World Karate Federation

As a competitive sport, karate is governed by the World Karate Federation (WKF), which was originally established as the World Union of Karate-do Organizations (WUKO) on 10 October 1970, at the first General Assembly held in Tokyo, Japan. The establishment of the governing body was followed by the inaugural Karate World Championships with the first men’s events during the next few days. Women were first allowed to compete at the World Championships in its 1980 edition, which was staged in Madrid, Spain. In 1990, reflecting its expanded global membership and aspirations for Olympic recognition, WUKO rebranded to the current WKF.

Karate appeared at the Youth Summer Olympics at Buenos Aires 2018, with events for boys and girls, before making its Olympic Games début at Tokyo 2020 with events for men and women, its sole Olympic appearance to date.

The WKF also oversees Para karate. The discipline was first introduced to the public in 2012 as a demonstration event at the World Championships in Paris, followed by the first official Para Karate World Championships in 2014, staged in Bremen, Germany. Although karate is yet to appear at the Paralympics, the WKF is an International Paralympic Committee (IPC)-recognized federation.

The organization has 201 member federations as of January 2026, and is a member of the Association of the IOC-recognized International Sports Federations (ARISF). The WKF’s headquarters is located in Madrid, and its current president is Spain’s Antonio Espinós.