"Waitea circinata" was originally described from Australia in 1962, where it was found growing on the undersides of clods of earth in a wheat field. The new genus "Waitea", named after the Waite Agricultural Research Institute in Adelaide, was created to accommodate the species. Because of its morphological similarity to species of "Rhizoctonia" and "Thanatephorus", "Waitea circinata" was presumed to belong within the Ceratobasidiaceae, but phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences has shown that it actually belongs in the Corticiaceae and is close to species of "Laetisaria" (which are also grass pathogens).