Gateball is most popular in China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, with a growing presence in other countries.

Suzuki, then working in the lumber industry on the northern island of Hokkaido, realised there was a ready supply of the wood used to make croquet balls and mallets.

Shortly afterwards gateball's popularity exploded as local government officials and representatives of senior citizens' organisations introduced the sport around the country.

Under the leadership of its inaugural chairman, Ryoichi Sasakawa, the JGU developed a unified set of rules and organised the first national meet.

The following year, the JGU joined with five countries and regions, China, Korea, Brazil, United States of America and Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), to form the World Gateball Union (WGU).

The WGU has since been joined by Bolivia (1987), Paraguay (1987), Peru (1987), Argentina (1989), Canada (1989), Singapore (1994), Hong Kong (1998), Australia (2003), Macao (2005), Philippines (2012) and Indonesia (2013).

The inaugural championship in 1986 was played in Hokkaido with teams from Brazil, China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea and the United States of America.

The competition was contested by 96 teams from 14 countries/regions including Australia, Brazil, China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Paraguay, the Philippines, South Korea, Russia and the USA.