Best street dance competitions in the world: top 6

“It is important to me that my dance is creative, aesthetic and unexpected,” he explains. “For me, breaking is an art form and I want it to look like a painting.”

With 18 World Finals and 60 qualifier events in more than 30 locations, Red Bull BC One is a great place to see the marriage of unorthodox movement combined with music, rhythm and culture. It’s one of six popular street dance competitions worth checking out.

As if that weren’t enough, Red Bull BC One also has a program called the Red Bull BC One Cypher, which aims to develop and support the local breaking scene in various cities around the world. The program involves hosting events and workshops that bring together local breakers and provide them with opportunities to learn from more experienced dancers and improve their skills. The Cypher program has been held in more than 20 cities around the world, and has helped to nurture the talent of many aspiring breakers.

Battle of the Year–also known to some as the World Cup of Dancing–is widely regarded as one of the most competitive break dancing competitions in the world. In 2022, the competition was held in Japan for the first time in its 32-year history. BOTY has a preliminary round in which 24 teams participate in 5-minute team face-off battles. From this round, 4 teams move on to the main tournament. The main tournament includes semifinals and finals rounds, in which the four teams participate in a 7-minute semifinal and an 8-minute final where the winner of the final match is determined as the champion of the competition. We’d argue that the real winners are the fans– as they get to experience an action packed, b-boy extravaganza.

This 25-year-old festival promotes hip-hop dance, music and togetherness over a three day span throughout indoor and outdoor locations. The purpose of The Notorious IBE is simple; to promote hip-hop. Creators of the festival embody this by encouraging attendees to dress fresh, look your best, and honor hip-hop in every way. The festival features a variety of different street dance styles, but the main focus is on breaking. The winner at The Notorious IBE is determined through a series of elimination rounds and battles. The competition typically starts with open qualifying rounds, where dancers can showcase their skills in hopes to advance to the next round of competition. The next round consists of group dance where dancers of different backgrounds and styles improvise together in what’s known as cyphers, with the best dancers selected to move on. The event continues with a series of 1-on-1 battles, where dancers compete against each other in a head-to-head format. In the finals, the last remaining dancers face off in a final round of battle, and the judges determine the winner. Audience voting is also considered in the judging.

Urban Street Jam is a yearly festival that celebrates hip-hop culture and features performances and exhibitions of music, art, dance, and fashion within the hip-hop community. The first annual Urban Street Jam was held in California in 2010. The event featured a fashion show, choreography dance competition, 2 vs 2 all styles dance battle, B-boy dance competition, clothing venues, graffiti showcases and import luxury cars. The winner of Urban Street Jam is determined by a panel of judges who use a scoring system to evaluate the dancers based on technique, originality, and stage presence. The dancer with the highest overall score at the end of the event is declared the winner. Several members from both America’s Best Dance Crew and So You Think You Can Dance have attended and performed at the event.