Words: Mike Dale
The global squash community is being invited to Amsterdam on 18-20 September 2026 for the inaugural Global Squash Festival.
The centrepiece to the event, which will take place at the mighty 21-court Frans Otten Stadion, is the first ever World Graded Championships, in which players from all over the world will be organised into their appropriate grades thanks to the magic of SquashLevels.
Alongside the graded competition will be exhibition matches by current and former PSA stars, Q&As, coaching workshops, refereeing clinics and post-match parties in the city.
The brains behind the event is US-based Dutchman Meindert Kooistra, a lifelong squash enthusiast and founder of squash tourism operator Squash Retreats.
Kooistra will draw upon his extensive squash contacts book to bring some big names to Global Squash Festival.
French no.1 Victor Crouin and thrilling young Englishman Jonah Bryant will be sharing their wisdom with drills, exhibitions and a fireside Q&A on day one.
European champion Tinne Gilis will lead a clinic on 'footwork and flow' at the start of day two, with former England national coach David Campion also conducting a movement masterclass.
Former world no.1s and world champions Nick Matthew and Gregory Gaultier are signed up for exhibition matches on the Frans Otten showcourt and Q&A sessions in one of the club's many impressive event spaces.
Nick Matthew and Greg Gaultier
Top PSA referee Andrea Santamaria will lead refereeing workshops entitled 'Inside Elite Squash Refereeing', while renowned coach Jesse Engelbrecht will conduct clinics and breakout sessions focused on the mental side of the game.
Engelbrecht — who is a performance coach for US Squash and has worked with PSA players such as Tinne Gilis, Amanda Sobhy, Victor Crouin, Sivasangari Subramaniam and Aly Abou Eleinen — specialises in mindset, focus and performance under pressure.
In the planning stages are a squash and business networking lunch and a women’s squash leadership dinner. More big names are also expected to be added to the line-up soon.
Among the many social events, there will be an Amsterdam Boat Experience as well as opening and closing parties in the city.
The Frans Otten Stadion, built on the site of the 1928 Olympic Games, has a huge bar and outdoor barbeque area which overlooks the club's tennis courts. It also has eight indoor padel courts.
Inspired by recent expo events that celebrate the growth of the racket sports industry such as RacquetX in Miami, founder Kooistra wanted to create a squash-specific event that combined competition and a curated programme of sessions and shared off-court moments.
"The first ever World Graded Championships are at the heart of Global Squash Festival," he told Squash Player.
"Although Masters squash is incredibly popular, we felt the graded format gives players reliably good matches against players of a similar standard. We're so lucky that SquashLevels enables that regardless of wherever people are travelling from.
"We're matching the competition with a packed programme of sessions with top players and experts, exhibition matches and conversations, plus hosted dinners and social gatherings across the city. We cannot wait!"
Find out more at: https://globalsquashfestival.com/#details
