The World Championships have been run yearly since 1980, when the 1st competition was held in USA. Many different countries have held these prestigious events ever since, such as Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Holland, Germany and Japan, but it has never been held in Ireland until 2008. This will be the last year the Championships will be held yearly and in conjunction with the International Cup. The 30th World Championships will be held in 2010 and every second year thereafter. There are five events run across two age divisions of Junior and Senior. In the individual events, men and women compete separately.

The individual events are:

Compulsories/Short Programme
As it suggests, this is a mandatory event for those who compete in Freestyle. Junior Women and Men compete in the Compulsory event, which is 15 prescribed elements, divided into two sets. On the day of competition, a predetermined set (A or B) of 8 of these prescribed elements are performed. No music is used. The compulsory scores are judged on technique and proficiency of baton skills and body movements. Each move is scored out of ten and counts 25% toward the final score of the athlete. The senior athletes compete in the Short Programme instead of compulsory. They perform 8 required elements derived from 5 categories of twirls: spins, stationary complex, travel complex, rolls and contact material. The elements must be strictly performed as prescribed. It is run to WBTF Men or Women Short Programme music. Each element is worth 10 points, with 10 points each being assigned to composition and performance. This score counts 25% toward the final score.

Freestyle
Junior and Senior competitors have a 50' x 60' floor space to demonstrate stationary, complex and travel moves, contact material and rolls using body movements to interpret the music. Strict time limits are enforced. The freestyle score is worth 75% of the athletes final score. Freestyle is judged on Technical Merit and Artistic Expression by a large panel of certified judges selected by the member countries. A maximum of 3 Junior Women, 3 Senior Women, 3 Junior Men and 3 Senior Men are permitted to enter per country.

The Other Events:

WBTF Pairs
Each WBTF member country may send 1 Junior Pair and 1 Senior Pair. The combination of athletes may include female/female, female/male or male/male. The content of the routine is similar to freestyle with the added responsibility of pair interaction, unison and baton exchange material. The music selection is optional and the routine must not exceed the allowable time limit.

WBTF Team
Each member country is eligible to send one WBTF team consisting of 6 - 8 members. Content is similar to the other events but has the extra demand of unison, more risk in relation to baton exchanges, formations, patterns and planes of the competition floor. The time limit of the team is 3:20 to 4:10 minutes.