Official Sports Bodies

This section provides links to the websites of the governing bodies of many of the sports in the UK. Information on their roles, clubs, membership, training, events, venues and schedules can also be found on these sites. 

If you are looking for a sport that's not listed below please contact us 

Other useful websites which list, and have links to, the governing bodies are:-

www.allsportsinternational.co.uk/governingbodies.html 

http://www.sportscoachuk.org/coachinfo/links/ngb.htm 

For information on the location of the sporting venues for major events please visit our page 'Main UK Sporting Venues'.  

General Sporting Bodies

Olympic Games

British Olympic Association    The BOA consists of elected officials and professional staff. The elected officials, one from each of the Olympic sports, make up the National Olympic Committee (NOC). The Committee is the Association's decision and policy-making body.

Sport England

Sport England  is responsible for developing and maintaining the infrastructure of sport in England. It is also responsible for five National Sports Centres and for distributing National Lottery funds. 

UK Sports Council

UK Sports Council The members of the UK Sport Council have a wealth of experience in promoting sport in the UK, encouraging participation and providing strategic advice and direction to the organisation.

Women's Sport Foundation

The Women's Sports Foundation is an organisation in the UK that is solely committed to improving and promoting opportunities for women and girls in sport at every level.

 

Specific Sporting Bodies

Official sporting bodies for specific sports are listed in alphabetical order below.

Refer to our page on American Sports for detailed information on American Football, Baseball, Basketball, and Ice Hockey

American Football - Europe

National Football League Europe. An essential site for those interested in American Football.

Angling/Fishing

UK Sea Angling Is an Association which represents and promotes the United Kingdom's sea angling community.  

England Youth Fly Fishing Association Governing body of competitive junior fly-fishing in England.

The British Disabled Angling Association  is a national registered charity. The BDAA is an umbrella organisation within angling which encompasses coarse, specimen, sea & game fishing.

Athletics

British Athletics Federation's website provides information on athletic clubs throughout the UK as well as a diary of athletic meetings throughout the year.

Amateur Athletics Association of England is responsible for providing the structure for athletics within England not only for Track and Field but also Cross Country , Road and Fell Running.  It holds Championships for these annually.

Badminton

The Badminton Association of England is the sport's governing body in England. Membership is available (and essential if you want to play competitively). 

Check out Badminton Online. The site is designed to be the number one source for badminton information on the internet, providing information on everything from the history of badminton to the latest world rankings and international badminton news.

Boxing

The British Boxing Board of Control is responsible for the organisation of British boxing, recognition of Championships, and the medical protection of British professional boxers. 

Climbing/Mountaineering

The British Mountaineering Council is the representative body that exists to protect the freedoms and promote the interests of climbers, hill walkers and mountaineers, including ski-mountaineers.

The Association of British Mountain Guides is an autonomous body for developing and enhancing the training, skills and reputation of the increasing number of skilled mountaineers who wished to qualify as guides and follow this profession in the world's mountains.

Cricket

International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the governing body for international Test Match and One Day International (ODI) cricket.

English Cricket Board  the governing body of cricket in England. This site has links to each of the 18 professional county cricket clubs.

http://www.cricinfo.com/ provides news, information and statistics on cricket worldwide.

Cycling

The British Cycling Federation is Britain's internationally recognised governing body of cycle sport in BMX, Cycle Speedway, Cyclo-Cross, Mountain Bike, Road and Track with responsibilities which include the co-ordination the racing calendar in all the major sporting disciplines except Time Trials. This website has information on all clubs in the UK.

Equestrian

British Equestrian Federation the recognised governing body of equestrian sport in Britain. BEF represents the sports of Show Jumping, Eventing, Dressage, Horse Driving Trials, Endurance Riding, Vaulting and Reining.

Each of these Equestrian disciplines has its own national governing body.   Click here for details.

Football/Soccer

The Football Association  The Football Association is the governing body of football in England. 

Professional Footballers Association The Professional Footballer’s Association is the world’s longest established professional sportsmen’s union.

Flying/Gliding

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association UK (AOPA UK) is a member of the International Council of Aircraft Owner and Pilot Associations (IAOPA).  With a total membership of over 400,000 in 50 countries, it is the largest association for pilots in the world.

The British Gliding Association  The controlling organisation for Gliding in the UK. 

Golf

The Professional Golf Association is the responsible authority for all golf in the UK and Europe. 

http://www.europeantour.com/ is the official website of the PGA European Tour.

English Golf Union  was established in 1924 and is the governing body for male amateur golf in England.

The Ladies Golf Union  based at St. Andrews is the governing body for ladies' golf in Great Britain and Ireland.  

Horse Racing

The Jockey Club is the regulatory authority for horseracing.

Ice Hockey

Ice Hockey UK is the National Governing Body and is affiliated to the International Ice Hockey Federation (IHUK) which is the internationally recognised umbrella body in the United Kingdom.

Judo

British Judo Association  The British Judo Association (BJA) was established in 1948 as the representative national body.

Martial Arts

British National Martial Arts Association website also has links to the governing bodies of specific martial arts disciplines. Click here for a list of these links.

Motor Racing

The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) is the governing body of motor sport worldwide including Formula One Grand Prix racing and Rallying.  Their website has information and calendar on all their Championship events.

Orienteering

The British Orienteering Federation (BOF) is the official governing body for orienteering as a sport and recreation in the United Kingdom, and represents the United Kingdom on the world governing body for orienteering.  

Rowing

The Amateur Rowing Association  is the governing body for the sport of rowing in Great Britain responsible for the organisation and development of rowing in England.

Rugby Football

There are two rugby football codes in the UK, Rugby Union and Rugby League. The rules for the two codes are different, Rugby Union has a team of 15 and Rugby League, which is mostly played in the north of England, has a team of 13.

Rugby Union

Rugby Football Union is the governing body of Rugby Football in England

Rugby Football Union for Women the official website of the Rugby Football Union for Women which provides information about women's rugby in England. 

Rugby League

The Rugby League governing body currently has no web site.

Sailing

The Royal Yachting Association the UK's most comprehensive and authoritative website for those interested in sailing, cruising, racing, events and motor boating.

The UK Dinghy Racing website has a comprehensive list of links to many UK and International sailing sites.

Shooting

Please be aware of the strict laws governing ownership of firearms in the UK. ALL firearms must be licensed and kept in secure locations when not in use for sporting activities. Please visit the website of the Metropolitan Police for essential information.

The British Shooting Sports Council is an umbrella organisation representing the major shooting associations in the United Kingdom. The Council promotes and safeguards the lawful use of firearms and air weapons for sporting and recreational purposes in the United Kingdom amongst all sections of the community.

The websites of the following Associations will also be essential viewing for shooting enthusiasts.

The National Rifle Association  

The British Field Target Association is made up of nine regions from around Great Britain. An objective of the association is to support, encourage and promote all aspects of the sport of air rifle field target shooting. This website has a facility for finding a club near you.

UK Airgun Clubs and Associations website has links to many other UK Shooting Organisations and Gun Clubs.

Swimming

The Amateur Swimming Association is the National Governing Body for Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Open Water, and Synchronized Swimming. It organises competition throughout England, and establishes the Laws of the Sport for each if the above disciplines. Click here for links to each of these water sports.

Table Tennis

English Table Tennis Association's web site provides all you need to know about events, schedules and championships. It also has links to other table tennis web sites throughout the world.

Tennis

The Lawn Tennis Association  is the governing body for the game of tennis in Great Britain. The LTA's responsibilities cover all aspects of the game from promoting the game to newcomers to running major International Tournaments.

3.8.2 - v1.0