Winter Guard International

Winter Guard International
AbbreviationWGI
Named afterWinter color guard competitive season
FormationMay 15, 1977; 47 years ago (1977-05-15)
Founded atSan Francisco
Type501(c)(3) organization
31-1421760
Legal statusActive
PurposeColor guard, percussion ensemble, and winds competition circuit
HeadquartersDayton, Ohio
Region
United States
Executive Director
Ron Nankervis
President
Ed Devlin
Revenue (2022)
Increase US$8.025 million[1]
Expenses (2022)Increase US$4.334 million
Websitewgi.org

Winter Guard International (WGI) is an American governing body that sanctions championship events for three competitive performing arts activities: winter guard, percussion ensembles, and indoor wind ensembles. WGI was founded in 1977 in response to inconsistent adjudication and rules of competition which made it difficult for color guards to compete nationally.[2][3] Today, WGI publishes and maintains an adjudication handbook, with an accompanying "Rules & Regulations", that has been widely adopted.[4][5]

WGI championship events are hosted from January to March and conclude with WGI World Championships in April.[6][3][7] The first World Championship was hosted at Conant High School in Hoffman Estates, Illinois on April 15, 1978.[8] World championships for percussion ensembles began in 1992, and indoor marching bands, called winds, in 2015. A series of field band competitions, promoted as the WGI Friendship Cup were hosted from 1997 to 2003.[3] The next World Championships is scheduled for April 2025 at UD Arena.

A majority of WGI's championships are hosted in the United States, however regional championships have been hosted in Japan, Malaysia, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Philippines, and Costa Rica.[9]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference :10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Chavez, Nebai (March 3, 2022). "The Birth of WGI". WGI. Retrieved May 21, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "History". WGI. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  4. ^ "WGI Handbooks". www.lmcgpc.org. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  5. ^ "2018 WGI RULEBOOK". wgasc.org. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  6. ^ "2020 CG Calendar". WGI. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  7. ^ "2020 Perc Calendar". WGI. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  8. ^ "A look back at the very first WGI World Championship in 1978". DCI. April 10, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  9. ^ "International Events". WGI. Retrieved August 25, 2020.