | World Tchoukball Championship | Nations | 1970 | Singapore (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Teqball | Teqball World Championships | Individuals | 2017 | (2021) | 2022 | annual | |
| Ten-pin bowling | WTBA World Tenpin Bowling Championships | Nations | 1954 | Most medals: (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Biennially until 2010 |
| QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup | Individuals | 1965 | François Louw (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Tennis | Davis Cup | Nations | 1900 | Canada | 2022 | Annual | Note: The Davis Cup is not formally a world championship, but is traditionally held as equivalent in status. Only the teams in the World Group actually compete for the Davis Cup proper; other teams play to (eventually) reach the World Group. Most wins: 32, 28, 10 |
| World Team Cup | Nations | 1978 | (2012) | Defunct | Annual | ||
| Touch Football | Touch Football World Cup | Nations | 1988 | Australia (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Triathlon | World Triathlon Series | Individuals | 1989 | Kristian Blummenfelt (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| World Triathlon Long Distance Championships | Individuals | 1994 | Kristian Høgenhaug (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Duathlon Championships | Individuals | 1990 | Nathan Guerbeur (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Long Distance Duathlon Championships | Individuals | 1997 | Seppe Odeyn (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Aquathlon Championships | Individuals | 1998 | David Castro Fajardo (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Winter Championships | Individuals | 1997 | Hans Christian Tungesvik (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Cross Championships | Individuals | 2011 | Arthur Serrieres (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Cup | Individuals | 1978 | Javier Gómez (2008) | Annual | Since 2009 World Cup champions are no longer decided. | ||
| Ironman World Championship | Individuals | 1991 | Jan Frodeno (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Ironman 70.3 World Championship | Individuals | 2006 | Gustav Iden (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Tug of war | TWIF Indoor World Championships | Nations | 1976 | Winners in various weight classes (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| TWIF Outdoor World Championships | Nations | 1976 | Winners in various weight classes (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Underwater Hockey | Underwater Hockey World Championships | Nations | 1980 | New Zealand (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | Most wins: Australia (11) |
| Volleyball | FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship | Nations | 1949 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 6, 4, 3, 3 |
| FIVB Volleyball Men's World Cup | Nations | 1965 | (2019) | Quadrennial | Most wins: and 6, 3, 2 | ||
| FIVB Volleyball World Grand Champions Cup | Nations | 1993 | (2017) | Quadrennial | |||
| FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League | Nations | 2018 | Brazil (2021) | 2022 | Annual | It replaced the FIVB Volleyball World League (1990–2017) | |
| FIVB Volleyball Men's Club World Championship | Clubs | 1989 | Sada Cruzeiro (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Para Volleyball Championship | Nations | 1983 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | ||
| Vocotruyen | Vocotruyen World Championships | Individuals | 2016 | Algeria (2022) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Vovinam | World Vovinam Championships | Individuals | 2002 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Wakeboard | World Wakeboard Championship | Individuals | 1994 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Wake Surfing | World Wake Surfing Championship | Individuals | 2004 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Water Ski | Water Ski World Championships | Individuals | 1949 | Nate Smith (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Weightlifting | World Weightlifting Championships | 55 kg | 1891 | Arli Chontey (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| 61 kg | Shin Rok (2021) | ||||||
| 67 kg | Doston Yokubov (2021) | ||||||
| 73 kg | Rahmat Erwin Abdullah (2021) | ||||||
| 81 kg | Karlos Nasar (2021) | ||||||
| 89 kg | Yu Dong-ju (2021) | ||||||
| 96 kg | Lesman Paredes (2021) | ||||||
| 102 kg | Rasoul Motamedi (2021) | ||||||
| 109 kg | Akbar Djuraev (2021) | ||||||
| +109 kg | Lasha Talakhadze (2021) | ||||||
| Windsurfing | Windsurfing World Championships | Individuals | 1980 | Kiran Badloe (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Woodball | Woodball World Cup | Individuals | 2004 | (2020) | 2022 | Biennual | |
| Wrestling (amateur) | World Wrestling Championships | Individuals and Nations | 1904 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Summer Olympic years. |
| Wrestling World Cup (freestyle) | Nations | 1973 | Russia (2019) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Wrestling World Cup (Greco-Roman) | Nations | 1980 | (2017) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Wushu | World Wushu Championships | Individuals | 1991 | Winners in 24 events (2019) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| World Traditional Wushu Championships | Individuals | 2004 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| World Taijiquan Championships | Individuals | 2014 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Sanda World Cup | Individuals | 2002 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Taolu World Cup | Individuals | 2016 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Sport | Competition name | Competing entities | First held | Current holder | Next | Frequency | Details & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aikido | Aikido World Championships | Individuals | 1989 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Alpine skiing | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Downhill | 1931 | Corinne Suter (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Super G | 1987 | Lara Gut-Behrami (2021) | |||||
| Giant slalom | 1931 | Lara Gut-Behrami (2021) | |||||
| Slalom | 1931 | Katharina Liensberger (2021) | |||||
| Combined | 1932 | Mikaela Shiffrin (2021) | |||||
| FIS Alpine Ski World Cup | Individuals | 1967 | Mikaela Shiffrin (2021–22) | 2022–23 | Annual | ||
| Nations | Austria (2021–22) | ||||||
| World Para Alpine Skiing Championships | Individuals | 1972 | Winners in 30 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| American football | IFAF Women's World Championship | Nations | 2010 | (2017) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| Archery | World Archery Championships | Individual recurve | 1931 | Jang Min-hee (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Individual compound | 1995 |  Sara López (2021) | Biennial | ||||
| Team recurve | 1931 | South Korea (2021) | Biennial | ||||
| Team compound | 1995 | Colombia (2021) | Biennial | ||||
| World Indoor Archery Championships | Individual recurve | 1991 | Elena Richter (2018) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Team recurve | (2018) | ||||||
| Individual compound | Natalia Avdeeva (2018) | ||||||
| Team compound | (2018) | ||||||
| Archery World Cup | Individual recurve | 2006 | Lisa Unruh (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Individual compound | Sara López (2021) | ||||||
| World Field Archery Championships | Individual | 1969 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| World 3D Archery Championships | Individual | 2003 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Archery Championship | Individual | 1998 | (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Artistic roller skating | Artistic Skating World Championships | Individuals | 1980 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Not held in 2020 |
| Aquatics | FINA World Aquatics Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 37 events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| FINA Swimming World Cup | Individuals | 1988–89 | Emma McKeon (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) | Individuals | 1993 | Winners in 20 events (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| World Synchronised swimming Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 10 events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| World Diving Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 5 events (2022) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| FINA Diving World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | Most medals (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| FINA Water Polo World Cup | Nations | 1979 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | Originally biennially, quadrennially after 2002 | |
| FINA Water Polo World Championship | Nations | 1986 | (2022) | 2023 | Biennial | Biennially since 2001 | |
| World Para Swimming Championships | Individuals | 1990 | Most medals (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Athletics | World Athletics Championships | Individuals | 1983 | Winners in multiple events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | 1983–1991 quadrennially, biennially from 1993 |
| World Athletics Indoor Championships | Individuals | 1985 | Winners in 13 events (2018); Most medals: United States | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| World Athletics Cross Country Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Hellen Obiri (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Teams | Ethiopia (2019) | ||||||
| IAAF World Half Marathon Championships | Individuals | 1992 | Netsanet Gudeta (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Teams | Ethiopia (2018) | ||||||
| Skyrunning World Championships | Individuals | 2010 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| IAAF World Race Walking Cup | Individual 20 km | 1961 | Lupita González (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Team 20 km | (2018) | ||||||
| Individual 50 km | Liang Rui (2018) | ||||||
| Team 50 km | (2018) | ||||||
| IAU 50 km World Championships | Individuals | 2005 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | 2017.2018 Not held | |
| IAU 100 km World Championships | Individuals | 1987 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| IAU 24 Hour World Championship | Individuals | 2001 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Teams | 2003 | (2019) | |||||
| IAAF World Marathon Cup | Individuals | 1985 | (2011) | Defunct | Biennial | ||
| World Athletics Relays | Nations | 2014 | Most medals
| 2023 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Athletics Championships | Individuals | 1994 | Winners in multiple events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Australian rules football | Australian Football International Cup | Nations | 2011 | (2017) | 2021 | Triennial | |
| Badminton | BWF World Championships | Singles | 1977 | An Se-young (2023) | 2025 | Annual | Not held in Summer Olympic years |
| Doubles | Chen Qingchen & Jia Yifan (2023) | ||||||
| Uber Cup | Nations | 1957 | (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | Biennially since 1984 it has been held concurrently with the men's Thomas Cup. Most wins: 16, 6, 3 | |
| BWF Para-Badminton World Championships | Individuals and Doubles | 1998 | Winners in 10 events (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | ||
| Ball Hockey | Women's Ball Hockey World Championship | Nations | 2007 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Bandy | Bandy World Championship | Nations | 2004 | (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | Annually from 2006 to 2008, then biennially |
| Bandy World Cup Women | Clubs | 2003 | Skutskärs IF (2019) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Baseball | Women's Baseball World Cup | Nations | 2004 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Basketball | FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup | Nations | 1953 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | |
| FIBA 3x3 World Cup | Nations | 2012 | (2019) | 2024 | Annual | Biennial until 2016 | |
| Wheelchair Basketball World Championship | Nations | 1990 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | ||
| DIBF Basketball World Championships | Nations | 2003 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | ||
| DIBF 3x3 World Cup | Nations | 2020 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| Basque Pelota | Basque Pelota World Championships | Nations | 1952 | France (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| Beach volleyball | FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships | Nations | 1997 | Pavan–Humana-Paredes (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Biathlon | Biathlon World Championships | Sprint 7.5 km | 1984 | Tiril Eckhoff (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in Winter Olympic Year. |
| Pursuit 10 km | 1997 | Tiril Eckhoff (2021) | |||||
| Mass start 12.5 km | 1999 | Lisa Theresa Hauser (2021) | |||||
| Individual 15 km | 1984 | Markéta Davidová (2021) | |||||
| Relay 4x6 km | 1984 | Norway (2021) | |||||
| Summer Biathlon World Championships | Individuals | 1996 | Czech Republic (2021) | 2022 | Annual | 2020 cancel | |
| Biathlon World Cup | Individuals overall | 1977 | Tiril Eckhoff (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| Nations | 2000–01 | Norway (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | |||
| Para Biathlon World Championships | Individuals | 1990 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Billiards (English billiards) | World Women's Billiards Championship | Individuals | 1931 | Anna Lynch (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |
| WPA Women's World Nine-ball Championship | Individuals | 1990 | Kelly Fisher (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Blind Football | IBSA Blind Football World Championships – B1/B2/B3 | Nations | 2021 | (2021) | 2021 | ||
| Bobsleigh | FIBT World Championships | Two woman | 2000 | Kaillie Humphries Lauren Gibbs (2020) | 2021 | Annual | Not held in Winter Olympic years. |
| IBSF Para Sport World Championship | Nations | 2016 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Bodybuilding | World Amateur Bodybuilding Championships | Individuals | 1979 | (2009) | Defunct | ||
| Bowls | World Bowls Championship | Singles | 1969 | Karen Murphy (2016) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Pairs | Laura Daniels, Jess Sims (2016) | ||||||
| Triples | Natasha Scott, Rebecca Van Asch, Carla Krizanic (2016) | ||||||
| Fours | Natasha Scott, Rebecca Van Asch, Carla Krizanic, Kelsey Cottrell (2016) | ||||||
| Team | Australia (2016) | ||||||
| World Indoor Bowls Championships | Singles | 1988 | Laura Daniels (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Boxing | World Amateur Boxing Championships | Individuals | 1974 | Winners in 10 weight classes (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Boxing World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | (2008) | 2020 | 2020 resume take place | ||
| Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu | World Jiu-Jitsu Championship | Individuals | 1996 | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |
| Canoeing | ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships | Individuals and teams | 1938 | Winners in 10 events (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Not held in Winter Olympic years |
| ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships | K-1 | 1949 | Eva Terčelj (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Not held in Summer Olympic years | |
| K-1 team | 1949 | Great Britain (2019) | |||||
| C-1 | 2009 | Andrea Herzog (2019) | |||||
| C-1 team | 2011 | Australia (2019) | |||||
| Canoe Slalom World Cup | C-1 | 1988 | Tereza Fišerová (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| C-2 | 1988 | 2021 not take place | |||||
| K-1 | 1988 | Jessica Fox (2021) | |||||
| Extreme slalom | 1988 | Caroline Trompeter (2021) | |||||
| Wildwater Canoeing World Cup | Individuals | 1989 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| ICF Canoe Polo World Championships | Nations | 1994 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| ICF Canoe Marathon World Championship | teams | 1988 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Carrom | Carrom World Championship | Women's Singles | 1991 | (2022) | |||
| Women's Doubles | 1991 | (2022) | |||||
| Women's Team | 1991 | (2022) | |||||
| Carrom World Cup | Nations | 2002 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | ||
| Climbing | IFSC Climbing World Championships | Lead | 1991 | Ai Mori (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Bouldering | 2001 | Janja Garnbret (2023) | |||||
| Speed | 1991 | Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi (2023) | |||||
| Combined | 2012 | Janja Garnbret (2023) | |||||
| IFSC Climbing World Cup | Lead | 1989 | Janja Garnbret (2021) | 2024 | Annual | ||
| Bouldering | 1999 | Natalia Grossman (2023) | |||||
| Speed | 1998 | Emma Hunt (2021) | |||||
| IFSC Paraclimbing World Championships | Individuals | 2011 | Lead:Winners in 5 events(2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Cricket | Women's Cricket World Cup (WODI format) | Nations | 1973 | (2022) | 2022 | Quadrennial | Most wins: |
| ICC Women's T20 World Cup (WT20I format) | Nations | 2009 | (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | Biennially from 2010 | |
| Cross-country skiing | FIS Nordic World Ski Championships | 10 km | 1954 | Therese Johaug (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Skiathlon 15 km | 1993 | Therese Johaug (2021) | |||||
| 30 km | 1980 | Therese Johaug (2021) | |||||
| Sprint | 2001 | Jonna Sundling (2021) | |||||
| Team Sprint | 2005 | 2021 Not Take Place | |||||
| Relay 4x5 km | 1954 | Norway (2021) | |||||
| World Para Nordic Skiing Championships | Individuals | 1974 | 2019 | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| FIS Cross-Country World Cup | Individuals | 1973–74 | Jessie Diggins (2020–21) | 2021–22 | Annual | ||
| Curling | World Curling Championships | Nations | 1979 | Switzerland (2022) | 2023 | Annual | 2020 cancellation |
| Cycling | UCI Road World Championships | Road race | 1958 | Lotte Kopecky (2023) | 2024 | Annual | The UCI Road World Championships were first contested in 1927, but women's championships were not added until 1958. |
| Time trial | 1994 | Chloé Dygert (2023) | |||||
| Team time trial (trade) | 2012 | (2018) | Defunct | Annual | |||
| Team time trial (nations) | 1987 | Russia (1994) | Defunct | Annual | |||
| UCI Mountain Bike World Championships | Cross-country | 1990 | Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Downhill | 1990 | Valentina Höll (2022) | |||||
| Four-cross | 2002 | Caroline Buchanan (2017) | Defunct | ||||
| UCI Mountain Bike World Cup | Individuals | 1991 | Kate Courtney (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI Urban Cycling World Championships | Freestyle BMX | 2017 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Cross-country eliminator | 2012 | Gaia Tormena (2019) | |||||
| Trials | 2001 | Nina Reichenbach (2019) | |||||
| UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships | Individuals | 2000 | Marianne Vos (2022) | 2023 | Annual | The UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships were first contested in 1950, but a women's championship was not added until 2000. | |
| UCI Track Cycling World Championships | Individuals and nations | 1958 | Winners in 10 events (2020) | 2021 | Annual | The UCI Track Cycling World Championships were first contested in 1893, but women's championships were not added until 1958. | |
| UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships | Individuals | 2003 | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| UCI Trials World Championships | Individuals | 1986 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI BMX World Championships | Individuals | 1982 | Alise Willoughby (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships | Individuals | 1956 | Lisa Hattemer (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships | Individuals and nations | 2007 | Winners in 15 events (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships | Individuals and nations | 2009 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Darts | |||||||
| BDO World Darts Championship | Individuals | 2001 | Mikuru Suzuki (2020) | 2021 | Defunct | The BDO World Darts Championship was first contested in 1978, but a women's championship was not added until 2001. Replaced by WDF World Darts Championship | |
| WDF World Darts Championship | Individuals | 2022 | Beau Greaves (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| WDF World Cup | Nations | 1983 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | The WDF World Cup was first contested in 1977, but a women's championship was not added until 1983. | |
| Dodgeball | World Dodgeball Championships | Nations - Foam | 2012 | Canada | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Nations - Cloth | 2019 | Austria | 2024 | Biennial | |||
| Fencing | World Fencing Championships | Foil | 1929 | Alice Volpi (2023) | 2023 | Annual | Championships are not held for Olympic events in Summer Olympic years |
| Foil team | 1932 | Italy (2023) | |||||
| Épée | 1988 | Marie-Florence Candassamy (2023) | |||||
| Épée team | 1988 | Poland (2023) | |||||
| Sabre | 1999 | Misaki Emura(2023) | |||||
| Sabre team | 1999 | Hungary (2023) | |||||
| Fencing World Cup | Individuals and Nations | 1972 | (2019–20) | 2020–21 | Annual | ||
| World Wheelchair fencing championships | Individuals | 2010 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennal | ||
| Field hockey | FIH Hockey World Cup | Nations | 1974 | (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | |
| Women's Indoor Hockey World Cup | Nations | 2003 | (2018) | 2023 | Quadrennial | ||
| Figure skating | World Figure Skating Championships | Individuals | 1906 | Kaori Sakamoto (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Finswimming | Finswimming World Championships | Individuals | 1976 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Finswimming World Cup | Individuals | 2014 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Fistball | Fistball World Cup | Nations | 1994 | (2018) | 2021 | ||
| Flag football | IFAF Flag Football World Championship | Nations | 2002 | (2021) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Floorball | Floorball World Championships | Nations | 1997 | Sweden (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Football | FIFA Women's World Cup | Nations | 1991 | (2023) | 2027 | Quadrennial | Most wins: 4, 2, 1, 1, 1 |
| FIFA Women's Club World Cup | Nations | ?? | ?? | ?? | Quadrennial | ||
| Freediving | AIDA World Championships | Individuals | 1996 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Team | 2005 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |||
| Freerunning & Parkour | World Parkour Championship | Individuals | 2021 | 2021 | Quadrennial | ||
| Freestyle skiing | FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships | Moguls | 1986 |  Yulia Galysheva (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Dual Moguls | 2001 | Perrine Laffont (2019) | |||||
| Aerials | 1986 | Aliaksandra Ramanouskaya (2019) | |||||
| Half-pipe | 2005 | Kelly Sildaru (2019) | |||||
| Slopestyle | 2011 | Tess Ledeux (2017) | Cancelled in 2019. | ||||
| Ski cross | 2005 | Marielle Thompson (2019) | |||||
| Big air | 2019 | Tess Ledeux (2019) | |||||
| Futsal | AMF Futsal Women's World Cup | Nations | 2008 | Brazil (2019) | 2021 | Quadrennial | |
| Women's Futsal World Tournament | Nations | 2010 | Brazil (2015) | 2020 | |||
| Goalball | Goalball World Championships | Nations | 1982 | (2018) | 2022 | Qradrennial | |
| Grappling | World Grappling Championship | Individuals | 2007 | (2013) | Defunct | Biennial | |
| Gymnastics | World Artistic Gymnastics Championships | Individuals and nations | 1903 | China (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not held in years with a Summer Olympics |
| Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships | Individuals and nations | 1963 | Winners in 9 events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | Changed from 2005 | |
| Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships | Individual & teams | 1964 | Bryony Page (2021) | 2022 | Annual | Not Held in Summer Olympics Year | |
| Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup | Individual | 1983 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships | Pairs | 1974 | (2021) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Groups | 1974 | (2021) | |||||
| Aerobic Gymnastics World Championships | Individuals | 1995 | Ayşe Begüm Onbaşı (2021) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Artistic Gymnastics World Cup | Individuals | 1975 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Trampoline World Cup | Individuals | 2008 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Wheel Gymnastics World Championships Senior | Individuals | 1995 | Kira Homeyer | 2026 | Biennial | All-around champion gym wheel | |
| Golf | HSBC Women's Champions | Individuals | 2008 | Park Sung-hyun (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Handball | IHF World Women's Handball Championship | Nations | 1957 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| IHF Women's Super Globe | Teams | 2019 | 1º de Agosto (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Handball (Beach Handball) | World Women's Beach Handball Championship | Nations | 2004 | Germany (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | |
| Ice Climbing | UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup | Individuals | 2000 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| UIAA Ice Climbing World Championships | Individuals | 2015 | (2017) | 2022 | Biennual | ||
| Ice hockey | IIHF World Women's Championships | Nations | 1990 | (2023) | 2024 | Annually | Originally held every two years (no championship in 1996). Since 1997, annual except in Winter Olympic years for the top level of competition (champion listed here). Lower levels of the championships used the same schedule until 2014, when they adopted an annual schedule including championships in Olympic years. Cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most wins: 12, 10 |
| Indoor hockey | Indoor Hockey World Cup | Nations | 2003 | (2018) | 2025 | Quadrennial | |
| Indoor Soccer | WMF Women's World Cup | Nations | 2021 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Inline hockey | FIRS Inline Hockey World Championships | Nations | 1995 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Irish Dance | Oireachtas rince na Cruinne (CLRG) | Individuals | 1970 | Most medals: Ireland | 2024 | Annual | Not held in 2001 due to the foot and mouth outbreak. Cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| World Irish Dance Championships (An Comhdhail) | Individuals | 2012 | Most medals: Ireland | 2024 | Annual | ||
| World Irish Dance Championships (WIDA) | Individuals | 2012 | 2023 | 2024 | Annual | ||
| Judo | World Judo Championships | Individuals | 1980 | Japan (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Kabaddi | IKF Kabaddi World Cup (Circle style) | Nations | 2010 | (2016) | 2020 | ||
| Karate | Karate World Championships | Individuals | 1970 | Winners in 8 events (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Kendo | World Kendo Championship | Individuals | 1997 | Japan (2018) | 2021 | Triennial | |
| Kickboxing | W.A.K.O. Amateur Kickboxing World Championships | Individuals | 1978 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Kurash | World Kurash Championships | Individuals | 1999 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Lacrosse | Women's Lacrosse World Cup | Nations | 1982 | (2017) | 2021 | Quadrennial | |
| Lifesaving | World Life Saving Championships | Nations | 1955 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Luge | FIL World Luge Championships | Individual | 1955 | Ekaterina Katnikova(2020) | 2021 | Annual | |
| FIL World Luge Natural Track Championships | Individual | 1979 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Modern pentathlon | World Modern Pentathlon Championships | Individual | 1981 | Volha Silkina (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Team | 1981 | Belarus (2019) | |||||
| Relay | 2004 | Mexico (2019) | |||||
| Modern Pentathlon World Cup | Individuals | 1999 | (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Mountain running | World Mountain Running Championships | Individuals | 1985 | Grayson Murphy (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships | Individuals | 2004 | Cristina Simion (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| IAU Trail World Championships | Individuals | 2007 | Blandine L'Hirondel (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| World Mountain & Trail Running Championships | Individuals | 2021 | 2021 | ||||
| Muaythai | IFMA World Muaythai Championships | Individuals | 1993 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Netball | World Netball Championships | Nations | 1963 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Nine-pin bowling | Nine-pin bowling Single's World Championships | Single classic | 2006 | Sina Beißer (2018) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Sprint |  Ines Maričić (2018) | ||||||
| Combination | Jasmina Anđelković (2018) | ||||||
| Nine-pin bowling World Team Championships | Team | 2005 | (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Nordic Combined | FIS Nordic World Ski Championships | Individuals | 1954 | (2021) | 2023 | Annual | |
| FIS Nordic Combined World Cup | Individuals | 2020–21 | Gyda Westvold Hansen (2021–22) | 2022–23 | Annual | ||
| Orienteering | World Orienteering Championships | Sprint | 2001 | 2019 Not Take Place | Annual | Originally biennially, annually since 2003 | |
| Short distance | 1991 | Hanne Staff (2001) | Defunct | Biennial | |||
| Middle Distance | 2003 | Tove Alexandersson (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Originally biennally, annually since 2003 | ||
| Long distance | 1966 | Tove Alexandersson(2019) | 2021 | Annual | Originally biennally, annually since 2003 | ||
| Relay | 1966 | Sweden (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Originally biennally, annually since 2003 | ||
| Orienteering World Cup | Individuals | 1986 | Tove Alexandersson (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Unofficial title cups held in 1983 and 1984 (first official cup in 1986); held biennially until 2004, now annually | |
| World Ski Orienteering Championships | Individuals | 1975 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Ski Orienteering World Cup | Individuals | 1989 | (2013–14) | Defunct | |||
| World Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships | Individuals | 2002 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| World Trail Orienteering Championships | Individuals | 2004 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Padel tennis | Padel Tennis World Championship | Nations | 1992 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Pétanque | Pétanque World Championships | Nations | 1988 | Thailand (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Pickleball | World Pickleball Championships | Nations | 2019 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Powerlifting | World Powerlifting Championship | Individuals | 2011 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| World Para Powerlifting Championships | Individuals | 1994 | Winners in 10 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Racquetball | Racquetball World Championships | Nations | 1981 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Real tennis | Real Tennis World Championship | Singles | 1985 | Claire Fahey (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |
| Doubles | Claire Fahey & Tara Lumley (2023) | ||||||
| Ringette | World Ringette Championships | Nations | 1990 | Finland (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | Triennially 2010–2016 |
| Ringette World Club Championship | Clubs | 2008 | LL-89 (2011) | Defunct | Triennial | 2014 event cancelled | |
| Rogaining | World Rogaining Championships | Nations | 1992 | Anna Burlinova&Maria Plyashechko (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Roll Ball | Roll Ball World Cup | Nations | 2011 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Roller derby | WFTDA Championships | Teams | 2006 | Rose City Rollers (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Roller hockey | Women's Roller Hockey World Cup | Nations | 1992 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Rowing | World Rowing Championships | Nations | 1974 | Winners in 11 events (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Championships are not held for Olympic/Paralympic events in Summer Olympic/Paralympic years |
| World Rowing Cup | Nations | 1997 | Winners in varying numbers of events per stage (2023) | 2024 | Annual | Three stages | |
| World Indoor Rowing Championships | Individuals and teams | 2018 | Winners in 54 events (2024) | 2025 | Annual | ||
| Rugby league | Women's Rugby League World Cup | Nations | 2000 | Australia (2017) | 2021 | Quadrennial | Quadrennially after 2013 |
| Rugby union | Women's Rugby World Cup | Nations | 1991 | (2017) | 2021 | Quadrennial | After the first event in 1991, a consistent four-year cycle was established in 1994 and ran through 2014. A new four-year cycle was established in 2017. |
| Rugby union sevens | Rugby World Cup Sevens | Nations | 2009 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | The Rugby World Cup Sevens was first contested in 1993, but a women's tournament was not added until 2009 |
| Sailing | World championships in sailing | Individual and Pairs | Annually | For a list please see World championships in sailing | |||
| Women's Match Racing World Championship | Annually | ||||||
| Sambo | World Sambo Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Russia (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |
| Sambo World Cup | Individuals | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |||
| Beach Sambo | World Beach Sambo Championships | Individuals | 2021 | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Sepak Takraw | ISTAF World Cup | Nations | 2011 | Thailand (2017) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| King's Cup Sepaktakraw World Championship | Nations | 1985 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Shooting | ISSF World Shooting Championships | Individuals and nations | 1958 | Winners in 23 events (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| ISSF World Shotgun Championships | Individuals and nations | 1967 | Winners in 4 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| ISSF World Running Target Championships | Individuals | 1961 | (2019) | 2021 | Quadrennial | ||
| ISSF World Cup | Individuals | 1986 | Winners in 6 events (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| World Shooting Para Sport Championships | Individuals | 1994 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Shuttlecock | World Shuttlecock Championships | Individuals and Nations | 2003 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Skateboarding | World Skateboarding Championship | Park | 2016 | Misugu Okamoto (2019) | 2022 | Annual | |
| Street | 2010 | Pamela Rosa (2019) | 2021 | ||||
| Skeleton | FIBT World Championships | Individual | 2000 | Tina Hermann(2020) | 2021 | Annual | Not held in years with Winter Olympics. |
| IBSF Para Sport World Championship | Nations | 2016 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Ski jumping | FIS Nordic World Ski Championships | Individuals normal hill | 2009 | Maren Lundby (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| FIS Ski Jumping World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | Maren Lundby (2019–20) | 2020–21 | Annual | ||
| Ski mountaineering | World Championships of Ski Mountaineering | Nations, individuals, teams, relays, long distances | 2002 | Winners in 6 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | Relays added (2004); Long Distance added (2008) |
| Snowboarding | FIS Snowboard World Championships | Individuals halfpipe | 1996 | Chloe Kim (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Individuals slopestyle | 2011 | Zoi Sadowski-Synnott(2019) | |||||
| Individuals snowboard cross | 1997 | Eva Samková (2019) | |||||
| Individuals parallel slalom | 1996 | Julie Zogg (2019) | |||||
| Individuals parallel giant slalom | 1999 | Selina Jörg (2019) | |||||
| Individuals big air | 2015 | 2019 Not Take Place | |||||
| FIS Snowboard World Cup | Individuals | 1994 | (2019–20) | 2020–21 | Annual | ||
| World Para Snowboard Championships | Individuals | 2015 | Winners in 6 Events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Softball | Women's Softball World Championship | Nations | 1965 | (2018) | 2023 | Biennial | Quadrennially from 1970 to 2010, now biennially |
| World Cup of Softball | Nations | 2005 | (2017) | Defunct | Annual | ||
| Soft Tennis | World Soft Tennis Championships | Individuals and Nations | 1975 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Snooker | World Women's Snooker Championship | Individuals | 1976 | Reanne Evans (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |
| IBSF World Snooker Championship | Individuals | 2003 | Ng On-yee (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Also known as the World Amateur Snooker Championship | |
| World Women 6-Reds Snooker Championships | Individuals | 2013 |  Nutcharat Wongharuthai (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Speed skating | World All-Round Speed Skating Championships | Individuals | 1933 | Ireen Wüst (2020) | 2021 | Annual | |
| World Sprint Speed Skating Championships | Individuals | 1970 | Miho Takagi (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| World Single Distance Championships | 500m | 1995 | Nao Kodaira (2020) | 2021 | Annual | In Winter Olympic years, the World Single Distance Championships are not held. | |
| 1000m | Jutta Leerdam (2020) | ||||||
| 1500m | Ireen Wust (2020) | ||||||
| 3000m | Martina Sáblíková (2020) | ||||||
| 5000m | Natalya Voronina (2020) | ||||||
| Mass start | 2015 | Ivanie Blondin (2020) | |||||
| Team pursuit | 2005 | Japan (2020) | |||||
| Team sprint | 2019 | Netherlands (2020) | |||||
| World Short Track Speed Skating Championships | 500m | 1976 | Lara van Ruijven (2019) | 2021 | Annual | Note: Although the International Skating Union did not conduct an official World Short Track Championship until 1981, it began organising international events in 1976. All annual ISU-sanctioned international championships from 1976 to 1980 are now retrospectively recognised as World Championships. | |
| 1000m | Suzanne Schulting (2019) | ||||||
| 1500m | Choi Min-jeong (2019) | ||||||
| 3000m | Choi Min-jeong (2018) | ||||||
| 3000m relay | South Korea (2019) | ||||||
| Overall | Suzanne Schulting (2019) | ||||||
| World Short Track Speed Skating Team Championships | Nations | 1991 | Korea (2011) | Discontinued after 2011 | Annual | ||
| Squash | PSA World Championship | Individuals | 1979 | Nour El Sherbini(2023) | 2024 | Annual | |
| World Doubles Squash Championships | Doubles teams | 1997 | Joshna Chinappa & Dipika Pallikal (2022) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| WSF World Team Squash Championships | Nations | 1979 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| Sumo | Sumo World Championships | Openweight | 1992 | Svitlana Yaromka (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Heavyweight | Anna Poliakova (2019) | ||||||
| Light Heavyweight | Maryna Maksymenko (2019) | ||||||
| Middleweight | Magda Katarzyna Skrajnowska (2019) | ||||||
| Lightweight | Alina Duzhenko (2019) | ||||||
| Team | Russia (2019) | ||||||
| Surfing | World Surfing Championship | Individuals | 1964 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Table tennis | World Table Tennis Championships | Singles | 1926 | Wang Manyu (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | |
| Doubles | Sun Yingsha & Wang Manyu (2021) | ||||||
| World Team Table Tennis Championships | Nations | 1933 | (2022) | 2024 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Table Tennis Championships | Individuals | 1990 | Winners in 16 events (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | ||
| Nations | 1990 | Winners in 5 events (2017) | Quadrennial | ||||
| Taekwondo | World Taekwondo Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 8 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Nations | South Korea (2019) | ||||||
| World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships | Individuals and Teams | Chinese Taipei (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |||
| Tchoukball | World Tchoukball Championships | Nations | 1980 | Chinese Taipei (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | |
| Ten-pin bowling | WTBA World Tenpin Bowling Championships | Nations | 1963 | Winners in 6 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup | Individuals | 1965 | Rebecca Whiting (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Tennis | Fed Cup | Nations | 1963 | (2019)[7] | 2021 | Annual | Note: The Fed Cup is not formally a world championship, but is traditionally held as equivalent in status. It was called Federation Cup until 1995. |
| Triathlon | World Triathlon Series | Individuals | 1989 | Flora Duffy (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| World Triathlon Long Distance Championships | Individuals | 1994 | Sarissa de Vries (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Duathlon Championships | Individuals | 1990 |  Joselyn Brea (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Long Distance Duathlon Championships | Individuals | 1997 | Merle Brunnée (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Aquathlon Championships | Individuals | 1998 | Margot Garabedian (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Winter Championships | Individuals | 1997 | Daria Rogozina (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Cross Championships | Individuals | 2011 | Loanne Duvoisin (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| World Triathlon Cup | Individuals | 1991 | Samantha Warriner (2008) | Annual | Since 2009 World Cup champions are no longer decided. | ||
| Ironman World Championship | Individuals | 1991 | Anne Haug (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Ironman 70.3 World Championship | Individuals | 2006 | Daniela Ryf (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Tug of war | TWIF Indoor World Championships | Nations | 1976 | Winners in various weight classes (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| TWIF Outdoor World Championships | Nations | 1976 | Winners in various weight classes (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Underwater Hockey | Underwater Hockey World Championships | Nations | 1980 | New Zealand | 2022 | Biennial | Most wins: Australia (8) |
| Volleyball | Women's World Championship | Nations | 1952 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | |
| Women's World Cup | Nations | 1973 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | ||
| FIVB Volleyball World Grand Champions Cup | Nations | 1993 | (2017) | 2021 | Quadrennial | ||
| FIVB Volleyball Women's Nations League | Nations | 2018 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | It replaced the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix (1993–2017) | |
| FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship | Clubs | 1991 | Imoco Volley (2019) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| World Para Volleyball Championship | Nations | 1994 | (2018) | 2022 | Quadrennial | ||
| Vocotruyen | Vocotruyen World Championships | Individuals | 2016 | Algeria (2022) | 2022 | Biennial | |
| Vovinam | World Vovinam Championships | Individuals | 2002 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Wakeboard | World Wakeboard Championship | Individuals | 1994 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Wake Surfing | World Wake Surfing Championship | Individuals | 2004 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | |
| Water Ski | Water Ski World Championships | Individuals | 1949 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| Weightlifting | World Weightlifting Championships | 45 kg | 1987 | Thunya Sukcharoen (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |
| 49 kg | Surodchana Khambao (2021) | ||||||
| 55 kg |  Ghofrane Belkhir (2021) | ||||||
| 59 kg | Kuo Hsing-chun (2021) | ||||||
| 64 kg | Neama Said (2021) | ||||||
| 71 kg | Meredith Alwine (2021) | ||||||
| 76 kg | Lee Min-ji (2021) | ||||||
| 81 kg | Alina Marushchak (2021) | ||||||
| 87 kg | Monkhjantsangiin Ankhtsetseg (2021) | ||||||
| +87 kg | Son Young-hee (2021) | ||||||
| Windsurfing | Windsurfing World Championships | Individuals | 1980 | (2020) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Individuals | (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||||
| Wrestling (amateur) | World Wrestling Championships | Individuals | 1987 | Winners in 8 events (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |
| Wrestling World Cup | Nations | 2001 | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||
| Wushu | World Wushu Championships | Individuals | 1991 | Winners in 20 events (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | |
| World Traditional Wushu Championships | Individuals | 2004 | (2019) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| World Taijiquan Championships | Individuals | 2014 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Sanda World Cup | Individuals | 2002 | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||
| Taolu World Cup | Individuals | 2016 | (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Sport ! Competition name | Competing entities ! First held | Current holder ! Next | Frequency ! Details and notes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aquatic | FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) | 4×50 m Mixed freestyle relay | 1993 | Canada (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| 4×50 m Mixed medley relay | 1993 | Netherlands (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||||
| Archery | World Archery Championships | Team recurve male – female pair | 1931 | South Korea (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Team compound male – female pair | 1995 | Colombia (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||||
| Badminton | BWF World Championships | Mixed Doubles | 1977 | Seo Seung-jae & Chae Yoo-jung (2023) | 2025 | Annual | Not held in Summer Olympic years. | |
| Sudirman Cup | Nations | 1989 | (2023) | 2025 | Biennial | |||
| BWF Para-Badminton World Championships | Mixed Doubles | 1998 | Winners in 3 events (2024) | 2026 | Biennial | |||
| Basketball | FIBA 3x3 World Championships | National teams of two men and two women | 2012 | (2012) | Defunct | Three players are on the court at any one time | ||
| Biathlon | Biathlon World Championships | 4 × 7.5 km M+W relay | 2005 | (2021) | 2023 | Annual | Not held in the Winter Olympic Years | |
| 6 km M + 7.5 km W single relay | 2021 | (2021) | 2023 | Annual | Not held in the Winter Olympic Years | |||
| Bowls | World Indoor Bowls Championships | Mixed Pairs | 2004 | Paul Foster, Alison Merrien (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Cheerleading | The Cheerleading Worlds | Mixed teams | GymTyme All-Stars Chrome (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |||
| Cycling | UCI Mountain Bike World Championships | Cross-country Team relay | 1999 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| UCI Urban Cycling World Championships | Team trials | 1999 | (2019) | 2021 | Annual | |||
| Curling | World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship | National mixed teams male – female pair | 2008 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | 2020 cancellation | |
| World Mixed Curling Championship | National mixed teams (4 players) | 2015 | (2019) | 2023 | Annual | 2020–2022 championships were cancelled | ||
| World Wheelchair Curling Championship | National mixed teams (5 players) | 2002 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | 2021 was postponed to October | ||
| World Wheelchair Mixed Doubles Curling Championship | National mixed teams (2 players) | 2022 | (2022) | 2023 | Annual | Inaugural event pushed from 2021 to 2022 | ||
| Diving | World Diving Championships | Individuals | 1973 | Winners in 5 events (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Dragon and Lion Dance | World Dragon and Lion Dance Championships | Teams | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | |||
| Equestrian | Dressage World Cup | Individuals | 1986 | Jessica von Bredow-Werndl (2021–22) | 2022–23 | Annual | ||
| World Four-in-Hand Championships | Teams and Individuals | 1972 | Boyd Exell (individual) Netherlands (team); (2018) | 2020 | Biennial | |||
| Mounted Games World Individual Championships | Individuals | 1986 | Colin Verdelhan (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |||
| Mounted Games World Pairs Championships | Pairs | 1992 | Jake O'Connor Craig O'Connor (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |||
| Mounted Games World Team Championships | Team | 1986 | England (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |||
| Show Jumping World Cup | Individuals | 1979 | Steve Guerdat (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |||
| FEI Endurance World Championship | Individuals | (2018) | 2021 | Biennial | ||||
| Flying disc | WFDF World Overall Championships | Individuals | (2019) | Annual | ||||
| WFDF World Ultimate and Guts Championship | Individuals | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | ||||
| Figure skating | World Figure Skating Championships | National pairs male – female pair from the same nation | 1908 | (FSR) Anastasia Mishina & Aleksandr Galliamov (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Ice Dance male – female pair from the same nation | 1952 | (FSR) Victoria Sinitsina & Nikita Katsalapov (2022) | 2023 | |||||
| Gymnastics | Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships | Teams | 2016 | (RGF) (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Mixed pairs | 1974 | |||||||
| Inline speed skating | World Inline speed skating Championships | Teams | 1937 | (2020) | 2021 | Annual | ||
| Korfball | IKF World Korfball Championship | 4 females and 4 males | 1978 | (2019) | 2023 | Quadrennial | ||
| Modern Pentathlon | World Modern Pentathlon Championships | Mixed Relay | 2001 | South Korea (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Luge | FIL World Luge Championships | Nations | 1989 | (2021) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| FIL World Luge Natural Track Championships | Nations | 2001 | 2021 | Biennial | Not held in 2015, 2017 and 2019 | |||
| Modern Pentathlon | UIPM Biathle-Triathle World Championships | Nationals | Annika Schneider & Uli Raeth (2021) | 2022 | Annual | |||
| Nine-pin bowling | Nine-pin bowling Single's World Championships | Mixed tandems | 2004 | Renáta Navrkalová & Jan Endršt (2018) | 2023 | Biennial | First time held in 2004. After division of the championships, added to the Team Worlds (2005 & 2007). Since 2008 in Single's World Championships program. | |
| Orienteering | World Orienteering Championships | Sprint relay | 2014 | TBA | Annual | Not held in 2019 | ||
| Pétanque | Pétanque World Championships | Nations | 2017 | Thailand (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Quidditch | IQA World Cup | Nations | 2012 | United States(2018) | 2022 | Biennial | Quidditch has rules based on gender, not sex, calling itself a mixed-gender sport | |
| Rogaining | World Rogaining Championships | Nations | 1992 | Polina Zakharova & Artem Gorodynets & Ievgenii Tsyren (2019) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| Rowing | World Rowing Championships | PR2 Mixed double sculls 1 Male & 1 Female | 2013 | (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||
| PR3 Mixed double sculls 1 Male & 1 Female | 2013 | (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||||
| PR3 Mixed coxed four 2 Male & 2 Female plus an open coxswain | 2013 | (2023) | 2024 | Annual | ||||
| World Indoor Rowing Championships | Mixed 2000m relay 2 Male & 2 Female | 2018 | Team FINLAND (2024) | 2025 | Annual | |||
| Sailing | IFDS SKUD 18 World Championship | Female or Mixed Pair | 2007 | Alexandra Rickham & Niki Birrell (2011) | ? | Annual? | ||
| Mixed Nacra 17 World Championship | Male and Female Pair | 2013 | (2019) | 2020 | Annual | |||
| Mixed Offshore Doubles World Championship | Male and Female Pair | 2021 | Annual | |||||
| Synchronized skating | ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships | Teams | 2000 | Les Suprêmes (2022) | 2023 | Annual | ||
| Table tennis | World Table Tennis Championships | Mixed doubles | 1926 | Wang Chuqin & Sun Yingsha (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| World Para Table Tennis Championships | Mixed doubles | 1990 | Winners in 7 events (2022) | 2026 | Quadrennial | |||
| Tennis | Hopman Cup | National teams male – female pair | 1989 | (2019) | Defunct | Annual | Competitions are played in traditional order: women's singles, men's singles, and mixed doubles | |
| United Cup | National teams of men and women | 2024 | Germany (2024) | 2025 | Annual | |||
| Teqball | Teqball World Championships | Nations | 2017 | Csaba Bányik & Zsanett Janicsek (2021) | 2023 | Biennial | ||
| Triathlon | World Triathlon Mixed Relay Championships | National teams of two men and two women | 2003 | (2019) | 2022 | Annual | ||
| Tug of war | TWIF Indoor World Championships | Nations | 1976 | Winners in various weight classes (2020) | 2022 | Biennial | ||
| TWIF Outdoor World Championships | Nations | 1976 | Winners in various weight classes (2018) | 2022 | Biennial | |||
| Wheelchair handball | IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship | Nations | 2020 | 2022 | Annual until 2022 |
See main article: world championships.
See main article: world cups.