Winners of British & UK Scrabble Tournaments

ABSP and UK Scrabble: Quick Overview

All official UK Scrabble events are organized by the Association of British Scrabble Players (ABSP) and adhere to the Collins Scrabble Words (CSW or Collins lexicon).

The ABSP was founded in 1987 as a non-profit for the promotion of Scrabble in Britain and throughout the United Kingdom.

The ABSP coordinates tournaments, provisions the rating system for UK players, and assists members, organizers and tournament directors.

The region’s premier Scrabble event, which is organized by the ABSP, is the UK National Championship. The tournament includes:

1. Two-day championship for players who have qualified based on their performance in at least one NSC Qualifier event throughout the year.
2. Plate event that welcomes both newcomers and experienced players who did not qualify for the main championship event.

Here are the four qualifying ABSP major events that can ensure your spot in the main UK National Scrabble Championship tournament:

BMSC: The British Matchplay Scrabble Championship (BMSC) is ABSP’s leading open event. The BMSC consists of 25 games played over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

ABSP Masters: Association of British Scrabble Players (ABSP Masters) is an invitation-only event for the top 16 Scrabble players in the UK. It’s typically a round-robin event held in July. The qualifying period is the 12 months leading up to each annual event.

BEST: The British (Isles) Elimination Scrabble Tournament (BEST) is a yearly knockout competition that lasts 9+ months. The British Scrabble tournament is designed as a series of in-person single-elimination (aka sudden death) matches at regional and then the national level. The BMSC winner ends up playing 70+ games.

UK Open The UK Open Scrabble Tournament originated in 2008. It’s one of five major tournaments run by the ABSP and is Europe's largest Scrabble tournament. The UK Open is unique in that it also draws international Scrabble players from around the world.