Uber Cup

The Uber Cup, sometimes called the World Team Championships for Women, is a major international badminton competition contested by women's national badminton teams. First held in 1956-1957 and contested at three year intervals, it has been contested every two years since 1984 when it’s scheduled times and venues were merged with those of Thomas Cup, the world men's team championship. The Uber Cup is named after a former British women's badminton player, Betty Uber, who in 1950 had the idea of hosting a women's event similar to that of the men. She also made the draw for the 1956-1957 inaugural tournaments, which took place at Lytham St. Annes in Lancashire, England.

The cup follows a similar format to that of the men's competition of the Thomas Cup. In the twenty-two tournament held, China is the most successful, having lifted the trophy eleven times. Japan and Indonesia is second, having won it four times, followed by United States with three cups.

The Uber Cup trophy was officially presented at the annual general meeting in 1956, the year the first Uber Cup tournament was first held. It was made by Mappin & Webb, prominent silversmiths on Regent Street in London. The trophy is 20 inches high with a rotating globe on top of a plinth and a female player standing on top of shuttlecock.

source: wikipedia.org

Thomas Cup

The Thomas Cup, sometimes called the World Men's Team Championships, is an international badminton competition among teams representing member nations of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), the sport's global governing body. The championships have been conducted every two years since the 1982 tournament, amended from being conducted every three years since the first tournament held in 1948-1949.

The final phase of the tournament involves twelve teams competing at venues within the host nation. The final phase of the tournament is also often known as the Thomas & Uber Cup, because it is played concurrently with the women's championships, the Uber Cup (organized since 1956-1957), as a joint extravaganza held at the same general time and same venue beginning in 1984. However, this unification may end after the 2008 tournament, as the BWF has said that it is considering holding each event separately again beginning in 2010.

Of the twenty-five Thomas Cup tournaments held since 1948-1949, only three nations have won the title. Indonesia is the most successful team, having won the tournament thirteen times. The current cup holder, China, which did not begin to compete until the 1981-1982 series, follows Indonesia with seven titles, while Malaysia has won five titles. Thomas Cup and, to a lesser extent, Uber Cup are probably the world's "biggest" regularly held badminton events in terms of player and fan interest, trumping major tournaments for individual competitors such as the venerable All-England Championships, the BWF World Championships, and even the badminton competitions at the Olympic Games.

The Thomas Cup competition was the idea of Sir George Alan Thomas, a highly successful English badminton player of the early 1900's, who was inspired by tennis's Davis Cup, and football's (soccer's) World Cup first held in 1930. His idea was well received at the general meeting of the International Badminton Federation (now Badminton World Federation) in 1939.

source: wikipedia.org