It’s not often that the final tournament of the season presents an opportunity for the possibility of history to unfold in two categories. But that could well happen at the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2025.

An Se Young and Kim Won Ho/Seo Seung Jae stand on the cusp of a unique achievement. If An wins her 11th title of 2025, that will put her on par with Kento Momota as the most successful singles player over a season. Similarly, if Kim/Seo pocket their 11th, it will make them the most successful pair over a season.

An was close to achieving this feat earlier, in 2023, when she finished with 10 titles.

An’s biggest challenge is expected to come from Akane Yamaguchi, who won her third World Championships this year. The other challenger is defending champion Wang Zhi Yi, who has been in form all year, reaching 10 finals and winning three. It will be something of a surprise were one of these three not to emerge champion.

Meanwhile, An’s compatriots Kim/Seo also set the circuit ablaze with their astounding run. While their 10 titles came from 16 tournaments (An played 14), that they could dominate a category that was seen the most open only last season showed their undoubted prowess.

Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Shohibul Fikri were the other pair that made spectacular inroads. Having come together only in July, the pair have been a revelation, with five finals from eight tournaments.

In men’s singles, the year belonged to Shi Yi Qi with his first World Championships and three Super 1000 titles, but honours were evenly spread among the top players. Veteran Chou Tien Chen continued to impress into his 35th year, winning the Arctic Open and making two other finals, while Jonatan Christie picked up momentum in the last quarter with three titles.

Women’s doubles saw Pearly Tan/Thinaah Muralitharan enjoy their career-best season displaying consistency all year. The Malaysians won three titles from six finals. However, Liu Sheng Shu/Tan Ning were a cut above the rest with six titles overall, including four in a row.

In mixed doubles, Dechapol Puavaranukroh/Supissara Paewsampran, who had come together last October, hit their stride and emerged the top pair on the World Tour winning five titles. While China’s Feng Yan Zhe/Huang Dong Ping (seven titles) and Jiang Zhen Bang/Wei Ya Xin (three titles) continued to excel, other teams that made inroads were Chen Tang Jie/Toh Ee Wei with their first world title and Thom Gicquel/Delphine Delrue with their first Super 1000 victory in Indonesia.