The competition was arranged unofficially between 1973 and 1981, although it received provisional recognition on the 31st FIS Congress, 29–30 April 1977 in Bariloche, Argentina.

The athlete with the most points at the end of the season in mid-March wins the Overall World Cup, with the trophy consisting of a 9 kilogram crystal globe.

World Cup competitions have been hosted in 23 countries around the world: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Czechoslovakia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Soviet Union, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.

(Note that all World Cup races hosted in Bosnia were held when it was still part of Yugoslavia.)

The World Cup usually follows a November-March schedule, effectively ruling out hosting races in the southern hemisphere, for example in Argentina or New Zealand.