The UK's Leading Independent Martial Arts Association     |       MyBMABA Login | Applicant Login |

As an expert martial arts association we are able to serve access to specialist events Public Liability insurance for clubs and instructors running martial arts tournaments, seminars, workshops and events.

From non-contact workshops to full contact MMA fight nights, we can provide access to martial arts event public liability cover through your membership at some of the UK’s best prices. What’s more, we’re always focused on absolute quality so we provide a comprehensive set of guidelines, exclusions, limitations and requirements in advance so you can be absolutely sure the event can go to plan.

Clear, Beautiful Certification To Confirm Insurance

We know you need to demonstrate having sufficient cover to venues, service providers and participants. Our BMABA event cover confirmation licence makes it easy to demonstrate sufficient cover for your event or tournament.

Full Contact MMA Inclusive

Provided you follow our safety guidance and the insurer’s requirements, and provided it’s amateur only with no prize money, we can cover full contact MMA from just £199.99 per event.

Free Event Directory Listing & Ticketing Service Worth £50!

Along with every event cover extension added to membership, we’ll provide completely free access to our new event directory platform that allows you to advertise and showcase your event, as well as take and receive payment for ticket sales directly through the website!

What is event insurance, and why is it needed?

Event insurance (as it’s referred to) – or Event Public Liability (PL) Insurance (to be more specific) is designed to provide Public Liability cover (which provides defence and cover in the event of injury or damage to property) to the named event. This is particularly important as it will be protecting not just participants but also spectators, of which there is usually quite a larger number comparatively to a normal session.

If you consider why this is necessary, you need only think of the cost of defending yourself in a court for a claim of compensation if a member of the public were to trip on a mat or speaker stand (for example), break a leg and then be unable to pay their mortgage! With event insurance, it’s important to remember this is specifically for the event organiser and does not provide ‘fighter insurance’.

Can’t my instructor insurance cover this?

No, it can’t. Instructor Insurance (or let’s be specific, and refer specifically to Instructor Public Liability) is designed to provide cover in the event of an injury or damage to property resulting from your instruction.

Events are unique functions, and can often have a number of spectators and competitors in one (or more) locations within a venue at any one time. As an instructor, you can’t possibly be accountable for the supervision of everyone. Even with a very small inter-club event, you will stand have parents or visitors coming into your dojo. If there was to be an injury (for example, a parent of a student slips on a wet floor entering your dojo) this can’t be put down to an instructor fault through instruction, as they were never a part of your class.

For this reason events insurance is an important consideration for anybody hosting an event, regardless of size.

Can I just buy event insurance?

You can purchase an event insurance extension to your membership at any point through our member’s area or the myBMABA app.

What Does It Cost?

For non-contact and semi-contact events with up to 500 spectators, the cost of £2,000,000 Event Public Liability insurance is £139.99. For full contact, it becomes £199.99. We can also provide £5,000,000 Public Liability for a small surcharge.

Will it cover full-contact fighting?

There’s a bit of a misunderstanding within our industry surrounding events insurance and competitors insurance, as they’re not the same. It’s very hard (and expensive) to cover a competitor for injury. This is quite simply because there is a very heightened risk of injury, inherently, because of the nature of sparring or competition.

Public Liability is unlikely to be effective by default too, because of Volenti non fit injuria (a common law doctrine which states that if someone willingly places themselves in a position where harm might result, knowing that some degree of harm might result, they are not able to bring a claim against the other party in tort or delict).

With this in mind, it won’t provide ‘fighter insurance’ and we will go out on the limb and state that no off the shelf event cover policy will provide this cover for less than £1,000. If you can find it elsewhere, your event cover with us is on the house.

IMPORTANT: Please speak with our office before applying to join our association if you’re interested in obtaining events insurance. We have very specific criteria in terms of who and what we provide cover on. You will need to be a registered member to access cover, so before you join us as an instructor (unless you wish to join us for free, which you’re welcome to do) please check with us as to whether or not cover would be available. We provide a full and up to date breakdown of insurer requirements, limitations and conditions from our member’s area.

Join A Different Kind Of Martial Arts Association

Membership And Insurance Combined. One Price Tag, One Renewal.

Access to our specialist event insurance cover is only available to registered and known members. Join an independent, politics free governing body with a charitable foundation that’s changing the industry. Be a part of the change.

Multi-Award Winning & Nationally Recognised

Best Sports Governing Body Initiative

Winners

Best Association Serving Sport

Finalists

Best COVID Response for Sports

Finalists

Sports Diversity Award

Finalists

Sports Association of the Year

Bronze

Best Sporting Association in the UK

Winners

Best Sport & Recreation Entrepreneur

Winners

Best Association Website

Winners

Association of the Year

Finalists

Executive Director of the Year Finalists

Finalists

Best Use Of Technology Award

Winners

Best Sport & Recreation Entrepreneur

Winners

UK Business Leader of the Year

Winners

Entrepreneur Of The Year

Finalists

Director Of The Year

Finalists

Young Entrepreneur Of The Year

Finalists

We’re Here When You Need Us.

We know choosing the right association—or just figuring out what support your club really needs—can feel overwhelming. That’s why we’re always happy to talk it through.

Whether you’re curious about membership, need help with something specific, or just want a no-pressure chat to see if we’re the right fit, our team is ready. No bots. No scripts. Just real people, working full-time from our UK office, here to help clubs like yours thrive.

THINKING OF JOINING?

Still Thinking It Over?

We know choosing a governing body isn’t something you rush. That’s why our team is always here to offer honest, impartial advice — no pressure, no sales scripts.

Whether you’re comparing support, questioning the value in your current membership, or just need to talk things through — we’re happy to help.

We’re a real team, working full-time from our UK office — not a voluntary outfit run from someone’s kitchen table. You’ll feel the difference the moment you get in touch.

Trusted by more than 6,500 instructors and clubs.

A National, Regulated, Award-Winning Not-For-Profit - Built From The Ground Up

BMABA CIC isn’t just another organisation claiming to serve martial arts — we’re a regulated, independently audited, multi-award-winning social enterprise leading from the front.

We hold ISO9001:2015 certification under UKAS accreditation — the same gold standard used to assess hospitals, universities, and major corporations. We’re also regulated by the Office of the Regulator of Community Interest Companies (CIC Regulator), meaning we’re legally bound to reinvest every penny back into grassroots martial arts.

We haven’t been propped up by corporate sponsors or legacy funding. We’ve grown organically — one instructor at a time, by doing what we said we’d do and showing up when others didn’t. Since 2012, we’ve supported clubs through hardship, driven national reforms, and built a respected, professional home for independent martial arts.

Today, we’re trusted by more than 6,500 instructors and clubs and support over 100,000 members across 140+ disciplines. Along the way, we’ve earned national recognition — from awards in governance and inclusion, to features across BBC, ITV, and The Guardian.

We didn’t inherit status. We earned it — by raising the bar, and never compromising on our values.

Empower Your Club With A Platform That Works For You

Run your martial arts club smarter with our full-featured, professionally-built Club Management Platform — funded entirely by our not-for-profit mission, not a corporate agenda. No upsells. No hidden costs. Just powerful, intuitive tools included free with your membership.

Built to save you time, money, and stress — and trusted by thousands of clubs nationwide.

Plus So Much More As Standard Just Some Of The Tools & Resources We Offer

  • Instructor Certification & Licensing
  • Student Insurance & Licensing
  • Free Instructor Qualifications
  • Safeguarding Qualifications
  • Enhanced DBS Checks
  • First Aid Training
  • Free Club Website
  • Club Management Support
  • Instructor Certification & Licensing
  • Logos & Accreditation Marks
  • SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) Platform
  • Local & National Networking
  • Stock Grading Certificates
  • Free Instructor Qualifications
  • Template Documents & Forms
  • Printing & Design
  • Safeguarding Code For Martial Arts
  • Best Practice Guidance
  • Wordpress Hosting
  • a.i For Martial Arts
  • Event Management Checklists
  • Safeguarding Model Policies
  • Analytics & Tracking Tools
  • Budgeting Apps
  • Professional Webmail
  • Clothing & Uniform
  • Cyber Toolkit
  • Cash Grants & Funding
  • Risk Management Awards
  • Concussion & Head Injury
  • National Advertising
  • Entrepreneur's Support
  • Plus So Much More
Why Do Thousands Choose BMABA?

Not everyone understands what makes us different. But for those who do, the reasons are clear — from our award-winning governance to the groundbreaking support we offer clubs of all sizes.

Whether it’s our industry-leading safeguarding standards, our not-for-profit mission, or our powerful club tech funded purely by membership — there’s a reason more than 6,500 instructors and 3,500 clubs trust us.

Built For The Sector — Not For Shareholders

BMABA wasn’t inherited or bought — it was built. And in 2025, we made the bold decision to give it away.

Our founder, who grew up in poverty and built BMABA from scratch with just £20, voluntarily converted the organisation into a regulated not-for-profit Community Interest Company (CIC) — surrendering nearly £2 million in private value to protect its mission for the long term. That means no for profit shareholders, no dividends, and no profiteering — just an unwavering commitment to community impact.

We’re a registered social enterprise, governed by the CIC Regulator, certified to ISO9001:2015 under UKAS accreditation, and led by a multi-award winning social entrepreneur who believes martial arts should serve the people, not the few.

This isn’t a vanity project with self-appointed 8th dans — it’s a movement, built for clubs, by clubs.

Nationally Recognised Standards

Our Club Colours and Regulation Ready awards go far beyond branding or badges — they represent some of the most robust safeguarding and compliance standards available anywhere in UK martial arts.

Mapped directly against the Safeguarding Code in Martial Arts (SCiMA) and formally approved by Sport England, our frameworks allow clubs to earn full SCiMA recognition directly through the MyBMABA platform — automatically and at no cost. We are the only independent governing body, and one of just two organisations nationwide, including Sport England’s own NGBs, granted the authority to issue SCiMA certification in this way.

No waiting. No third-party submission. No extra cost. Every BMABA member has access to this, included as part of our not-for-profit mission to raise standards from the ground up.

Others talk about safeguarding. We built a national infrastructure to deliver it.

Not Entirely Sure?

We offer a genuine 12 months of free membership — with absolutely no catches, obligations, or hidden clauses.

Why? Because we believe you deserve the chance to see, first-hand, what it feels like to be supported by an organisation that genuinely has your back. We know how often martial arts clubs have been let down by associations and governing bodies that overpromise and underdeliver — or worse, treat instructors as revenue, not people.

We’re not here to sell you on hype. We’re here to show you what real, modern martial arts governance and support can look like.

Whether you’re looking for insurance, safeguarding help, student tools, guidance, structure, or just a community that understands your club’s challenges — our free membership gives you access to the same resources, platform, and support we provide to thousands of instructors and clubs across the UK.

No commitment. No pressure. Just a genuine opportunity to explore what we offer — and decide for yourself.

The UK's Leading and Largest Multi-Style Trade Body For Martial Arts

BMABA CIC T/A British Martial Arts & Boxing Association
Registered Address: The Old Bakery. Golden Square, Petworth. GU28 0AP
Phone: 01798306546  | EMail: info@bmaba.org.uk

BMABA CIC. Reg. 10676965.
ICO Registration Number: ZA241917
Social Enterprise License No: 11677
VAT Registration Number: 373018216

Emergency Services, Armed Forces and NHS front line staff are all entitled to 10% discounts across all of our memberships for live. This applies to all ex-serving armed forces and emergency workers too.

 

BMABA CIC is proud to hold the ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management certification, issued under UKAS accreditation (Certificate No. 267261) — the highest level of independent validation for quality management systems in the UK.

© 2012-2025 British Martial Arts & Boxing Association (BMABA). All Rights Reserved. Use of our site or any of our services signifies agreement to our legal policy and privacy policy, available here.