Backgammon world champions
The backgammon world championship has been played since 1967, in Las Vegas, the Bahamas and, since 1979, Monte Carlo. Here is every champion, the women's champions, the WBGF world individual champions, and the players who have won more than once.
The current champions
Petko Kostadinov (United States) is the 2026 backgammon world champion, winning the open championship in Monte Carlo. Martha Ghio (United States) won the women's title. In the WBGF's separate World Individual Championship, held in London in August 2026, the winner was Frederik Mikkelsen of Denmark.
There are two "world championships" because two organisations run them. The Monte Carlo championship is the older, invitational-style open event that most players mean by the title. The WBGF (World Backgammon Federation) championship is played between qualifiers from national federations. See backgammon tournaments for how each works.
Monte Carlo champions, 1979 to today
No championship was held in 2020. The women's championship began in 2008.
| Year | Champion | Country | Women's champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Petko Kostadinov | United States | Martha Ghio (United States) |
| 2025 | Timo Väätäinen | Finland | Miranda Moulton (United Kingdom) |
| 2024 | Johan Moazed | Sweden | Miho Macleod (Japan) |
| 2023 | Frank Frigo | United States | Maggie Diamantidis (Greece) |
| 2022 | Sander Lylloff | Denmark | Annalisa Agosti (Italy) |
| 2021 | Masayuki Mochizuki | Japan | Annalisa Agosti (Italy) |
| 2019 | Eli Roymi | Israel | Antoinette Williams (United States) |
| 2018 | Akiko Yazawa | Japan | Alexandra Knupfer (Romania) |
| 2017 | Didier Assaraf | France | Anna Clarke (England) |
| 2016 | Jörgen Granstedt | Sweden | Cecilia Sparke (England) |
| 2015 | Ali Cihangir Çetinel | Turkey | Laura Monaco (Italy) |
| 2014 | Akiko Yazawa | Japan | Laura Monaco (Italy) |
| 2013 | Vyacheslav Pryadkin | Ukraine | Laura Monaco (Italy) |
| 2012 | Nevzat Dogan | Denmark | Laura Monaco (Italy) |
| 2011 | Takumitsu Suzuki | Japan | Lynn Ehrlich (United States) |
| 2010 | Lars Bentzon | Denmark | Zoe Cunningham (England) |
| 2009 | Masayuki Mochizuki | Japan | Sara Utku (Sweden) |
| 2008 | Lars Trabolt | Denmark | Scarlett Serrero (France) |
| 2007 | Jorge Pan | Argentina | |
| 2006 | Philip Vischjager | Netherlands | |
| 2005 | Dennis Carlston | United States | |
| 2004 | Peter Hallberg | Denmark | |
| 2003 | Jon Kristian Røyset | Norway | |
| 2002 | Mads Andersen | Denmark | |
| 2001 | Jörgen Granstedt | Sweden | |
| 2000 | Katie Scalamandre | United States | |
| 1999 | Jörgen Granstedt | Sweden | |
| 1998 | Michael Meyburg | Germany | |
| 1997 | Jerry Grandell | Sweden | |
| 1996 | David Nahmad | Lebanon | |
| 1995 | David Ben-Zion | Israel | |
| 1994 | Frank Frigo | United States | |
| 1993 | Peter Jes Thomsen | Denmark | |
| 1992 | Ion Ressu | Switzerland | |
| 1991 | Michael Meyburg | Germany | |
| 1990 | Hal Heinrich | Canada | |
| 1989 | Joe Russell | United States | |
| 1988 | Phillip Marmorstein | Germany | |
| 1987 | Bill Robertie | United States | |
| 1986 | Clement Palacci | Italy | |
| 1985 | Charles-Henri Sabet | Switzerland | |
| 1984 | Mike Svobodny | United States | |
| 1983 | Bill Robertie | United States | |
| 1982 | Jacques Michel | Switzerland | |
| 1981 | Lee Genud | United States | |
| 1980 | Walter Coratella | Mexico | |
| 1979 | Luigi Villa | Italy |
The early years, 1967 to 1978
The first world championship was played in Las Vegas in 1967, during the American backgammon boom that also brought the doubling cube into fashion. No event was held in 1969 or 1970 (some sources list Alice Topping as the 1969 winner). From 1975 to 1978 the championship was held in the Bahamas, while Monte Carlo ran a rival European event; the two merged in Monte Carlo in 1979.
| Year | Champion | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Paul Magriel | Bahamas |
| 1977 | Ken Goodman | Bahamas |
| 1976 | Baron Vernon Ball | Bahamas |
| 1975 | Billy Eisenberg | Bahamas |
| 1974 | Claude Beer | Las Vegas |
| 1973 | Carol Crawford | Las Vegas |
| 1972 | Oswald Jacoby | Las Vegas |
| 1971 | Tim Holland | Las Vegas |
| 1968 | Tim Holland | Las Vegas |
| 1967 | Tim Holland | Las Vegas |
Several early champions shaped the game itself. Oswald Jacoby gave his name to the Jacoby rule for money games, Carol Crawford was the wife of John R. Crawford of the Crawford rule, and Paul Magriel wrote Backgammon (1976), still one of the most respected books on the game.
WBGF world individual champions
The World Backgammon Federation has held a World Individual Championship since 2017, in a different city each year, alongside its team and women's team championships.
| Year | Champion | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Frederik Mikkelsen | Denmark | London |
| 2025 | Mikael Westerlund | Sweden | Kamena Vourla |
| 2024 | Peter van Rooij | Netherlands | Stockholm |
| 2023 | David Klausa | United States | Skopje |
| 2022 | Patrick Didisheim | Switzerland | Venice |
| 2021 | Stéphane Chenevière | France | Trier |
| 2020 | Ralph Jonas | Germany | Forges-les-Eaux |
| 2019 | Bakar Matikashvili | Georgia | Budva |
| 2018 | Tobias Hellwag | Germany | Gibraltar |
| 2017 | Nodar Gagua | Georgia | Reykjavik |
Records and multiple winners
- Three titles: Tim Holland (1967, 1968, 1971) and Jörgen Granstedt (1999, 2001, 2016).
- Two titles: Bill Robertie (1983, 1987), Michael Meyburg (1991, 1998), Frank Frigo (1994, 2023), Masayuki Mochizuki (2009, 2021) and Akiko Yazawa (2014, 2018).
- Longest gap between titles: Frank Frigo, 29 years, from 1994 to 2023.
- Most women's titles: Laura Monaco of Italy, four in a row from 2012 to 2015.
- Women in the open championship: Carol Crawford (1973), Katie Scalamandre (2000) and Akiko Yazawa (2014, 2018).
Titles by country
Monte Carlo open titles since 1979:
| Country | Titles |
|---|---|
| United States | 10 |
| Denmark | 7 |
| Japan | 5 |
| Sweden | 5 |
| Germany | 3 |
| Switzerland | 3 |
| Israel | 2 |
| Italy | 2 |
| Argentina | 1 |
| Canada | 1 |
| Finland | 1 |
| France | 1 |
| Lebanon | 1 |
| Mexico | 1 |
| Netherlands | 1 |
| Norway | 1 |
| Turkey | 1 |
| Ukraine | 1 |
Denmark's strength is striking for a small country, and Japan has won five titles since 2009 from a strong club scene. The United States leads overall, helped by the early years when the game boomed there.
Every champion started by playing lots of games. Learn the opening moves and the cube, then play a match in Backgammon Lounge.
Questions
Who is the current backgammon world champion?
Petko Kostadinov of the United States won the 2026 World Championship in Monte Carlo. Martha Ghio, also of the United States, won the women's title. The separate 2026 WBGF World Individual Championship in London was won by Frederik Mikkelsen of Denmark.
Who has won the most backgammon world championships?
Tim Holland won three of the early Las Vegas championships (1967, 1968 and 1971), and Jörgen Granstedt of Sweden has won three in Monte Carlo (1999, 2001 and 2016). Several players have won twice, including Bill Robertie, Michael Meyburg, Frank Frigo, Masayuki Mochizuki and Akiko Yazawa.
Has a woman won the open backgammon world championship?
Yes. Carol Crawford won in 1973, Katie Scalamandre in 2000, and Akiko Yazawa of Japan won the open title twice, in 2014 and 2018.
Where is the backgammon world championship held?
At the Fairmont Monte Carlo in Monaco, for about a week each summer, since 1979. Before that it was held in Las Vegas and then in the Bahamas.
Who is Frank Frigo?
An American backgammon player who won the world championship in Monte Carlo in 1994 and again in 2023, nearly thirty years later.
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