Thomas Cup
Team Champions Runners-up
Indonesia 13 ( 1958 , 1961* , 1964 , 1970 , 1973* , 1976 , 1979* , 1984 , 1994* , 1996 , 1998 , 2000 , 2002 ) 6 ( 1967* , 1982 , 1986* , 1992 , 2010 , 2016 )
China 10 ( 1982 , 1986 , 1988 , 1990 , 2004 , 2006 , 2008 , 2010 , 2012* , 2018 ) 2 ( 1984 , 2000 )
Malaysia ** 5 ( 1949 , 1952 , 1955 , 1967 , 1992* ) 9 ( 1958 , 1970* , 1976 , 1988* , 1990 , 1994 , 1998 , 2002 , 2014 )
Denmark 1 ( 2016 ) 8 ( 1949 , 1955 , 1964 , 1973 , 1979 , 1996 , 2004 , 2006 )
Japan 1 ( 2014 ) 1 ( 2018 )
South Korea 2 ( 2008 , 2012 )
United States 1 ( 1952 )
Thailand 1 ( 1961 )
Results -- Successful national teams
Only five nations , Malaysia ( formerly Malaya ) , Indonesia , China , Japan , and Denmark have ever won the Thomas Cup . Curiously , the first three each won the first Thomas Cup competition that it entered : Malaya , the initial contest in 1949 ; Indonesia , the 1958 contest against Malaya ; and China , the 1982 contest over Indonesia . Indonesia leads in total titles with thirteen . It won four consecutive titles from 1970 through 1979 and five consecutive titles from 1994 through 2002 . Indonesia 's ten-year reign as champions was ended by the resurgence of China in 2004 when the Chinese won the title in Jakarta . Indonesia has played in the decisive final tie ( team match ) on nineteen occasions . For the first time since their first entrance in 1958 , Indonesia failed to reach the top four in 2012 . China has captured the Cup on nine occasions , including five consecutive times in 2004 , 2006 , 2008 , 2010 and 2012 . Since 1982 when it first entered the competition China has won the most titles and has always placed among the top four teams , except in 2016 when they lost in quarter final . Malaysia has won five times , the last being in 1992 . It has played in the final tie on fourteen occasions . In 2014 Japan became the fourth nation to have captured the Cup , doing so in its first appearance in the championship round . [ 16 ] Japan had finished among the `` Final Four '' on four previous occasions : 1967 , 1979 , 2010 , and 2012 ; and in 1970 it had given the eventual champion Indonesia its toughest battle , going down 4–5 in the final of the Asian qualifier . Despite its small population , Denmark has traditionally been Europe 's strongest power in men 's badminton and the only non-Asian team to have won the Thomas Cup . Being the only European nation to have played in the final tie , it had previously finished second eight times spanning from the first competition in 1949 through the 2006 tournament . The USA , a power in the early days of international badminton ( especially in women 's competition ) , finished second to Malaya in 1952 but thereafter steadily fell behind the leading badminton nations . Among all the other contending nations , South Korea has the best record . Rising to prominence in the 1980s , and especially strong in doubles , it had reached the `` final four '' seven times before finishing second in 2008 and 2012 . India nearly reached the final twice in the 1950s . Despite some fine individual players it has lacked the depth , particularly in doubles , to seriously contend for the Cup . In Europe , England and Sweden have often joined Denmark in advancing to the final phase of Thomas Cup competition since 1984 . England , traditionally more successful in women 's play than in men 's , had its best showing in 1984 with a third-place finish . Sweden , whose greatest badminton success spanned from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s , has yet to advance to the semifinal round of Thomas Cup 's final phase . Below is the list of eight nations that have finished in the top two in Thomas Cup .
The Thomas Cup, sometimes called the World Men's Team Championships, is an international badminton competition among teams representing member nations of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), the sport's global governing body. The championships have been conducted every two years since the 1982 tournament, amended from being conducted every three years since the first tournament held in 1948-1949. The final phase of the tournament involves twelve teams competing at venues within a host nation and is played concurrently with the final phase of the world women's team championships, the Uber Cup (first held in 1956-1957). Since 1984 the two competitions have been held jointly at the various stages of play. Of the thirty Thomas Cup tournaments held since 1948-1949, only five nations have won the title. Indonesia is the most successful team, having won the tournament thirteen times. China, which did not begin to compete until the 1982 series, follows Indonesia with ten titles, while Malaysia has won five titles. Japan and Denmark both have one. Thomas Cup and, to a lesser extent, Uber Cup are some of the world's biggest and most prestigious regularly held badminton events in terms of player and fan interest. Japan became the fourth nation to win the Thomas Cup after beating Malaysia 3-2 in the 2014 final. Traditionally, the Thomas Cup had always been won by Asian countries until Denmark became the fifth nation and the first European nation in history to win the Thomas Cup after beating Indonesia 3-2 in the 2016 final.