The International Judo Federation (IJF) is the international governing body for judo, founded in July 1951. Today the IJF has 200 National Federations on all continents. There are over 20 million people around the globe who practice judo, according to the IJF. Since 2009, IJF has organized yearly World Championships and the World Judo Tour consisting of five Grand Prix, four Grand Slams, a master tournament, and a Continental open tournament.

IJF President Marius Vizer, a long-time close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, wanted to let Russians and Belarusians continue to compete as neutral athletes despite the invasion of Ukraine and subsequent Ukrainian pressure to suspend them entirely. Ultimately, both national federations withdrew on their own accord, until June 2022 when they returned. Ukraine boycotted IJF events beginning in June 2022 because the Russian team was allowed to compete in and entered competitions. Judo is one of the few Olympic sports which goes against the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee.

The IJF announced on 29 April 2023, the last day of event registration for the 2023 World Championships, that Russian and Belarusian athletes would be allowed to participate as individual neutral athletes following background checks. Following the announcement, twenty Russian and Belarusian athletes were registered and entered into the championships. Of the twenty, at least five were reported to have ties with the Russian Armed Forces, despite the IOC's suggestion to deny participation of athletes who are contracted to the Russian or Belarusian military or national security agencies. In protest, the Ukrainian team withdrew from the championships.

The IJF initially named Russian President Vladimir Putin its honorary president and IJF Ambassador in 2008. However, that status was suspended and then stripped in 2022, in reaction to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"The IJF also cancelled all competitions in Russia, but allowed their athletes to compete as neutrals in individual and team competitions."

In September 2021, Algerian judoka Fethi Nourine and his coach Amar Benikhlef were suspended for 10 years by the IJF after Nourine refused to fight an Israeli athlete during the 2020 Summer Olympics. Nourine said his political support for the Palestinians in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict made it impossible for him to compete against Israeli athletes.