World Cube Association
Sport Association
Formation18 October 2004
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California, US
LanguageEnglish
Board of directorsBlake Thompson, Nick Silvestri, Abdullah Gulab
Main organBoard
AbbreviationWCA
FoundersRon van Bruchem, Tyson Mao
Num membersFree
Num staff

3 Board of Directors,

11 Committee Leaders (including Board members as a whole),

464 WCA Delegates (excluding trainees),

112 Committee Members

Websiteworldcubeassociation.org

The World Cube Association (WCA) is the worldwide non-profit organization that regulates and holds competitions for mechanical puzzles that are operated by twisting groups of pieces, commonly known as twisty puzzles (a subcategory of combination puzzles). The most famous of those puzzles is the Rubik's Cube.[1][2][3] The WCA was founded by Ron van Bruchem of the Netherlands and Tyson Mao of the United States in 2004.[4][5] The goal of the World Cube Association is to have "more competitions in more countries with more people and more fun, under fair and equal conditions."[6] In 2017, they started work to become a non-profit organization and on 20 November 2017, the state of California accepted the initial registration of the World Cube Association.

The organization is run by the board members. It assigns different teams and committees as well as delegates who can organize official competitions. The presence of a delegate is required to make the competition official.[7] As of March 2026, over 282,000 people from around the world have participated in WCA competitions,[8] and over 16,600 competitions have been held.[9]

Board

Current WCA Board Members

The WCA Board is responsible for leading the organization as a whole, and fulfilling any duties not fulfilled by other Teams, Committees, and Councils

MemberCountryBoard member since
Blake ThompsonUnited StatesJuly 2022[10]
Nick SilvestriUnited StatesJune 2024[11]
Abdullah GulabPakistanJuly 2025[12]
Sachin ArvindIndiaMay 2026
Glib VedmidUkraineMay 2026
Oliver HexterUnited KingdomMay 2026
Rubén López de JuanSpainMay 2026

Former WCA Board Members

MemberCountryTerm
Gilles RouxFranceOctober 2004 – November 2008[13]
Ron van BruchemNetherlandsOctober 2004 – July 2018[14]
Masayuki AkimotoJapanSeptember 2005[4] – January 2012
Tyson MaoUnited StatesOctober 2004 – August 2013[15]
Sébastien AurouxGermanyJuly 2012[16] – February 2014[17]
Tim ReynoldsUnited StatesJuly 2012[16] – December 2014[18]
Natán RiggenbachPeruSeptember 2013[19] – August 2015[20]
Olivér PergeHungaryMarch 2015 – February 2016, July 2017[21]
Pedro Santos GuimarãesBrazilMarch 2015 – July 2018[14]
Ilkyoo ChoiSouth KoreaSeptember 2013[19] – July 2017[21]
Chris HardwickUnited StatesJuly 2016[22] – November 2017[23]
Luis J. IáñezSpainJuly 2016[22] – July 2018[14]
Alberto Pérez de Rada FiolSpainNovember 2017[23] – November 2019[24]
Chris WrightUnited KingdomSeptember 2018[25] – September 2020[26]
Bob BurtonUnited StatesNovember 2017[23] - November 2021[27]
Henrik Buus AagaardDenmarkNovember 2019[24] - November 2021[27]
Saransh GroverIndiaSeptember 2020[28] - September 2022[29]
Callum James GoodyearUnited KingdomSeptember 2020[28] - January 2023[30]
Somya SrivastavaIndiaJuly 2022[10] - January 2024[31]
Michael ChaiUnited StatesJuly 2023[32] - October 2024[33]
Ethan PrideAustraliaJuly 2019[34] - July 2025[35]
Dan SmithUnited StatesJanuary 2025[36] - March 2026[37]
Kerrie JarmanAustraliaJuly 2023[38] - March 2026[39]

Structure of the WCA

WCA Marketing Team

The WCA Marketing Team (WMT) is responsible for managing WCA relationships with external partners as well as working closely with the WCA Brand. They are currently seeking help with WCA Merchandise, Sponsorships, and Contracts.[40]

WCA Software Team

The WCA website is an open source project on GitHub.[41]

The Software Team develops new software for various tasks within the WCA whenever needed. For example, they created an app that simplifies the process of translating the website, to encourage more people to translate into their language. On 21 August 2012, the WCA Workbook assistant was released.[42]

History

Pre-history (1999-2003)

In 1982, an unofficial Rubik's Cube World Championships was hosted in Budapest, Hungary by Ernő Rubik, which was won by Minh Thai with a time of 22.95 seconds. In 1999, speedcubers gathered on the Internet via Rubik's Games, a computer game with an electronic version of the Rubik's Cube. Chris Hardwick from Raleigh, NC founded the Yahoo! Group "Speedsolvingrubikscube" and the Unofficial World Records, a place where cubers could post their personal best times. Ron van Bruchem started speedcubing.com together with his friend Ton Dennenbroek, an avid puzzle collector.[43]

Founding (2003-2004)

Because the cubers were living all over the world, they wanted to organize a competition at which they could all meet. In 2001, plans to organise a World Championship in New York were underway but it had to be called off due to safety concerns at the time. In 2003, under the guidance of Dan Gosbee, they successfully organized the Rubik's Cube World Championship in Toronto.[43] This first modern-age Rubik's Cube competition was a success, but there were many issues, largely due to the lack of any regulations. After the World Championship, van Bruchem and Tyson Mao started organizing competitions in the Netherlands and Germany, as well as at Caltech in the United States. In 2004, they started the World Cube Association, which today has held competitions in more than 100 countries.[43]

After the founding of the WCA, most competitions in the United States happened in prestigious colleges, though many happened in smaller high schools, middle schools, hotels, malls, amusement parks and other venues internationally. Some of the first official events included most current ones (see Events). However, 6x6, 7x7, and Skewb weren't events when the organization was founded, whereas Magic, Master Magic, and 3x3 with Feet were but are no longer events.[44]

Events

Currently, the WCA offers competitions in 17 events. Not all of them are offered at every competition, but they are usually all offered at national, continental, and global championships. The events are:[45][7]

Additionally, some events have had their official WCA event status removed. They are:[44][46]

  • 3x3x3 Multi-Blind Old Style
  • Magic
  • Master Magic
  • 3x3x3 With Feet
    • Removed due to lack of interest, and cleanliness of equipment.[47]

World Records

The following are the official speedcubing world records approved by the WCA as of 17 May 2026.[48]

Note: For averages of 5 solves, the best time and the worst time are dropped, and the mean of the remaining 3 solves is taken. For events where only 3 solves are done, the mean of all 3 is taken.

(Times in parentheses are not included in the average calculation)[49]

EventTypeResultPersonCompetition (Date(s))Round Results
3x3x3 CubeSingle2.76Teodor ZajderGLS Big Cubes Gdańsk 2026 (7-8 February)4.99 / 5.36 / (5.76) / (2.76) / 5.34
Average3.71Xuanyi Geng (耿暄一)Deqing Small & Special 2026 (26 April)3.79 / (4.33) / 3.61 / 3.74 / (2.80)
2x2x2 CubeSingle0.39Ziyu Ye (叶梓渝)Hefei Open 2025 (25 October)(1.94) / 1.31 / 1.38 / 1.46 / (0.39)
Average0.86Sujan FeistKids America Christmas Clash OH 2025 (13 December)0.86 / 1.02 / (0.56) / (1.42) / 0.70
4x4x4 CubeSingle15.18Tymon KolasińskiSpanish Championship 2025 (6-8 December)20.27 / (22.54) / 19.57 / (15.18) / 20.34
Average18.56Seoul Winter 2026 (17-18 January)19.16 / 18.01 / 18.51 / (21.64) / (16.09)
5x5x5 CubeSingle29.49All Rounders Katowice I 2026 (1-3 May)35.94 / (42.62) / 36.67 / 40.82 / (30.45)
Average33.7336.46 / (36.67) / (31.67) / 33.11 / 33.36
6x6x6 CubeSingle57.69Max ParkBurbank Big Cubes 2025 (26 April)57.69 / 1:11.14 / 1:09.39
Mean1:05.04Lim Hung (林弘)UniKL MIAT Cube Open 2026 (9-10 May)1:08.11 / 1:03.68 / 1:03.04
7x7x7 CubeSingle1:32.07Max ParkWestern Championship 2026 (23-25 May)1:32.07 / 1:47.68 / 1:42.66
Mean1:36.86Nub Open Trabuco Hills Fall 2025 (4 October)1:33.48 / 1:41.36 / 1:35.75
3x3x3 BlindfoldedSingle11.67Charlie EgginsCubing at The Cube 2026 (9-11 January)14.34 / (DNF) / 13.95 / 13.85 / (11.67)
Mean14.05Tommy CherryRubik's WCA European Championship 2024 (25-28 July)13.48 / 14.42 / 14.24
Charlie EgginsCubing at The Cube 2026 (9-11 January)14.34 / (DNF) / 13.95 / 13.85 / (11.67)
3x3x3 Fewest MovesSingle16Sebastiano TrontoFMC 2019 (15–16 June)16 / 26 / 24
Aedan BryantAshfield Summer Challenge 2024 (23 June)26 / 16 / 26
Levi Gibson26 / 16 / 24
Jacob Sherwen BrownRubik's UK Championship FMC 2024 (26 October)33 / 31 / 16
Mean19Brian JohnsonEvanston FMC Spring 2026 (2 May)17 / 18 / 22
3x3x3 One-HandedSingle5.66Dhruva Sai MeruvaSwiss Nationals 2024 (4-6 October)(12.25) / 9.77 / 10.02 / (5.66) / 8.93
Average7.72Luke GarrettChicagoland Newcomers 2025 (9 March)8.57 / 7.13 / (6.82) / 7.45 / (12.80)
ClockSingle1.53Lachlan GibsonHasty Hastings 2025 (27 September)3.52 / 2.33 / (7.02) / (1.53) / 3.08
Average2.24Brendyn DunaganTemecula Valley Winter 2025 (13 December)2.02 / 3.27 / 1.93 / 2.27 / 2.43
MegaminxSingle21.85Timofei TarasenkoStart of Summer Beijing 2026 (1-2 May)26.43 / (21.85) / 24.50 / (27.75) / 25.87
Average24.38
PyraminxSingle0.73Simon KellumMiddleton Meetup Thursday 2023 (21 December)4.94 / 2.36 / 1.76 / (0.73) / (DNF)
Average1.14Lingkun Jiang (姜凌坤)Zhengzhou Zest 2025 (27 December)1.04 / (3.22) / (0.97) / 1.21 / 1.16
SkewbSingle0.73Vojtěch GrohmannGłuszyca Open 2026 (7-8 March)(3.25) / 1.57 / 1.70 / (0.73) / 1.56
Average1.37Ignacy SamselskiCube Factory League Justynów 2025 (14-15 June)1.22 / 1.43 / (1.16) / 1.46 / (2.93)
Square-1Single2.85Brian JohnsonEvanston Qualifier 2026 (17 May)(2.85) / 4.39 / (9.36) / 6.40 / 5.23
Average4.63Sameer AggarwalCubing in Southern Oregon 2025 (1 February)(8.08) / 6.20 / (3.42) / 3.81 / 3.88
4x4x4 BlindfoldedSingle51.96Stanley Chapel4BLD in a Madison Hall 2023 (28-29 January)1:17.62 / DNF / 51.96
Mean59.39New York Multimate PBQ II 2025 (13-15 June)57.83 / 1:04.79 / 55.54
5x5x5 BlindfoldedSingle1:58.59Multi Mayhem VA 2026 (2-4 January)2:22.85 / DNF / 1:58.59
Mean2:27.63Michigan Cubing Club Epsilon 2019 (14 December)2:32.48 / 2:28.80 / 2:21.62
3x3x3 Multi-BlindSingle63/65 58:23Graham SigginsPlease Be Quiet Reno 2025 (18 October)63/65 58:23 / 58/68 1:00:00

World Championships

Every two years starting from 2003, the WCA holds the Rubik's Cube World Championships, however the 2021 World Championships was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Championship ultimately determines the world champion of the puzzle. Every official event is held at the Championship. The Rubik's Cube World Championship requires extremely careful planning by several volunteers, as well as a large financial commitment to reserve the venue and make necessary preparations.[6] The latest championship was held in Seattle, United States from 3 to 6 July 2025. The next Championship is scheduled to be held in Uppsala, Sweden from 22 to 25 July 2027.[50] The 2021 World Championship was to be held in Almere, Amsterdam from 28 to 31 December 2021, already delayed[51] from its initial July dates due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before being ultimately cancelled by the association in August 2021.[52]

ChampionshipYearHostDate(s)NationsPuzzlesEvents3x3 WinnerAverageRef
I1982Budapest5 June1911Minh Thai22.95[note 1][53]
II2003Toronto23–24 August15914Dan Knights20.00[54]
III2005Lake Buena Vista5–6 November16915Jean Pons15.10[55]
IV2007Budapest5–7 October281017Yu Nakajima12.46[56]
V2009Düsseldorf9–11 October321219Breandan Vallance10.74[57]
VI2011Bangkok14–16 October351219Michał Pleskowicz8.65[58]
VII2013Las Vegas26–28 July351017Feliks Zemdegs8.18[59]
VIII2015São Paulo17–19 July371118Feliks Zemdegs7.56[60]
IX2017Paris13–16 July641118Max Park6.85[61]
X2019Melbourne11–14 July521118Philipp Weyer6.74[62]
-2021AlmereCancelled-1117--[63]
XI2023Incheon12–15 August571117Max Park5.31[64]
XII2025Seattle3–6 July741117Yiheng Wang4.23[65]
XIII2027Uppsala22–25 July-----[66]
  1. ^ The 1982 World Championship used a best of 3 method to determine the winner, so Minh Thai's winning time is actually a single time.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Bowman, Emma (2023-06-20). "He once had motor skill challenges. Now he's the world's fastest Rubik's cube solver". NPR. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  2. ^ Walrath-Holdridge, Mary. "Seeking therapy, they found a Rubik's Cube community instead. It saved their son's life.". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  3. ^ Branch, John (2018-08-15). "Children of the Cube". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  4. ^ "New WCA board member". World Cube Association. 24 September 2005. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  5. ^ "The 3 Best Speed Cubes (And Why the Rubik’s Cube Isn’t One)". The New York Times. 2025-11-19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  6. ^ "About the WCA". World Cube Association. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
  7. ^ "WCA Regulations". Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  8. ^ "WCA database export". World Cube Association. Retrieved 5 January 2026. See in table "Persons". Multiply the page count by 10, as there are 10 competitors per page.
  9. ^ "Number of Competitions". WCA Statistics. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  10. ^ "Changes in the Board of Directors – July 2022". World Cube Association. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  11. ^ Ali Behzaad, Zain (1 June 2024). "Changes in the WCA Board of Directors (June 2024)". World Cube Association
  12. ^ "Changes in the WCA Board of Directors (June 2025)". World Cube Association. 6 June 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  13. ^ "Gilles Roux retires as member of WCA Board". World Cube Association. 15 October 2008. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  14. ^ "Changes in the WCA Board". World Cube Association. 1 July 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  15. ^ "Tyson Mao retires as member of WCA Board". World Cube Association. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  16. ^ "Tim Reynolds and Sébastien Auroux in WCA Board". World Cube Association. 28 July 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  17. ^ "Sébastien Auroux retires as WCA board member". World Cube Association. 24 February 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  18. ^ "Tim Reynolds retires as WCA Board Member". World Cube Association. 19 December 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  19. ^ "New WCA Board Members". World Cube Association. 19 September 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  20. ^ "Natán Riggenbach resigns from the WCA Board". World Cube Association. 5 August 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  21. ^ "Changes in the Board of Directors (WCA Board)". World Cube Association. 1 July 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  22. ^ "New WCA Board Members". World Cube Association. 4 July 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  23. ^ "Changes in the Board of Directors – November 2017". World Cube Association. 10 November 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  24. ^ "Changes in the Board of Directors (November 2019) | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  25. ^ "Changes in the Board of Directors – September 2018". World Cube Association. 2 September 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  26. ^ "Changes in the Board of Directors – September 2020". World Cube Association. 1 September 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  27. ^ Clement, Lauren (9 November 2021). "Changes in the Board of Directors (November 2021)". World Cube Association
  28. ^ Reis, Rui (1 September 2020). "Changes in the WCA Board of Directors". World Cube Association
  29. ^ Clement, Lauren (10 September 2022). "Changes in the Board of Directors (September 2022)". World Cube Association
  30. ^ Garriga Gea, Albert (2 February 2023). "Changes in the Board of Directors (January 2023)". World Cube Association
  31. ^ Ali Behzaad, Zain (25 January 2024). "Changes to the WCA Board of Directors (January 2024)". World Cube Association
  32. ^ "Changes in the WCA Board of Directors (July 2023) | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2023-07-01.
  33. ^ Ali Behzaad, Zain (22 October 2024). "Changes to the WCA Board of Directors (October 2024)". World Cube Association
  34. ^ Reis, Rui (3 July 2019). "Changes to the Board of Directors (July 2019)". World Cube Association
  35. ^ Renatus, Kyle Kayden (6 June 2025). "Changes to the WCA Board of Directors (July 2025)". World Cube Association
  36. ^ Ali Behzaad, Zain (4 January 2025). "Changes in the WCA Board of Directors (January 2025)". World Cube Association. Retrieved 2025-01-04.
  37. ^ Renatus, Kyle Kayden (10 March 2026). "Dan Smith Appointed Chief Operating Officer of the World Cube Association". World Cube Association. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
  38. ^ "Changes in the WCA Board of Directors (July 2023)". World Cube Association. Retrieved 2023-07-01.
  39. ^ Tao, Sherry (15 March 2026). "Changes in the Board of Directors (March 2026)". World Cube Association. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
  40. ^ "WCA Marketing Team Appliances & About". World Cube Association. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  41. ^ "WCA Github Repository". World Cube Association. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  42. ^ "WCA Workbook Assistant versions". World Cube Association. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  43. ^ "History‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌Speedcubing‌ ‌Community‌ ‌&‌ ‌WCA‌ | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  44. ^ "WCA Regulations History". World Cube Association. Retrieved 1 May 2021. WCA Updated Regulations Page
  45. ^ "How to Find Rubik's Cube Competitions | Intro to WCA Competitions". SpeedCubeShop. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  46. ^ "World Cube Association Competition regulations, history of changes". Archived from the original on 13 July 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2021. Final version for 2007: Article 9a/d
  47. ^ "Removing official status for 3x3x3 With Feet | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2026-04-29.
  48. ^ "Records | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
  49. ^ "WCA Regulations | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2026-05-28.
  50. ^ "WCA World Championship 2027 Host City Announcement (July 2025) | World Cube Association". www.worldcubeassociation.org. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  51. ^ "Postponement of WCA World Championship 2021 (December 2020) | World Cube Association"
  52. ^ "WCA World Championship 2021 Cancellation | World Cube Association"
  53. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 1982". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 15 March 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  54. ^ "World Rubik's Games Championship 2003". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 25 January 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  55. ^ "Rubik's World Championship 2005". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 24 January 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  56. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 2007". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 14 December 2007. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  57. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 2009". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  58. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 2011". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 22 December 2011. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  59. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 2013". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  60. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 2015". World Cube Association. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  61. ^ "World Rubik's Cube Championship 2017". World Cube Association. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  62. ^ "WCA World Championship 2019". World Cube Association. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  63. ^ "WCA World Championship 2021 Cancellation". World Cube Association. 6 August 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  64. ^ "Rubik's WCA World Championship 2023". World Cube Association. 28 June 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  65. ^ "Rubik's WCA World Championship 2025". World Cube Association. 20 August 2023. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  66. ^ "WCA World Championship 2027 Host City Announcement (July 2025)". World Cube Association. 6 July 2025. Retrieved 8 July 2025.