THE SPORT OF THE NEXT CENTURY

Horseball is a game played on horseback where a ball is handled and points are scored by shooting it through a high net. The sport is like a combination of polo, rugby, and basketball. It is one of the ten disciplines officially recognized by the Internation Equestrian Federation.

Expanding across the world

The sport originated in France in the 1970s, it gained success and has spread across Europe and overseas. The International Horseball Federation has 11 members including three outside of Europe, Brazil, Israel, and the Cayman Islands.

Click on a country below to jump the their horseball home page


Austria	Belgium
Brazil	Canada
Cayman Islands	France
Germany	Israel
Italy	Pakistan
Portugal	Spain
United Kingdom	United States of America

The Rules

Pitch	The pitch can be between 20-30 meters large and 60-75 meters long, with a basket at each end. You can practice horseball in your usual riding area.

Baskets	The baskets are 1 meter diameter hoops hooked vertically at 4.50 meters off the ground.

Ball	The ball is a T4 soccer ball surrounded by 6 leather handles.

Teams	Each team is composed by up to 6 players with possible mixed gender, with 4 players playing at a time.

Referees	The game is ruled by 2 referees, one on the pitch, on horseback, and one on the sideline, seated.

Duration	Two 10 minute periods, separated by a 3 minute half-time period.

Start of play	The ball is on the ground, on the 10 meters line. The team must pick it at a gallop.

Scoring	A team scores when the ball goes through the basket, after at least 3 passes between 3 different players of the team.

Line-out	After a score, the game is restarted by a line-out: the ball is thrown between two lines of two players of each team.

Passes	You can pass the ball in any way and in any direction. 3 passes between 3 different co-players is needed before it is allowed to score. Giving the ball from hand to hand is not a pass. The ball can not be hold longer than 10 seconds by a player.

Picking up	If the ball falls on the ground, you must pick it up without dismounting.

Seizing	Seizing the ball from an opponent is allowed.

Priorities	Strict rules of priority are designed to ensure a really safe game.

Penalties	P1 for unacceptable faults. The offended team shoots from 5 meters. P2 for major faults. The offended team shoots from 10 meters. P3 for minor faults. The offended team restarts the game from the fault point.