The European Committee for Future Accelerators was set up at the beginning of 1963 on the initiative of Prof. Weisskopf, then Director-General of CERN and of Prof. Powell, Chair of the CERN Scientific Policy Committee. 

ECFA consists of Plenary ECFA, Restricted ECFA, Chair and Secretary and permanent or ad hoc working groups. Plenary ECFA organises periodically one or two meetings per year. The next is to be held at the ALBA Synchrotron.