With the IBJJF World championship only 2 months away I figured this would be a great way to bring up an important and talked about idea. Why are world only held in the US and more specifically California. Yes, California is a meca for Jiu-Jitsu and that’s great, but there are other popular Jiu-Jitsu destinations and many people think that Worlds being exclusive to California is unfair. The Olympics change location on every event and many people think that the world championship should also rotate. With Worlds being exclusive to California many people who cannot afford the travel are unable to compete. This also creates a similar pattern of events every year. We tend to see the same exact athletes with some exceptions here and there. If worlds changed its location we could get more variety in the competition and possibly give some high level athletes who can’t afford the travel a chance at earning that world title. Here are some of the top destinations people have requested in the past for new world championships.
- New York– While still in the U.S, NY has its own competition field and this could be an easy transition for the IBJJF. It would not require going out of country for this huge event , but still possibly add some new variety and opportunity.
- Brazil– Brazil is where it all originated and still produces the most talented athletes( although most end up moving to the U.S). It only makes sense that the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu worlds would be held in Brazil.
- Japan– Japan is heavily influenced and engrained in the martial arts culture and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. With Jiu Jitsu coming from the Judoka originally why not hold a world championship here ? There would be many new competitors and Japan is known for having great MMA and martial arts fans ,whom would probably show up just to watch as well. This could actually benefit the IBJJF financially.
- Portugal– Home of the European Championship this too would also be a cool new location for a worlds event. Europe in general had been lacking in Jiu Jitsu competition opportunity, but has boomed in the last few years. Flights are expensive and we don’t see many guys from Europe in the world championships.
What other locations could the World Championships shift through and why ?
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