1949 Thomas Cup 1949 Thomas Cup The 1949 Thomas Cup was the inaugural tournament of Thomas Cup, the most important men's badminton team competition in the world. The tournament was originally planned for 1941-1942 (badminton seasons in the northern hemisphere traditionally ran from the autumn of one calendar year to the spring of the next), but was delayed when World War II exploded across the continents. Sir George's dream was finally realized in 1948-1949 when ten national teams participated in the first Thomas Cup competition. Three qualifying zones were established: Pan America, Europe, and the Pacific; though Malaya (now Malaysia) was the only
World Badminton Federation to dismiss the South African association due to the apartheid policies of the then South African government. Conferences called by the Asian Badminton Confederation (now known as the Badminton Asia Confederation) were held in September and November 1977 which resulted in the withdrawal of the African Badminton Union (now Badminton Confederation of Africa) from the IBF. The founding of the World Badminton Federation was officially proclaimed at a third conference held in Hong Kong in February 1978. Twenty-two nations and regions, nearly all from Asia or Africa joined the federation: Bangladesh, Brunei, China, Ghana, Guyana, Hong Kong, India, Iran, Kenya,