IRF sets hotel payment deadline for Worlds 2026 in Paris

The hotel deadline has already shifted Worlds 2026 from planning to commitment. Federations that wanted rooms for the championship in Paris and Champigny-sur-Marne had to reserve and pay for the housing package between May 25 and June 5, or risk losing the deposit that held those rooms in place.

That detail matters because the International Roundnet Federation is building a tournament that is bigger than a standard event calendar stop. Worlds 2026 is set for September 2-6 at Parc du Tremblay, a venue listed with 4 synthetic turfs and 1 grass field, plus a spectator village and athlete facilities. The first reservation round is capped at 24 players and 2 staff members per country, and the federation says payment can be handled by credit card or, if arranged by email, by bank transfer. Only two hotels in the package include breakfast, Hotel du Port and Ibis, a small line item that can shape travel budgets and morning routines for delegations.

The sporting structure is just as tightly drawn. Each country may enter up to 3 men’s teams, 3 women’s teams and 1 mixed team in the individual championships, while the squad championship allows as many as 5 teams per country. Eligibility rules also narrow the field: players must have lived permanently in the country before the start of 2026, and anyone who represented another country internationally in the last 36 months cannot switch for Worlds.

The scale points to a championship with broad reach and high stakes. More than 35 countries are expected to send national teams, with all continents represented, while Roundnet France says the sport now has more than a dozen affiliated clubs in the country. France’s own delegation for Paris includes 5 men’s teams and 3 women’s teams, a sign that the home nation wants a deep showing on its biggest stage yet.

The event will also be unusually accessible early on. Pool-play admission is set to be free, while finals and premium sessions will require tickets that will be announced later. The European tune-up calendar is already in motion too, with a stop in Toulouse on July 11-12 and the European championship in Basel on August 8-9. By the time the first toss goes up in Champigny-sur-Marne, the shape of Worlds 2026 will already have been defined by rooms booked, payments made and rosters locked.