The 2025-26 PSA World Championships will see the world’s greatest squash players battle for glory in the sport’s premier talent hotbed.
Egypt’s Palm Hills Club in Giza will welcome 128 men and women through its doors from 8 May, each harbouring the ambition of claiming the $700,000 winning prize eight days later.
Among them will be Egyptian duo Nour El Sherbini and Mostafa Asal, the reigning women’s and men’s champions respectively, underlining the North African nation’s squash pedigree.
El Sherbini is chasing a ninth title that would take her clear at the top of the all-time list but she enters this year’s tournament as the world number two, behind compatriot Hania El Hammamy.
Meanwhile, Asal is leagues clear of his nearest rivals in the world rankings, Australian Paul Coll, having put together a 27-match unbeaten run over the last six months.
Who are Britain’s hopes?
Chief among British hopes is 31-year-old Welshman Joel Makin, who currently sits sixth in the world rankings. He takes on Pakistani qualifier Muhammad Asim Khan in the first round.
Brothers Marwan and Mohamed ElShorbagy are also lurking around the top ten after switching their international allegiance to England from Egypt three years ago. 35-year-old Mohamed has finished on the podium at this event an astonishing ten times.
On the women’s side, four-time European Team Championship winners Georgina Kennedy and Jasmine Hutton pose the greatest threat for England.
Kennedy became the first Englishwoman to win a Commonwealth Games singles title in Birmingham in 2022, only two years after graduating from Harvard.
How does it work?
In both the men’s and the women’s competition, 64 players have been drawn in the first round, with the top 32 seeded and guaranteed to play a non-seed.
From there, it is a straight knockout, meaning the eventual victor must win six matches in a row to take the crown.
Squash’s future
After its announcement as a new sport at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028, squash has the potential to significantly grow across the globe.
Four of the last seven World Championships have been hosted in Chicago, but the tournament has travelled to Europe, Asia, and Africa within the last decade. Last year’s semi-finalists included a Peruvian and an Australian.
Squash’s future as an Olympic sport is by no means guaranteed, with 2032 hosts Brisbane yet to announce their programme.
How to watch
All the action will be live on SquashTV.
Sportsbeat 2026.