Imagine a sports hall in 1993, full of fighters from 20 countries. It is the first world championships of , the world body for amateur Muay Thai. 20
Amateur fighters wear more kit than the professionals in Bangkok's stadiums. They wear a , elbow and shin guards and a gum shield, and fight three rounds. 20,21
One word
In 2006 IFMA began to write the name as one word, Muaythai. This was because a sport's name could not contain the name of a country. 1 So when you see Muaythai written as one word, it is usually IFMA or a body that works with it.
The World Games and the Olympic movement
Muaythai joined the World Games in Wrocław, in Poland, in 2017. 8 At the World Games of 2022 in Birmingham, Alabama, men and women had the same number of events. 8
The International Olympic Committee gave IFMA its full recognition in July 2021. 20,30 That means IFMA is part of the Olympic movement. It does not mean Muay Thai is in the Olympic Games: it is not. 20
IFMA also runs contests where nobody is hit at all. Athletes perform the wai kru alone, or show traditional techniques in pairs, called , and judges score them. 20,21
In 2025 IFMA brought in a set of 15 grades for the whole world. Under IFMA's earlier scheme, the first grade was mostly about learning the wai kru. 27
In Britain today
IFMA's member in the UK is the UK Muaythai Federation, the . 20 Another group, , was founded in 2022. In 2026 it held its third British Championships, with 330 athletes from 63 gyms. 41
The two groups have different rules for children. Under IFMA's rules, no child is hit on the head until the year they turn 12. Under Muaythai GB's rules, nobody under 16 may be hit on the head in a junior fight. 21,42 So if you join a gym, ask which rules it follows.
The oldest records tell of entertainers in old Siam and a king boxing at a temple fair. Today Muay Thai is a world sport, and every bout still begins with a bow to the teacher. 1,21