How to play dodgeball: Rules and regulations of the sport

How to play dodgeball: Rules and regulations of the sport

Babu Tendu
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:22 PM

Dodgeball is a team sport that is very common in the United States. The sport involves teams that try to hit opponents on the other side with an orb. When a player is hit with the ball, he leaves the court and thus earns points for the opposing team. The sport was founded approximately 200 years ago. The game has interesting standards that are followed on a regular. Rules on how to play dodgeball will be outlined in the post.

How to play dodgeball
Dodgeball is one of the easiest sports with one of the most explicit rules that are easy to grasp and immediately get used to playing. Photo by Thomas Barwick. (Modified by author).
Source: Getty Images

Several world records have been set in the sport, including the highest number of people in one match and the longest game in dodgeball history. This shows that the sport is equally treasured, just like other popular sports such as football and basketball.

Instructions on how to play dodgeball

No set number of participants is required for a dodgeball game, with games ranging from small to big in terms of participants. A lot will rely on the area available to play the game and the available pool of players. School leagues or controlled competitions will have a specified number of players, varying depending on the league.

Rules on how to play dodgeball
Van Johnson plays in the 2019 BET Experience Celebrity Dodgeball Game at Staples Center on June 21, 2019, in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Leon Bennett.
Source: Getty Images

A dodgeball game has no set dimensions or location, with the game taking place on the most suited surface and venue. No general agreement exists on the orbs used in a dodgeball game. Players in a league format would be expected to use the same ball size or type. However, this can be agreed upon by each league.

Basic skills and how to play dodgeball

Many people believe it is advantageous to play with an odd number of dodgeballs so that a team can always go on the offensive.

The game begins with an opening rush. The dodgeballs are arranged in the centre of the court, with both teams running from their bases to the balls. Players must grasp and throw a dodgeball simultaneously or roll it back to a teammate.

The bare minimum requirements needed to play dodgeball is five balls and a court. Uniforms may be worn in a regulation game, and those are the basic rules of playing the dodgeball game.

How to play a dodgeball

While there is no point scoring in dodgeball, the game's goal is to eliminate members from the opposite team in various ways. The most obvious way is to hit an opponent with an orb; if a participant is hit and the ball is not caught before the participant "dies", that player is eliminated. If a participant tosses a sphere and is captured by an opponent, the throwing player is out of the game.

Some game variations allow participants to be reinstated if their team catches the ball. This can make the game last longer and provides an incentive for capturing the sphere rather than simply dodging it. If a participant leaves the field of play, they will be eliminated.

How to win a dodgeball game

When all of the players on one team are removed, the game ends, and the other team wins. If both teams still have members at the end of the time limit, the winning team has the most players. If this still ends in a tie, overtime can be played.

How to win a dodgeball game
Echo Kellum, Dante Brown, YK Osiris, Nafessa Williams, and Grace "Spice" Hamilton (left to right) attend the 2019 BET Experience Dodgeball Game in Los Angeles, on June 21, 2019. Photo by Leon Bennett.
Source: Getty Images

What are the official rules of dodgeball?

  1. The organizers can decide on the number of participants, the number of balls, the size of the court, and the game's length.
  2. Unless collecting dead spheres, players must always stay on the court.
  3. Participants may leave the court to gather balls, but they may only throw the ball once they return to the court. Participants are eliminated if they go outside the court or throw a sphere outside the court.
  4. Personal preference or an official body's directive might determine the rules for headshots. If an opponent is stuck on the head, the throwing participant is eliminated in some games, while the participant struck on the head is eliminated in others.
  5. Participants who are struck by a ball and catch it before it becomes dead are eliminated. When a participant sees a ball, the participant who threw the ball is eliminated.

How do you play dodgeball step by step?

Basic skills and how to play dodgeball
Mark Wilson throws a ball as he participates in a dodgeball game at Pennyhill Park on June 26, 2019, in Bagshot, England. Photo by David Rogers.
Source: Getty Images
  1. The game begins with six orbs on the centre line. Sportspersons start behind the finish line and retrieve the orbs to their right on the centre line during the opening surge. Before the ball may be thrown, it must be taken behind the attack line.
  2. The game's goal is to get the opposition sportspersons OUT by eliminating them. If the ball strikes you below the shoulders, you are out. You cross the sideline or the centerline. You throw a live orb, which your opponent catches.
  3. You can use a held orb to block a thrown orb, but if you drop the blocking ball or the thrown sphere still hits your body, you are out.
  4. An orb is dead and cannot help you if it hits the ground, a wall, or another player first. It is kept for more than ten seconds. Dead orbs are promptly rolled over to the opposing team.
  5. When you exit, line up on the sideline in your exited order. You can return to the court from the backline if a teammate captures an orb.
  6. If each team is down to one member, they have 10 seconds to knock each other out. After this period, the neutral zone is removed, and the sportsperson can travel around the court. The last contestant to knock out their opponent wins.
Rules of playing the dodgeball game
Karen Obilom plays in the 2019 BET Experience Celebrity Dodgeball Game at Staples Center on June 21, 2019, in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Bennett Raglin.
Source: Getty Images

How to play dodgeball with one ball

Passing and attacking are both involved in Single-Ball Dodgeball games. A pass is defined as an orb thrown between the infield and outfield of a team, and an attack is a ball that is thrown into the other team's infield. A team may pass the orb between their infield and outfield a maximum of four times before attacking.

The International Dodgeball Association is a body that clearly explains how to play dodgeball after careful consideration and years of research in the sport. It is arguably one of the most accessible sports to play in the world.

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