The Protocol of Stockholm (also called Battle of Stockholm) was an agreement between the

International Amateur Handball Federation The International Amateur Handball Federation (IAHF) was the administrative and controlling body for handball and field handball. IAHF was responsible for the organisation of handball's major international tournaments, notably the World Men's Ha ...

(IAHF) and Fédération Internationale de Basketball (then FIBB, now FIBA), made in 1934 to transfer the oversight of basketball from the IAHF to the FIBB.

Background

Basketball was a

demonstration sport A demonstration sport, or exhibition sport, is a sport which is played to promote it, rather than as part of standard medal competition. This occurs commonly during the Olympic Games but may also occur at other sporting events. Demonstration sport ...

at the

1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the III Olympiad and also known as St. Louis 1904) were an international multi-sport event held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from 1 July to 23 November 1904. Many events were conducted ...

Korfball Korfball ( ) is a ball sport, with similarities to netball, basketball, and ringball. The objective is to throw a ball into a netless basket that is mounted on a pole. Each team is composed of four female players and four male players. The s ...

, a similar sport, was also a demonstration sport at the 1920 and 1928 Summer Olympics. In 1926 a commission was founded at the

International Amateur Athletics Federation World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international governing body for the sport of athletics, covering ...

(IAAF, now World Athletics) which was responsible for all ball games which were played by hand, including

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

and

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of thr ...

. Representatives from 11 countries founded the

(IAHF) on 4 August 1928 in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. All ball games which are played by hand were under the umbrella of the IAHF. Basketball had its own technical commission. At the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932, in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held du ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

neither basketball or handball were present. The IAHF wanted to add handball first, but the organising committee didn't want handball included as it was not popular in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. This impasse led

Renato William Jones Renato William Jones (5 October 1906 – 22 April 1981), also known as R. William, or simply William Jones, was an Italian-born British basketball executive and popularizer of basketball in Europe and in Asia. He held an honorary doctorate from ...

to found the Fédération Internationale de Basketball (then FIB) in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

on the 18th June 1932. In the same year they tried to become recognized by the IOC but because they had the same abbreviation FIB as the Federation Internationale de Boxe Amateur, and as the IAHF did not recognize the independence of the FIB the recognition was declined. In early 1934 the Fédération Internationale de Basketball, now initialed FIBB, sent a request to the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

(IOC) that the FIBB be responsible for basketball. At the 32nd IOC Sessions in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

on 18 May 1934 the members of the IOC had positive feedback for the request but they decided to wait until the IAHF congress in Stockholm in September for a decision. In 1931 Franz-Paul Lang resigned as president of the IAHF and

Karl Ritter von Halt Karl Ritter von Halt, born Karl Ferdinand Halt (2 June 1891 – 5 August 1964) was a sport official in Nazi Germany and the German Federal Republic. He was born and died in Munich. Biography Karl Ritter von Halt was a track and field athle ...

became interim president. The main focus of the IAHF Congress in Stockholm in 1934 was to manage handball. Handball was first added to the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

so they had to plan for the Olympics, and basketball was not a major part of the congress. The congress saw

elected as president and

Avery Brundage Avery Brundage (; September 28, 1887 – May 8, 1975) was the fifth president of the International Olympic Committee, serving from 1952 to 1972, the only American and first non-European to attain that position. Brundage is remembered as a z ...

(President of the

United States Olympic Committee The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee (NOC) and the National Paralympic Committee (NPC) for the United States. It was founded in 1895 and is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado ...

) as council member. Secretary General

and president Giorgio di San Marzano of the FIBB were not invited. Nevertheless, they traveled to the congress. Secretary General of the IAHF Hassler didn't mind their presence. He offered them that basketball would be a demonstration sport at the 1936 Summer Olympics and further questions about the FIBB would be discussed by the IAHF technical commission in 1935.

Negotiation

It was a strange situation for Brundage because the USA were not part of the FIBB yet he had to stand up for the FIBB. The USA would only join the FIBB if the FIBB was recognized in Europe. Von Halt offered the FIBB that members of the FIBB would be part of the IAHF basketball commission. Brundage suggested that the FIBB council should have three IAHF and three FIBB members. Jones rejected this as he wanted an independent federation. Jones said that "since you are together in Stockholm, the question should be decided immediately and suggests that 2 members from each federation meet after the congress". This proposal was accepted. The IAHF named president

and Tadeusz Kuchar as their representatives and the negotiation was set for the next day. Secretary General Hassler had the last chance to talk against the recognition of the FIBB. He read out an opinion of France against the FIBB, but he could not stop the process. On 1. September 1934 the delegates of the IAHF (

and Tadeusz Kuchar) and of the FIBB (

and Giorgio di San Marzano) needed only 20 minutes for the final contract. Observers were Dan J. Ferris (

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

/USA) and Berthold Leo Werner (

Austrian Handball Federation The Austrian Handball Federation (') (ÖHB) is the national organization responsible for managing and promoting the practice of handball and beach handball in Austria. Its head office is located in Vienna. ÖHB was ...

/Austria).

called the negotiation the "Battle of Stockholm".

The Protocol

Reactions

After the protocol was signed Germany, Austria, Egypt, Estonia, Poland and the United States joined the FIBB. Marcel Barille, president of the Fédération Française de Basketball (FFBB), was consternated that France had not helped with the treaty, but he congratulated Jones and di San Marzano.

Confirmation by the IOC

At the 33rd IOC Sessions in Oslo on 28 February 1935 the Fédération Internationale de Basketball was recognized as the governing body for basketball.

Literature

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Footnotes

References

{{basketball FIBA History of basketball 1934 in handball 1934 in basketball Treaties concluded in 1934 Sports treaties 1934 in Sweden 1930s in Stockholm