The Bermuda Bowl is a biennial
contract bridge
Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other around a table. Millions o ...
world championship for national . It is contested every odd-numbered year under the auspices of the
World Bridge Federation
The World Bridge Federation (WBF) is the international governing body of contract bridge. The WBF is responsible for world championship competitions, most of which are conducted at a few multi-event meets on a four-year cycle. The most prestigiou ...
(WBF), alongside the
Venice Cup
The Venice Cup is a biennial world championship contract bridge tournament for national of Women. It is contested every odd-number year under the auspices of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), alongside the Bermuda Bowl (Open) and d'Orsi Bowl (S ...
(women), the
d'Orsi Senior Bowl and the
Wuhan Cup The Wuhan Cup is a biennial world championship contract bridge tournament for national mixed . It is contested every odd-number year under the auspices of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), alongside the Bermuda Bowl (Open), d'Orsi Bowl and Venice ...
(mixed). Entries formally represent WBF
zones
Zone or The Zone may refer to:
Places Climate and altitude zones
* Death zone (originally the lethal zone), altitudes above a certain point where the amount of oxygen is insufficient to sustain human life for an extended time span
* Frigid zone, ...
as well as nations, so it is also known as the World Zonal Open Team Championship.
[ 40th World Teams; "Information".] It is the oldest event that confers the title of world champion in bridge, and was first contested in 1950. The Bermuda Bowl trophy is awarded to the winning team, and is named for the site of the inaugural tournament, the Atlantic archipelago of
Bermuda
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = National song
, song = " Hail to Bermuda"
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.
The term ''Bermuda Bowl'' is sometimes used for the entire two-week event, comprising the three zonal teams and one or more concurrent lesser tournaments.
The latest contest was held in
Salsomaggiore
Salsomaggiore Terme (Parmigiano dialect, Salsese: ; Parmigiano dialect, Parmigiano: ) is a town and ''comune'' located in the province of Parma, in the region of Emilia-Romagna. Located at the foot of the Apennine Mountains, Apennines, its warm sal ...
, Italy, in March–April 2022, having been postponed from 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. It was won by Switzerland.
Structure
See a description of the identical
"Senior Bowl" structure or a detailed account of the 2011 event (
below
Below may refer to:
*Earth
*Ground (disambiguation)
*Soil
*Floor
*Bottom (disambiguation)
Bottom may refer to:
Anatomy and sex
* Bottom (BDSM), the partner in a BDSM who takes the passive, receiving, or obedient role, to that of the top or ...
).
Inauguration and evolution
Organized principally by Norman Bach, an accountant and bridge player from Bermuda who played for Britain, the Bermuda Bowl was the first world championship event held after World War II, and started as a competition between the US, Europe and Britain in 1950.
The first event was won by the US. After this, the Bermuda Bowl became a yearly challenge match between the US and the European champions. The format evolved progressively, with more teams and the addition of events for women and seniors. Key milestones were:
:1950: The first open team event in Bermuda between the USA, Europe and Britain who played round-robin for raw scores or "total points".
:1951: The next several contests were head-on matches between representatives of the
American Contract Bridge League
The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) is a governing body for contract bridge in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda. It is the largest such organization in North America having the stated mission ''"to promote, grow and sustain th ...
(North America) and the
European Bridge League
The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...
.
:1958: The tournament permanently included the champions of South America.
:1961: Eligibility was expanded to include the defending champions.
:1966: The tournament expanded to five teams, with the addition of a representative from Asia.
:1971: The field was expanded to include Australia.
:1974: The World Bridge Federation inaugurated the
Venice Cup
The Venice Cup is a biennial world championship contract bridge tournament for national of Women. It is contested every odd-number year under the auspices of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), alongside the Bermuda Bowl (Open) and d'Orsi Bowl (S ...
for women's teams, contested four times on no fixed schedule before 1985.
:1979: The defending champions were no longer eligible on that basis alone.
:1981: Europe was awarded two places in the tournament. There would be nine teams if every WBF zone sent a champion team.
:1983: North America joined Europe with double representation, and the host country was automatically included too, so the potential size of the field increased by two. European and North American champions would have two places in the four-team semifinal round. European and North American runners up would contend with champions of the other zones and the host country for two other semifinal slots.
:1985: The Bermuda Bowl for open teams and Venice Cup for women would be contested side-by-side in tournaments with the same structure, and in a venue outside Europe and North America (maintained until 2001).
Predecessors
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
won the 1937 International Bridge League (IBL) championships for both open and women's national teams. They are commonly considered the first world championships for national teams, and the first world championship tournaments of any kind, because teams from the United States entered both flights, two open teams and one women's.
The IBL was a predecessor of both the
European Bridge League
The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...
(est. 1947) and the WBF (est. 1958), although there was a competing international organization in the 1930s. The IBL organized annual championships for (open) national teams beginning in 1932 and for women beginning in 1935. Prior to 1937, Austria won three of five in the open category and both in the women category. All of the sites were in Europe and the
European Bridge League
The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...
considers the 1930s series to be the first eight European Teams Championships.
In the 1937 (6–20 June) open tournament there were 19 teams from 18 countries: the USA had two teams, one led by
Ely Culbertson
Elie Almon Culbertson (July 22, 1891 – December 27, 1955), known as Ely Culbertson, was an American contract bridge entrepreneur and personality dominant during the 1930s. He played a major role in the popularization of the new game and was wide ...
which came second.
[
]
In the knockout stage, Culbertson beat Norway and Hungary before losing to Austria. USA Minneapolis lost to Austria in the semifinal.(Morehead)
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
practically destroyed the IBL and its nascent world championship tournament series.
With Austria the leading nation at the card table, the 1938
Anschluss
The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938.
The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...
of Germany and Austria was a great disruption. The leading bridge theorist and mentor
Paul Stern
Paul Stern (4 April 1892 – 12 June 1948) was an Austrian international bridge player and lawyer, who fled to London in 1938. He was a bidding theorist and administrator who contributed to the early growth of the game. He founded the Austrian Br ...
was an outspoken opponent of
Nazism
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
; he fled to London and later became a British subject. That same year, at least
Rixi Scharfstein (Markus) from the Ladies emigrated to Britain; from the Open team at least Karl von Bluhdorn to Paris, Edward Frischauer and Walter Herbert to the United States, eventually California.
The International Bridge League organized two more European championships (making eight annual tournaments for national open teams, 1932–1939) but no more tournaments or official matches involving any team from outside Europe.
1950s
1950
Hamilton, Bermuda
The City of Hamilton, in Pembroke Parish, is the territorial capital of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is the territory's financial centre and a major port and tourist destination. Its population of 854 (2016) is one of the sm ...
The first rendition, held at the Castle Harbor Hotel 13 to 16 November, featured three teams who played round-robin for raw scores or "total points". The USA team won both of its matches, by 4,720 points over Europe (also referred to as Sweden-Iceland featuring two pairs from Sweden and one from Iceland) and 3,660 points over Great Britain; Europe defeated Great Britain by 1,940 points.
[
]
1951
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
, Italy
Held 11 to 17 November, the match was between representatives of the
American Contract Bridge League
The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) is a governing body for contract bridge in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda. It is the largest such organization in North America having the stated mission ''"to promote, grow and sustain th ...
(North America) and the
European Bridge League
The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...
consisting of 320
boards
Board or Boards may refer to:
Flat surface
* Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat
** Plank (wood)
** Cutting board
** Sounding board, of a musical instrument
* Cardboard (paper product)
* Paperboard
* Fiberboard
** Hardboard, a t ...
using the
15-point International Match Point (IMP) scaling table for the first time. The USA team won by 116 IMPs.
1953 New York City, USA
The United States team won its third consecutive championship by 8,260 points.
[ Crawford, Rapée, Schenken, and Stayman were also members of the previous two winning teams. The 256 boards were played against Sweden at the Sherry-Netherlands Hotel in New York, 5 to 10 January 1953.
]
1954
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
, Monaco
France won the 1953 European championship with a six-man national team and the right to represent Europe in the Bermuda Bowl to be held 9–14 January 1954. Jean Besse of Switzerland and Karl Schneider of Austria replaced one of the French pairs; the team is also referred to as France.[ Schneider had been a member of the 1937 world champion Austrian team. The USA team had won the right to represent that country by winning the ACBL summer nationals held in St. Louis in August 1953; the five members of that team invited Lew Mathe to round out the team to six first-timers for the Bermuda Bowl event.][
The USA defeated Europe by 49 IMPs representing 4,400 points.][
]
1955 New York City, USA
The 1955 event was held 9–14 January at the Hotel Beekman, New York. The British team had defeated 13 others to win the European title in 1954 in Montreux, Switzerland. The American team had won the 1954 ACBL summer nationals in Washington, D.C.; that team of five was augmented by Alvin Roth.[
Great Britain won by a margin of 5,420 points.][
]
1956 Paris, France
France made it two in a row for Europe. Bacherich and Ghestem were veterans from 1954.
1957 New York City, USA
Italy's Blue Team won its first of ten consecutive Bermuda Bowls. Chiaradia, Forquet, Siniscalco, and captain Carl'Alberto Perroux were veterans from the 1951 team. Avarelli, Belladona, D'Alelio, and Forquet played in every one.
1958
Como
Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco dialect, Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como.
Its proximity to Lake Como and ...
, Italy
For 1958 the Bermuda Bowl tournament permanently included the champion of South America, whose federation and annual tournament were then ten years old. In the next several years, expansion covered other geographic zones and the defending champion.
1959 New York City, USA
1960s
There was no Bermuda Bowl in 1960, 1964 or 1968 to avoid conflict with the World Team Olympiad
The World Team Olympiad was a contract bridge meet organized by the World Bridge Federation every four years from 1960 to 2004. Its main events were world championships for national teams, always including one open and one restricted to women ("O ...
.
1961
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
, Argentina
The Blue Team won its fourth Bermuda Bowl, with Benito Garozzo now in the same lineup. This began a new string of annual world championships for Italy, after ranking only sixth in the inaugural World Team Olympiad
The World Team Olympiad was a contract bridge meet organized by the World Bridge Federation every four years from 1960 to 2004. Its main events were world championships for national teams, always including one open and one restricted to women ("O ...
, won by France.[World Team Olympiad]
(to Date table). WBF.
At the same time, the Bermuda Bowl tournament expanded to include the defending champions. Throughout the 1960s that would mean Italy plus one from the rest of Europe. Italy would use the European Team Championships to give some international experience to new players or new partnerships.
Argentina finished fourth.
1962 New York City, USA
Argentina finished fourth.
1963
Saint-Vincent, Italy
Saint-Vincent ( Valdôtain: ; Issime wae, Finze) is a town and ''comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy. Saint-Vincent, elevation , is a popular summer holiday resort with mineral springs.
Geography
The town is bounded by Aya ...
Italy won again. This was the last for "Professor" Eugenio Chiaradia and the only one of the ten in a row that Walter Avarelli missed.
Argentina finished fourth.
1965
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
, Argentina
Playing at home, Argentina represented South America for the sixth time and finally defeated one of the Europeans or Americans, namely Great Britain.
This was the fifth consecutive world championship for the Blue Team, as it had won the second Olympiad in 1964. Italy would continue to win annually with the identical lineup through 1969, plus a successful comeback in 1972.
Great Britain finished fourth. The event was marred by a cheating scandal involving the British pair Terence Reese
John Terence Reese (28 August 1913 – 29 January 1996) was a British bridge player and writer, regarded as one of the finest of all time in both fields. He was born in Epsom, Surrey, England to middle-class parents, and was educated at Bradfiel ...
and Boris Schapiro
Boris Schapiro (22 August 1909 – 1 December 2002) was a British international bridge player. He was a Grandmaster of the World Bridge Federation, and the only player to have won both the Bermuda Bowl (the world championship for national teams) ...
, known as the " Buenos Aires affair".
1966
Saint-Vincent, Italy
Saint-Vincent ( Valdôtain: ; Issime wae, Finze) is a town and ''comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy. Saint-Vincent, elevation , is a popular summer holiday resort with mineral springs.
Geography
The town is bounded by Aya ...
The tournament expanded to five with Asia, represented by Thailand. Venezuela took Argentina's usual place and won another third for South America. Canadians Sami Kehela and Eric Murray joined four US Americans for North America.
Netherlands finished fourth and Thailand fifth.
1967
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...
, USA
Thailand and Venezuela returned to the field. More than forty years later, 1966/1967 remain their best national performances.
Thailand finished fourth and Venezuela fifth.
1969
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Brazil
Taiwan appeared on the world bridge scene with a shocking second-place performance, represented by six players using the Precision Club
Precision Club is a bidding system in the game of contract bridge. It is a strong club system developed in 1969 for C. C. Wei by Alan Truscott, and used by Taiwan teams in 1969. Their success in placing second at the 1969 Bermuda Bowl (and Wei's ...
bidding system
A bidding system in contract bridge is the set of agreements and understandings assigned to calls and sequences of calls used by a partnership, and includes a full description of the meaning of each treatment and convention. The purpose of bid ...
recently invented by C. C. Wei.
The Blue Team of Italy retired after winning its tenth consecutive Bermuda Bowl (from 1957) and ninth consecutive annual world championship in open teams (from 1961).
The United States team included two members of the professional Dallas Aces, Eisenberg–Goldman and two young players who would be Aces, Hamman and Kantar.
France finished fourth and Brazil fifth.
1970s
1970
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, Sweden
The Aces won the 17th Bermuda Bowl, the first for a United States or North America team since they won the first four. Taiwan finished second again, with only five players and only two veterans from 1969. Norway and Brazil also finished ahead of Italy, the defending champion bridge nation represented by a wholly new team.[World Team Championships]
(To Date table). WBF.
Brazil finished fourth and the new Italy fifth.
1971
Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
, Taiwan
The Aces won as defending champions while the field expanded to include Australia.
Taiwan finished fourth at home, one year after finishing second.
1973
Guarujá
Guarujá (; ) is a municipality in the São Paulo state of Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Baixada Santista. The population is 322,750 (2020 est.) in an area of . This place name comes from the Tupi language, and means "narrow pat ...
, Brazil
The Blue Team had successfully completed a comeback by winning the 1972 Olympiad with its 1964–69 lineup. Three then retired permanently but its three greatest players continued to play for Italy (Belladonna, Forquet, and Garozzo), and to win.
The second-place Aces were defending champions with one personnel change.
North America finished fourth, represented by a team of six men from the US.
1974
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
, Italy
Italy defended its championship at home. The World Bridge Federation inaugurated its Venice Cup
The Venice Cup is a biennial world championship contract bridge tournament for national of Women. It is contested every odd-number year under the auspices of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), alongside the Bermuda Bowl (Open) and d'Orsi Bowl (S ...
for "Women Teams", which increased in size and frequency to match the biennial Bermuda Bowl tournament for "Open Teams" in 1985. No woman had played for a Bermuda Bowl winner; only two had finished second. Meanwhile, the quadrennial Olympiad ran two tournaments, open and women, side by side from its start in 1960.
:* De Falco and Franco did not play enough boards to qualify for the title of World Champion.
Indonesia finished fourth.
1975
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, Bermuda
For the 25th anniversary of the inaugural tournament, the 21st returned to Bermuda, as the 34th tournament would do for the 50th anniversary. Italy won its thirteenth Bermuda Bowl, its third in a row, and its last before 2005. Pietro Forquet missed this one, leaving Giorgio Belladonna alone with 13 Bowls.
Indonesia finished fourth, Brazil fifth.
1976
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
, Monaco
The 22nd was the only Bermuda Bowl contested during a World Team Olympiad
The World Team Olympiad was a contract bridge meet organized by the World Bridge Federation every four years from 1960 to 2004. Its main events were world championships for national teams, always including one open and one restricted to women ("O ...
year. The two Open tournaments were played back to back during three weeks in May, with Italy beaten first by the United States and then by Brazil in the finals.[Results & Participants]
5th World Team Olympiad, 1976. WBF.
Israel finished third as the second representative of Europe.
Brazil finished fourth with the same lineup that placed third in 1973 and 1974. With one personnel change they won the Open Olympiad tournament that immediately following this exceptional Bermuda Bowl. It remains the only year with two world champion teams in the open category.
1977
Manila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...
, Philippines
Both teams "North America" and "Defending Champions" comprised six men from the US. The six defending champion ''players'' divided two and four, as the Aces with defending players Eisenberg and Soloway regrouped as "North America". (Under double representation for the United States beginning in 1991, the two USA teams must face each other if both advance to the semifinal.)
Argentina finished fourth.
1979
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Brazil
The 24th Bermuda Bowl was the first to be decided by a margin that is commonly scored on a single deal, merely 5 IMPs IMPS or Imps may refer to:
* ''Imps*'', a comedy film released in 2009
* OMA Instant Messaging and Presence Service
* Infinite Monkey Protocol Suite, an April Fools' Day RFC
* The Oxford Imps, an improvisational comedy troupe
* Insensitive muni ...
. Malcolm Brachman's professional team of US Americans defeated Italy by that much.
The defending champion team was not invited after 1977, so the tournament again matched one team from each WBF geographic zone that chose to participate. The number of teams remained at six because "Central America & the Caribbean" sent a team for the first time, three players from Panama and three from Venezuela with a Guadeloupe captain. Brachman from North America and national teams from Italy, Australia, Taiwan, and host Brazil represented the other four zones.
Taiwan finished fourth.
1980s
The Bermuda Bowl made several changes around 1980. The defending champion team was dropped in 1979. For 1981 Europe was awarded two places in the tournament, the first expansion beyond zonal champions (plus the world champion, 1961 to 1977). There would be nine teams if every WBF zone sent a champion. For 1983, European and North American champions would have two places in the 4-team semifinal round. European and North American runners up would contend with champions of the other zones and the host country for two other semifinal slots. (Europe and North America had won all the Bermuda Bowls. Outsiders had finished second in 1969–70 and 1981.) Beginning in 1985, the Bermuda Bowl for open teams and Venice Cup for women would run side by side with the same structure in a venue outside Europe and North America (maintained until 2001).
1981 New York City, USA
Pakistan represented "Asia and the Middle East", a novelty, and finished second, a shock. This was the third silver medal for teams from outside Europe and North America, joining Taiwan 1969–70. "Pakistani preempts" were notable and team's best player Zia Mahmood
Mir Zia Mahmood (born 7 January 1946) is a Pakistani-American professional bridge player. He is a World Bridge Federation and American Contract Bridge League Grand Life Master. As of April 2011 he was the 10th-ranked World Grand Master.
Biograp ...
was recognized as a great one.
For the United States, led by Bud Reinhold—who played, but not enough to qualify personally as a world champion— Levin, Rodwell, and Meckstroth made their international debuts at 23 to 25 years old, Levin being the youngest winner on record.
Europe was represented by both Poland and Great Britain, first and second in the 18-team open flight of the European championships
The European Championships is a multi-sport tournament which brings together the existing European Championships of some of the continent's leading sports every four years. The inaugural edition in 2018 was staged by the host cities of Berlin, ...
.[Results & Participants]
35th European Team Championships, 1981. European Bridge League
The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...
(EBL).
:* Reinhold did not play enough boards to qualify for the title of World Champion.
Argentina finished fourth.
1983
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, Sweden
Beginning in 1983, North America joined Europe with double representation, and the host country was automatically included too, so the potential size of the field increased by two. United States teams finished first and second in North America while France, Italy, and world host Sweden ranked 1, 2, and 7 among 24 teams in the open European championship.[Results & Participants, 36th European Team Championships]
1983, EBL. Under the new structure, USA1 and France earned byes In cricket, a bye is a type of extra. It is a run scored by the batting team when the ball has not been hit by the batter and the ball has not hit the batter's body.
Scoring byes
Usually, if the ball passes the batter without being deflected, th ...
to the Bermuda Bowl semifinal while USA2, Italy, and Sweden contended with the champions of other zones for two more semifinal slots. Five other zones were represented, ten teams in all.
USA2 and Italy won the preliminary stage; USA1 and Italy won semifinal matches to meet in the final, the international swan song for Giorgio Belladonna and for the legendary Belladonna–Garozzo partnership.
USA 2
finished fourth.[
The size of the field increased by three, not two, because "Asia and the Middle East" (debut 1981) and "Central America and the Caribbean" (debut 1979) were both represented, by Pakistan and a transnational squad including four men from ]Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
. Only Africa among the eight modern geographic zones was not yet represented.
1985
São Paulo
São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
, Brazil
Beginning in 1985 the Bermuda Bowl and the Venice Cup for women have been side-by-side tournaments with the same structure. From 1985 to 2000 they were always sited outside Europe and North America.
For three cycles, 1985 to 1989, one team each from the United States and Canada represented North America. All three US teams were based on the San Francisco-area team anchored by Chip Martel
Charles U. "Chip" Martel (born 1953) is an American computer scientist and bridge player.
Martel was Inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 2014. He is married to Jan Martel, also in the ACBL Hall of Fame.
Academic life
Martel received a B.S. ...
–Lew Stansby
Lew Stansby (born 1940) is an American bridge player from Dublin, California. Lew, a former commodities trader lives with wife and fellow national champion JoAnna Stansby. Since his first national win in the Reisinger in 1965, he has won over 35 n ...
and Peter Pender–Hugh Ross. They won the annual US Grand National Teams
The Grand National Teams (GNT) North American bridge championship is held at the summer American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC).
The Grand National Teams is a team knockout event. The event is broken into ...
in 1982-83-85-87 (with another pair in '82, with Mike Lawrence in '87).
Austria and Israel finished 1–2 among 21 open teams in Europe and placed 2–3 behind USA in São Paulo.[Results & Participants]
37th European Team Championships, 1985. EBL.
:* Frydrich and Hochzeit did not play enough boards to qualify for third place.
Brazil finished fourth.
Infrequent entries Canada, New Zealand, and India finished 8–9–10, having qualified in the familiar places of "USA 2", Australia, and Pakistan.
1987 Ocho Ríos, Jamaica
The "San Francisco" GNT with world veterans Hamman–Wolff defended successfully. Great Britain and Sweden reversed their European finish.[Results & Participants]
38th European Team Championships, 1987. EBL.
Chinese Taipei finished fourth.
1989
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
, Australia
Brazil won its first Bermuda Bowl, defeating a team of three "San Francisco" pairs in the final.
Australia finished fourth at home.
Egypt and Colombia represented Asia–Middle East and Central America–Caribbean. Poland and France, the best of 25 teams in Europe, finished only 3rd and 6th.
1990s
1991
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
, Japan
Iceland won the Bermuda Bowl after finishing fourth in Europe, the last to qualify from Zone 1. Europe's fourth, third, and second place teams won all three medals while European champion Great Britain finished 5th to 8th in the world.[Results & Participants]
40th European Team Championships, 1991. EBL.
The tournament expanded from 10 teams with a 4-team knockout conclusion to 16 teams with an 8-team KO, without any playoffs to distinguish the four quarterfinal losers. Defending champion Brazil finished fourth, Argentina 5th to 8th. The two USA teams also finished 5th to 8th.
Brazil finished fourth with the same lineup that won in 1989. With expansion from 10 to 16 teams, a third entry was awarded to North America, and the American Contract Bridge League settled on two United States teams, who both finished 5th to 8th. (The two US teams are determined under the auspices of the United States Bridge Federation. The other team from Zone 2 is determined by a playoff of other national teams, if necessary.)
1993
Santiago, Chile
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated Regions of Chile, region, t ...
Netherlands won its first Bermuda Bowl. Netherlands and Norway were fourth and third in Europe, as finalists Iceland and Poland had been two years earlier.[Results & Participants]
41st European Team Championships, 1993. EBL.
De Boer, Leufkens, and Westra had played on the Netherlands 1987 world champion junior team. Helgemo of Norway played on the contemporary junior team and thus won two silver medals in 1993.
USA 2 finished fourth.
South Africa represented Africa for the first time. Mexico won the third slot from North America. Host Chile finished last, as Japan and Jamaica had done.
1995 Beijing, China
This was the first win for Nick Nickell
Frank T. "Nick" Nickell (born 1947) is an American bridge player. He graduated from the University of North Carolina, and lived in Raleigh, North Carolina, as of 1994.
Nickell was inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 2008. At the time he lived i ...
's professional team ("Nickell" in North American tournaments).
Canada made its best showing by far and South Africa finished fifth while the European and US champions did not reach the quarterfinal.[Results & Participants]
42nd European Team Championships, 1995. EBL.
Sweden finished fourth.
1997
Hammamet, Tunisia
Hammamet ( ar, حمامات ', literally " Baths") is a town in Tunisia. Thanks to its beaches, it is a popular destination for swimming and water sports and is one of the primary tourist destinations in Tunisia. It is located in the south-easte ...
France won its first Bermuda Bowl as the fifth and last qualifier from Europe following another Bermuda Bowl tournament expansion.[Results & Participants]
43rd European Team Championships, 1997. EBL.
USA 1 finished fourth.
Host Tunisia finished last and South Africa second-last.
2000s
2000
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, Bermuda
The Bermuda Bowl cycle continued as usual in 1998/1999 but the concluding tournament was in January 2000, marking the 50th anniversary of the inaugural contest in Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
.
In contrast to that three-way competition among teams representing America, Britain, and Europe, there were now eight geographic zones from which twenty teams qualified in numbers influenced by past bridge population and performance.[
]
:Europe: Italy, Sweden, Norway, Bulgaria, France, Poland —ranks 1 to 6 in the European championship[Results & Participants]
44th European Team Championships, 1999. EBL.
:North America: Canada, USA 1, USA 2
:South America: Argentina, Brazil
:Asia & Middle East: Pakistan
:Central America & Caribbean: Guadeloupe and Bermuda as the host country
:Pacific Asia: China, Taiwan, Indonesia
:South Pacific: Australia, New Zealand
:Africa: South Africa
Norway finished fourth.
Europe's six teams all finished in the top ten but only Norway reached the semifinal. Bermuda finished last, the fifth time for six hosts since 1989.
2001 Paris, France
Italy finished fourth.
2003
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
, Monaco
Expansion to 22 teams. Perennial European champions Italy returned to the top ranks of the Bermuda Bowl competition, but lost to USA 1 in the finals.
:* Morse and Wolff did not play enough boards to qualify for third place.
Norway finished fourth.
2005
Estoril
Estoril () is a town in the Municipality of Cascais, Portugal, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a tourist destination, with luxury hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numerous royal families and celebrities, and has host ...
, Portugal
Italy's 14th Bermuda Bowl win was its first since 1975.
Sweden finished fourth.
Fulvio Fantoni
Fulvio Fantoni (born 9 November 1963) is an Italian international bridge player. He is a six-time world champion, a World Grand Master of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), and the WBF first-ranked player as of December 2011. He is one of 10 pl ...
and Claudio Nunes
Claudio Nunes (born 23 March 1968) is an Italian professional bridge player.
He is a five-time world champion, a World Grand Master of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), and the WBF second-ranked player as of April 2011. He is one of 10 playe ...
of the Italian teams were later found cheating, and are currently barred from play by multiple bridge associations.
2007
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
, China
The 38th Bermuda Bowl saw Norway win its first title, after two second, one third, and two fourth from 1993. Helgemo–Helness and Glenn Grøtheim were members of all six teams.
South Africa finished fourth.
Its advance to the quarterfinal was a surprise
and there it knocked out the defending champion and advance favourite Italy.
2009
São Paulo
São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
, Brazil
This was the fourth win for Nick Nickell's professional teams representing the United States (1995, 2000, 2003, 2009). Meckstroth–Rodwell and Bob Hamman were also members of all four teams.
:* Katz was the replacement for Richard Freeman, who died after USA 2 qualified for the Bermuda Bowl.
China "Long Zhu" finished fourth. Beside China and the American winners, the quarterfinalists were all six teams from Europe. Bulgaria placed third after winning the first European Small Federations Trophy in 2007, for national teams representing no more than 500 players.
2010s
2011
Veldhoven
Veldhoven () is a municipality and town on the Gender in the southern Netherlands, just southwest of Eindhoven.
Topography
Dutch topographic map of Veldhoven (town), Dec. 2013
Population centres
The modern town of Veldhoven is an agglomerat ...
, Netherlands
The 40th Bermuda Bowl tournament concluded Saturday, 29 October.
Italy had routed the USA champions 167–69 in a one-day match for the bronze medal while the host Netherlands faced USA 2 in a three-day final. The Dutch hosts led by 55 IMP after two days (96 deals) and scored very well in the first session on Saturday to lead by 83 and coast to victory.
USA 1 finished fourth. The losing quarterfinalists were Israel, Sweden, Iceland, and China.[
Netherlands won the 2011 Bermuda Bowl by 300 to 255
in three days play against USA 2,][40th Bermuda Bowl Knockout: Final]
, 2011. WBF.
the second of two entries from the United States.
The final eight segments of 16 s each started with an insignificant one IMP advantage for Dutch home team. The one IMP represented half the margin in their short match, a 25–23 win for Netherlands in round two.
With a strong third segment, Netherlands surged to a 130–108 lead after one day and then extended the difference to as much as 65 on day two ultimately finishing 55 IMPs ahead after six segments. After day three's seventh segment, the margin increased to 76 IMPs, nearly decisive with only 16 deals to play. The Americans rebounded in the last segment but the gains were "too small" as time ran out.
;Preliminary
There were 22 national teams in the field, who represented the eight WBF zones as follows.
The regular quota for Europe is six teams, seven at Veldhoven because the host country qualifies automatically.#
:Europe: Italy, Poland, Israel, Iceland, Sweden, Netherlands, Bulgaria —ranks 1 to 7 in the European championship[Results & Participants]
50th European Team Championships, 2010. European Bridge League
The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...
.
:North America: Canada, USA 1, USA 2
:South America: Brazil, Chile
:Asia & Middle East: India, Pakistan
:C. America & Carib.: Guadeloupe
:Pacific Asia: China, Japan, Singapore
:South Pacific: Australia, New Zealand
:Africa: Egypt, South Africa
The first stage was a full round-robin. Every team played 21 short matches of 16 deals, three daily, scheduled in advance.
Italy, Netherlands, USA 2, and Israel earned the first four places comfortably, each almost a full match ahead of the next place. The US champions finished fifth by scoring 340.5 , or 16.2 per match where a draw is worth 15. Sweden, China, and Iceland qualified with fewer than 16 VP per match while Japan, New Zealand, and Australia made strong showings as the first three also-rans, ahead of two Europeans, Poland and Bulgaria.
(All six Europeans had qualified for knockout play two years earlier.)[
Italy, Netherlands, and USA 2 selected quarterfinal opponents China, Iceland, and Sweden leaving Israel to face USA 1. Italy and China, second and fourth in 2009, played the only close match, where Italy built a 5 IMP lead to 26 during the last segment. During the same segment Sweden trailed USA 2 by at least 30, Iceland trailed by almost 100, and Israel conceded to USA 1 without play.
Two US American entries in a Zonal Teams knockout always meet in one semifinal match, if they survive so long (and they never meet earlier).# In Veldhoven a strong fifth segment was almost decisive for USA 2, who extended a lead from 12 to 62 IMP with 16 deals to play, and won by 60. Meanwhile, Italy and Netherlands were nearly even at the end of every segment, the only time players know the score precisely. After five Netherlands led by 3+ IMP including 2+ carryover, having bettered Italy 155 to 154 on 80 deals. They "won" the final segment by 26 and the match by 199+ to 170.
In retrospect, two "slam swings" were decisive. On the 87th and 90th deals (#23, #29), Netherlands bid 6 and 6 while Italy bid 4 and 4. All four declarers took the twelve tricks for slam, worth twice 13 IMP for the winners.
While Netherlands and USA 2 played for the Bowl, Italy easily beat the US champions in 48 deals and earned the bronze medal, 167–69.][
]
2013
Bali
Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...
, Indonesia
Italy won its 15th Bermuda Bowl with a 210–126 defeat of Monaco, represented by Pierre Zimmermann's immigrant professional team. Poland won the bronze medal by a fraction less than 5 IMPs.
USA1 finished fourth.
2015 Chennai, India
The two-week tournament in Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
, India (formerly Madras), began on Sunday, 27 September, with one week of round-robin play through Saturday, 3 October.
During the preceding month, revelations of cheating by two of the leading pairs, at events including the 2014 European Team Championships, had led to withdrawal from the Bermuda Bowl by the Israel and Monaco teams that had placed first and second in that event. Germany had dropped from the 22-team field after one of its three pairs confessed "preemptively". On the last day before the first matches in Chennai, the World Bridge Federation had announced its withdrawal of credentials for one of three pairs on the Poland team, making that pair ineligible to play, however Poland were not forced to withdraw. (Two pairs from each team participate in each segment.)
The Bermuda Bowl was won by Poland, who defeated Sweden in the final by 308.5 IMPs to 293. The bronze medal went to USA2, who defeated England in the third-place match 252.3 to 243.
England finished fourth.
2017 Lyon, France
New Zealand finished fourth.
2019 Wuhan, China
USA 1 finished fourth.
2020s
2021 (2022) Salsomaggiore, Italy
Tournament scheduled for 2021 but held in 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
Medals (1950-2019)
Zones and nations
:''See the version at "Senior Bowl".''
See also
* World Team Olympiad
The World Team Olympiad was a contract bridge meet organized by the World Bridge Federation every four years from 1960 to 2004. Its main events were world championships for national teams, always including one open and one restricted to women ("O ...
* 2021 World Bridge Team Championships
Notes
References
;Citations
*40th World Team Championships
contemporary website. 2011. WBF. Retrieved 2011-07-10.
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
World Team Championships
at the World Bridge Federation. Confirmed 2010-11-07.
2011 tournament dedicated website. Retrieved 2011-05-26.
{{WPCBIndex
Contract bridge world competitions
fr:Championnat du monde de bridge#Bermuda Bowl et Venice Cup