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The first European Teams Championships (ETC) were held in 1932, as the first international championships to be established in Europe. They were conducted under the auspices of the International Bridge League (IBL), the forerunner of the World Bridge Federation, which organised all pre-war European Championships. The ETC were halted during the war and resumed in 1948 under the auspices of the European Bridge League (EBL), which had replaced the IBL in the meantime.
Originally established as an annual event for national teams in one category only (Open, i.e. allowing teams of any gender/age composition), a Women category was added in 1935. In 1960 it was decided not to hold the ETC in leap years in order not to compete with the World Team Olympiad. In 1975 the competition became biennial, held every odd-numbered year. In 1995 a Seniors category was added. In 2002 the ETC were moved to even-numbered years to make room for a new event, the European Open Championships.
The ETC also act as the qualifier for the World Team Championships, whereby the top teams in the open, women and seniors categories qualify to represent Europe in the Bermuda Bowl, Venice Cup and Senior Bowl respectively.
Click on the Event number below for the tournament website, on the Venue for final rankings and on the Winner for the team members.
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