Badminton 2022 European Championships: Preview, schedule & how to watch the stars in action

The best badminton players in their continent are set to take centerstage at the 2022 European Championships in Madrid, Spain, from 25-30 April.

Rio 2016 Olympic gold medallist Carolina Marin will make her return to competition after the five-time title holder recovered from the ACL injury that prevented her from competing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in 2021.

Reigning Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen will be looking to make up for conceding the final at the last edition to his compatriot Anders Antonsen after testing positive for COVID-19. Since then the reigning champion Antonsen has left the national squad to train independently in Dubai, and so the 28-year-old Dane will be looking to prove himself as the top male shuttler on the national team with back-to-back titles.

Denmark managed a medal in all five disciplines at last year's championships, and they will be looking to build on that success and leave Madrid with more than just the one title this time around.

You can read more about who lady luck favoured in the draw here, as we now share with you the stars to watch out for and the schedule of events for the 2022 European Championships.

What to watch for: Carolina Marin chasing history in women's event

Each of the five disciplines offer their own distinctive storylines.

The women's singles will be focused on the return of five-time title winner Carolina Marin. All eyes on the Spaniard will be looking to see if she is still as lethal on court as she was prior to injury. The Huelva native recovered from the same injury to her other leg once, and was back clinching titles, so her opponents would expect nothing less from the three-time world champion. The big question is who has managed to raise their game in her absence and could deny Marin an historic sixth title in a row.

Danish duel expected in men's singles in Madrid

The men's singles will see the Danish top seeds of Viktor Axelsen and Anders Antonsen clash horns. Olympic champ Axelsen will be looking to wrestle back the title that he held in 2018 after being denied the chance to defend it last time around. Antonsen meanwhile, would love to clinch back-to-back titles, a feat that even Axelsen has yet to achieve.

Doubles storylines at the European Championships in 2022

The men's doubles also carries a tale of unfinished business after Germany's Mark Lamsfuss and Marvin Seidel had to concede their shot at the title due COVID-19. But top seeds for the tournament, Denmark's Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen are on a mission of their own to regain the title that they won in 2018, and they will have to fend off the rising opposition, including the brother pairing of Toma Junior and Christo Popov from France.

The Stoeva sisters dominated the women's doubles field last year to defend the crown that they won in 2018, and now have a unique opportunity to complete their hat-trick. The real threat for their title defence is likely to come from the Danish pairing of Maiken Fruergaard and Sara Thygesen or Amalie Magelund and Freja Ravn who are seeded second and third respectively.

The mixed doubles field is just too close to call. England's Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith are the top seeds and will want to make up for last year's loss in the final. But the French pairing of Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue could steal their thunder. Even Denmark's Mathias Christiansen and Alexandra Boje or Germany's Mark Lamsfuss and Isabel Lohau, who are seeded third and fourth respectively, all have the potential of lifting the title.

Schedule: Madrid set to host 2022 European Championships, 25-30 April

For the second time in three tournaments, Spain has been selected to host the European Championships. They last hosted the 2018 edition in Huelva and this time around Madrid has been handed the honours.

The Polideportivo Municipal Gallur or Gallur Municipality Sports Complex is set to welcome the best players from Europe with competition getting underway on Monday (25 April) and the finals scheduled for Saturday (30 April).

All times are local Central European Time (CET).

Monday 25 April

17:00 - 19:40 : Last 64

Tuesday 26 April

9:00 - 20:20 : Last 32

Wednesday 27 April

9:00 - 17:20 : Last 16

Thursday 28 April

14:30 - 21:00 : Quarter-finals

Friday 29 April

16:00 - 21:00 - Semi-finals

Saturday 30 April

10:00 - 16:00 - Finals

How to watch the action at the Badminton 2022 European Championships

All matches will be streamed live on the event website, www.badmintoneurope.tv (territorial restrictions may apply).

Fans in Madrid can also get further information on tickets here.