World Judo Championships 2025: Full Schedule, Date, Time, Key Athletes and How to Watch

The 2025 World Judo Championships will take place in the Papp László Arena from June 13 to June 20, 2025. The competition will consist of seven days of individual competitions for both men’s and women’s weight categories, with the highly anticipated mixed team event taking place on the final day. Learn all there is to know about the 2025 World Judo Championships in Budapest, including the best athletes to watch, the daily schedule, and how to watch live from June 13–20.

The heart of world judo is returning to Budapest for the third time in less than a decade. With events ranging from Grand Prix and Grand Slams to the esteemed Masters and now its third world title event, the Hungarian capital has turned into a sort of second home for the sport.

Individual competition in the seven men’s and women’s weight categories will take place over seven days, with the popular mixed team event taking place on the final day.

The athletes arrived in Budapest battle-tested and ready to test their season’s development after competing in six Grand Slams, one Grand Prix event, and their respective continental championships throughout a demanding season.

With seven Olympic gold medallists from Paris 2024, ten reigning world champions, and 11 of the world’s top players expected to attend, the draw is loaded.

However, if judo has taught us anything, it is that nothing is certain. No reputation, no rating, and no name can guarantee success. The matches will undoubtedly be exciting, though, as the biggest delegations are coming from powerhouses like Georgia, Japan, Brazil, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, and Italy.

2025 World Judo Championships: Athletes to Watch

The most renowned siblings in the sport, Abe Hifumi and Abe Uta, are leading the way for Japan. Both are four-time world champions and Olympic champions.

Hifumi is a man on familiar ground, stoic in his -66kg craft. The Japanese athlete, who won his fifth world title last summer after defending his Olympic title, is making his first appearance in front of the tatami since the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

On the other hand, Uta comes with a point to prove. Her unexpected Olympic loss, which was reversed by a brilliant move by Diyora Keldiyorova of Uzbekistan, rocked the judo world. However, the 24-year-old did not back down. As a result, she won gold at the Baku Grand Slam earlier this year, as champions do. Keldiyorova’s pregnancy has prevented her from competing in these championships; therefore, Uta is once again in control of the -52kg class. A fifth world championship would be a statement of restoration and revenge.

With targets on their backs and confidence, Azerbaijan’s dynamic combination travels to Budapest. Zelym Kotsoiev (-100kg) and Hidayat Heydarov (-73kg) both won their first world titles at the 2024 World Championships in Abu Dhabi. A few months later, both appeared on the Olympic podium in Paris, completing a golden double that made them national heroes.

Joan-Benjamin Gaba of France will put Heydarov’s intense rhythm and unrelenting pressure to the test after she nearly overcame him in the Olympic final. If it occurs, their rematch is expected to be one of the defining battles of the competition.

France comes with their own aspirations for the crown. A strong team is led by world champions Luka Mkheidze (-60 kg), Amandine Buchard (-52 kg), and heavyweight powerhouse Romane Dicko (+78 kg).

Georgia’s best chance, meantime, lies with Lasha Bekauri, the two-time Olympic champion at -90 kg, who is vying for the one accolade lacking from his impressive resume: a world championship. He will almost certainly have to face Murao Sanshiro, this year’s top seed and Japan’s Olympic silver medalist, who is still hurt from their Paris experience and is out for vengeance.

Olympic champions abound elsewhere. Japan’s Nagase Takanori (-81kg), who has already won two Olympic gold medals, will try to solidify his dominance on the international scene, Italy’s Alice Bellandi (-78kg) seeks to enhance her 2024 world silver to gold, and Brazil’s Beatriz Souza (+78kg) will bring her expertise back to the heavyweight division.

Additionally, don’t ignore the host country. Two-time Olympian and 2018 Youth Olympic Games champion Szofi Özbas, a native of Hungary, has found fresh life after moving up a weight class after Paris 2024 and hasn’t lost a match since. With momentum and the support of her home fans, Özbas might just provide the narrative Budapest is looking for.

The mixed team competition, scheduled for the final day, promises to be another exciting chapter in one of the most intense rivalries in judo. Although Japan has won every World Championship team event, they have been denied Olympic gold twice by France. A rematch promises a struggle for supremacy that has come to characterize mixed team judo, should they face each other again in the final.

2025 World Judo Championships: Schedule

All times are local CET.

13 June – Day 1: M -60 kg / W -48 kg

Preliminaries – 11:30
Final Block – 18:00

14 June – Day 2: M -66 kg / W -52 kg

Preliminaries – 11:00
Final Block – 18:00

15 June – Day 3: M -73 kg / W -57 kg

Preliminaries – 11:30
Final Block – 18:00

16 June – Day 4: M -81 kg / W -63 kg

Preliminaries – 11:00
Final Block – 18:00

17 June – Day 5: M -90 kg / W -70 kg

Preliminaries – 11:00
Final Block – 18:00

18 June – Day 6: M -100 kg / W -78 kg

Preliminaries – 11:30
Final Block – 18:00

19 June – Day 7: M +100 kg / W +78 kg

Preliminaries – 12:00
Final Block – 18:00

20 June – Day 8: Mixed team

Preliminaries – TBD
Final Block – 18:00

How to watch the 2025 World Judo Championships

JudoTV offers live coverage of every competition.