Updated rules 2026
We continuously conduct surveys to keep the rulebook as up-to-date as possible. During the autumn, there was an opportunity to respond to a survey that included various rule questions that have been received and that are often up for discussion. Based on the results of the survey, the working group that is working on compiling a common rulebook in Sweden has decided on possible rule changes for 2026. The major change that will take place for 2026 is that the common rulebook will be able to be applied to all tournaments in Sweden. In the work of compiling a common rulebook, kubb rules that are applied in the rest of the kubb world have also been taken into account, in order to also move closer to kubb tournaments around the world using the same rules.
Below are the major rule changes for 2026, otherwise some existing rules have been clarified:
1.
30 degree maximum angle when throwing with a stick (previously 45 degrees at the World Championship)
The decision to lower from 45 degrees to 30 degrees is based on the majority who voted for 30 degrees and the fact that the majority of tournaments in the rest of the world have a limitation of 30 degrees.
2.
We are going back to the rule that has been in place before where we always check whether a cube is knocked down or not when it leans against something no matter what. Again, a large majority in the survey.
3.
When the cubes are to be raised, only two players are allowed to rise to speed up the procedure. There were mixed responses here in the survey, but we have chosen to give this option a try and hope it will turn out well. The hope is that this will result in the sport becoming more entertaining to watch and that there will be more time to throw than to raise kubbs.
You can find the full rulebook here:
https://www.kubbvm.com/en/about-the-kubb-world-championship/rules-in-the-wc/
If you have any questions or suggestions for improvements, please let us know! See you in 2026, registration opens March 1st!
[email protected]
Happy New Year,
The Kubb WC Organization
30th anniversary of Kubb World Championship 2025
Kubb World Championship 2025 was the year when the world championship has existed for 30 years!
There were 140 registered teams and of these 136 teams came to start. New for this year was that the 1vs1 tournament qualifying day was divided into two groups. A morning group and an afternoon group. This was to enable an increase in the number of participants. In total in the 1vs1 tournament there were 180 players registered and of these 174 players came to start.
Also new for this year was that teams that did not manage to advance to Saturday’s game could now still register to participate in a variant of the Small World Cup Saturday, i.e. now there is the opportunity for everyone to play kubb for three days if they want. This will be reviewed and developed even more by 2026.
6vs6 140 teams
1vs1 180 players
Results 6vs6 2025:
1st Blue/Orange (Swe)
2nd StrandedGoose (Swe)
3rd No Ragrets (Swe)
4th Gipfelstürmer & Suppentiger (DE)
All results can be found under the tab: Competition info 6vs6 – Result lists – 2025
Results 1vs1 2025:
1st Joakim Ekelöf
2nd Josef Björklund
3rd Jacob Nilsson
4th Sven Mampe
All results can be found under the tab: Competition info 1vs1 – Results
The Kubb VM 2026 will be played from 30/7 to 1/8.
Follow us on social media Kubb VM
Thank you!!
Improvements Kubb World Championship 2025
Ahead of the Kubb World Championships 2025, we will not be updating the detailed rules. However, we are making some adjustments to the game itself, where we hope that the game will flow even better and that it will be clearer for you as participants. You will find all updates in bold red text under supplementary rules under the About Kubb World Championship and World Championship Rules tab.
The points that have been updated are:
Tiebreak will be introduced in all matches except for the semi-finals, final and the bronze match on Saturday in 6vs6.
Match duration before Tiebreak:
Group play Friday: 90 minutes (best of 3 sets)
Little World Championship Friday: 30 minutes (best of 1 set)
Group play Saturday: 75 minutes (best of 3 sets)
Little World Championship Saturday: 30 minutes (best of 1 set)
Knockout Saturday: 90 minutes (best of 3 sets)
Semifinals and finals Saturday: No time limit (best of 3 sets)
Clarification of Tiebreak procedure
Tiebreak instructions:
When it is time for a Tiebreak, the team that is throwing a round is the first to finish it. A new round is counted from when the first kubb has been thrown in. To start a tiebreak, you need to do the following steps:
1. The teams throw the closest to the king with each stick, the winner of the closest to the king (Team A) wins the advantage in the tiebreak.
1.1 The advantage from the Tiebreak starts from the first round of the team (Team A) being allowed to throw, even if the team is not allowed to throw together in the subsequent set.
1.2 The first tiebreak kubb is removed after raising of field kubb after Team A’s first round of the tiebreak.
1.3 It is always the kubb that is closest to the baseline that is removed (if there are any base kubbs left, they must be removed before the field kubbs. The base kubb that is furthest from the field kubbs that have been thrown is removed first.)
1.4 After Team A’s first round of the tiebreak, one kubb is removed each round from the opponent’s half of the court after the kubbs have been thrown in. This continues until the end of the match.
New procedure for knockout kubb
Instructions for knockout kubb:
In the event that two or more teams finish on the same score after the group stage is complete, set difference will be counted first and then the head-to-head score. Should the teams still be tied after this, a throw-out ball will be played, supervised by a referee/official. The throw-out ball will be played according to the following steps:
1. The starting order is according to the referee´s drawing
1.1 The team that starts throws in 5 kubbs that the referee then raises
1.2 The team throws its six sticks to knock down the 5 field kubbs, if successful, the team continues to throw at the base kubbs
1.3 The winner is the team that has firstly thrown down the highest number of base kubbs and secondly the number of sticks it took to knock down the 5 field kubbs. If a team does not get the 5 field kubbs down, the number of kubbs the team has got down after 6 sticks is counted
1.4 If the teams throw exactly the same result, they throw again until a winner is chosen
Guaranteed place in the Little World Championship for those who do not advance to Saturday or to the playoffs on Saturday
From this year onwards, no registration is required for the Little World Championship after the group stage has ended if the team has not managed to advance to the big competition. The Little World Championship involves a straight play-off with direct elimination. The winner of the Little World Championship on Friday wins a place in Saturday’s group stage and thus competes further in the big competition.
Possible for Friday teams to register for the Little World Championship on Saturday
From this year onwards, we are making it possible for teams that have not managed to advance to Saturday’s group stage in the big competition and have not won the Little World Championship on Friday to participate in Saturday’s Little World Championship. This enables teams that do not reach the level to advance to the big competition from Friday to still compete on Saturday and thus get another day of play.
Registration for Saturday’s Little World Championships must be done before 18:00 on Friday to the secretariat.
Best regards,
Kubb World Championship Organization
2025-04-28
Kubb is a very old game. “Throwing logs” is quite popular in Sweden now, particularly on the island Gotland. Kubb is a “partygame” which is played outdoors with 2-12 participants. Everyone can participate, young as old.
The game is played on a field which is 5×8 meters, the size can be less or more depending on the skills of the players. The field should be fairly smooth and flat, usually we play on grass but gravel, sand or snow could also do.
The game pieces are made of pine and one set consists of the following parts:
- 1 KING approx. 9×9 cm square and 30 cm´s height.
- 10 KUBBS approx. 7×7 cm square and 15 cm´s height.
- 6 THROWING BATONS, round 44 mm in diameter and 30 cm´s in length.
- 4 CORNER STICKS and 2 MIDDLE STICKS 2x2x30 cm are also useful to have.
The players are divided in two teams and take place behind their respectably baseline. The game’s aime is to knock down the kubbs of the other team with the throwing batons according to the rules. When all the kubbs are knocked down, the king should be knocked down, the team which does this has won.
Since 1995 “VM i Kubb” (“World championship of Kubb”) is arranged on Rone IP (Gotland), 2004 there was 168 teams (of 6 members) in the competition from 8 different nations, playing mixed men, women and children.
1: King, 2: Kubbs, 3: Throwing batons, 4: Corner stick, 5: Baseline
