The Interflora World Cup is arguably the biggest event in floristry, it’s the world’s greatest floral design competition.

Every four years, since 1972, the best of the best florists from around the world compete in a major international city to win the conveted title of Interflora World Champion. This event is not only about beautiful, stunning floristry and amazing personalities and skills, this is an event like no other, a great day out with lots of opportunities to get involved and to be entertained. Our Floral Street themed event will be a unique and rewarding experience with so much to do and see, a quintessentially British day out.

We are so proud to be hosting the World Cup for the first time ever in the UK in Manchester at the iconic International Manchester Central Convention Centre in what is also our centenary year.

What is the Interflora World Cup?

How does the competition work?

The competition will run over three days with six heats spread across the Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The semi-final takes place on Friday evening (8th September) and the grand final takes place on Saturday evening (9th September).

Competitors will be given specific tasks to create under strict time conditions. They’ll get to know about some of these in advance so that they have time to plan and prepare but they’ll also be given surprise tasks on the day that require speed of thought and interpretation. This is where the drama and suspense really unfolds and we get to see competitors flex their floristry skills.

Why have we chosen to host the event in Manchester?

Manchester is a vibrant city of history and culture in the northwest of England and Manchester Central is the perfect location for our event, it’s been at the heart of city life for over 140 years. Once known as a frenzied hub of production in the Industrial Revolution, the city is now better known for football, food and music. It’s of course home to two legendary football teams with fans across the globe: Manchester City and Manchester United. It’s produced musical stars too including Oasis, The Smiths and Take That. And just in case those claims to fame weren’t enough it boasts the UK’s longest running soap, Coronation Street, too!

Mancunian delicacies include Vimto, black pudding, and Eccles cakes. All definitely worth a try, although maybe not at the same time.

With its industrial heritage, Manchester has adopted the symbol of the ‘worker bee’, so keep your eyes out for bees – they’re all over the city, in everything from street art to sculptures. The worker bee is a beautiful reminder not only of the city’s work ethic, but the ability of its residents to pull together. And handily for us bees are pretty vital for blooms too.

Get involved

Behind the scenes of the World Cup, ambassadors, floral designers and volunteers are working away to keep the competition running smoothly from looking after competitors to helping set up the venue. We'd love florists, designers, freelancers, growers, students, and anyone else who is interested to come and be part of the team during the competition week, which starts Monday 4th September 2023.

If this is something you are interested in or you would like to find out more information about the event in general, please feel free to get in touch: worldcup@interflora.co.uk

We look forward to hearing from you.