WSL Announces Condensed 2025 Challenger Series Schedule

You can click here for our dissection of the official 2025 CT schedule

“We lost so many good guys… They’re surfing so good, but they just stopped,” Mateus Herdy recently told us, regarding the increasing cost and decreasing wave quality on the Challenger Series. 

Both topics have been perpetual axis points of conversation in our comment section over the past few months.

“Add improved locations on the Challenger to reflect CT-level surfing and make it economically viable for the top CS surfers, and then we’re really really happy,” wrote commenter Sick Hairrel.

“Fixing the CS would solve a lot of problems,” responded longtomssecondcuztwiceremoved.

Unfortunately, the WSL’s latest announcement doesn’t quite affirm either of these requests.

Per their recent announcement:

“As we head into the 2025 Challenger Series season, the WSL is excited for new changes, including the increase in women’s qualifiers to the CT,” said Travis Logie, WSL Senior Tour Manager, Challenger Series. “We look forward to kicking the season off at the iconic Surfest Newcastle, and to see who will earn their spot in 2026.”

2025 WSL Challenger Series Schedule:

• Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia: June 2 – 8
• Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: June 30 – July 6
• Huntington Beach, California, USA: July 29 – August 3 (US Open festival window: July 26 – August 3)
• Ericeira, Portugal: September 29 – October 5
• Saquarema, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: October 11 – 19

“It took Ramzi over 10 years to qualify and now he’s on tour it’s like, ‘why hasn’t he been here this whole time?’” said Mateus. “It just doesn’t feel like the current system is rewarding the best surfing. Your results aren’t necessarily a reflection of your ability, it’s complicated. People who understand surfing will know what I’m talking about.”

Would you spend $80,000 USD to surf that circuit? That’s what the 80 men and 48 women who qualified for next year’s Challenger will be asking themselves.

Along with the Changaz announcement, the WSL revealed the stops on this 2025 World Longboard Tour.

2025 WSL Longboard Tour Schedule:

• Huntington Beach, California, USA: July 26 – 30 (US Open festival window: July 26 – August 3)
• Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia: September 17 – 21
• Surf Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE: October 21 – 26
• El Sunzal, El Salvador: November 5 – 9

You can click here for our dissection of the official 2025 CT schedule