[1] India is the sixth nation overall to win the Thomas Cup, after beating title holders Indonesia 3–0 in the 2022 edition.

[3][4] The first tournament was originally planned for 1941–1942 (badminton seasons in the northern hemisphere traditionally ran from the autumn of one calendar year to the spring of the next) but was delayed due to World War II.

Sir George's dream was realized in 1948–1949 when ten national teams participated in the first Thomas Cup competition.

The United States and Denmark won their respective zone qualifications and thus joined Malaya for the inter-zone ties.

Of note, this tie marked the first of only three ever matches between the American Dave Freeman and Malayan Wong Peng Soon, the two greatest singles players of the early post-war period.

In the final round held in Preston, England, Malaya beat Denmark 8–1 and became the first country to win a Thomas Cup.

[5] During the next several Thomas Cup competitions, the number of participating countries grew and a fourth qualifying zone was added.

With veterans such as Wong Peng Soon, Ooi Teik Hock, and Ong Poh Lim leading the way, Malaya comfortably retained the Cup in Singapore against the United States (7–2) in 1952 and Denmark (8–1) in 1955.

Malaya's reign, however, was ended in 1958 (3 matches to 6) by an upstart Indonesia led by Ferry Sonneville and Tan Joe Hok.

Indonesia successfully defended its title in 1961 against a young team from Thailand which surprised Denmark in the inter-zone final.

When Indonesia rejected an IBF (BWF) decision to resume the contest in New Zealand, Malaysia was awarded the outstanding matches (6–3), and with them, the Thomas Cup.

[7] After 1967, the IBF (BWF) further reduced the advantages accorded to the reigning champion by eliminating the old challenge round system.

Instead, the defending champion would receive a bye only to an inter-zone semifinal berth and have to earn its way into the decisive final match.

Its successful effort to regain the cup in 1969–1970 was a struggle, but in the competitions ending in 1973, 1976, and 1979, Indonesia swept its ties by winning a remarkable 51 of 54 individual matches.

Having long before developed players as good as, or better than, any in the world (especially in singles), China defeated Indonesia in a classic 5–4 final in London.

The number of qualifying venues prior to 2004 varied between two and four and their sites basically reflected the long existent loci of badminton strength in the Far East and (to a lesser extent) in Europe (see chart below).

The European qualifying venue usually hosted the highest number of teams and to streamline play and create more competitive ties.

To have an easier road to the inter-zone competition, strong Asian teams sometimes competed outside of their "natural" qualification venue.

[10] Below shows the qualification slots in tournament history: From 1984 through 2002, the final phase of Thomas Cup competition brought eight competing teams together.

In 2004, the BWF increased the number of Thomas Cup qualifying venues to five, one for each of five regional confederations (Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania, and Pan America) that it had established.

[13] Only six countries, Malaysia (formerly Malaya), Indonesia, China, Japan, Denmark, and India have ever won the Thomas Cup.

Since 1982, when they first entered the competition, China has won the most titles and has consistently placed among the top four teams, except in 2016 and 2022 when they lost in the quarter-finals.

[15] Japan had finished in the top four on four previous occasions: 1967, 1979, 2010, and 2012; and in 1970, they 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 most potent power in men's badminton and the only non-Asian team to have won the Thomas Cup.

Being the only European country 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.

In Europe, England and Sweden have often joined Denmark in advancing to the final phase of Thomas Cup competition since 1984.