Wheelchair Rugby... Learn the Rules of the Game

Wheelchair Rugby, also referred to as Quad Rugby, is a team sport where all players are Quadriplegic. You may also have heard of it referred to as Murderball. In recent years, an Oscar nominated documentary by the same name, Murderball, was released.

The popularity of this wheelchair sport has reached far and wide. Originally developed in Canada, Quad Rugby has spread to numerous countries throughout the world with the 2006 World Championships held in Christchurch, New Zealand.

It's a brutal but exciting game, as any Rugby game would be played. It also carries the thrill of a highly contact sport as the sport its name was derived from adheres, but unlike traditional Rugby, physical contact between players is prohibited. The game is played on hard wood courts (ex: basketball court). Also noted is that the game is mixed gender, meaning both men and women play on the same team at the same time.

The International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) is the governing body behind the sport. The rules of the game combine aspects of Wheelchair Basketball and a variety of other wheelchair sports. The general rules are as follows:

1. Played on a regulation size basketball court.
2. 2 teams of up to 12 players.
3. 4 players from each team play on the court.
4. A player must bounce or pass a ball within 10 seconds.
5. A team has 15 seconds to move the ball from their side of the court and across the center line.
6. There is a goal line at the end of each side where players, carrying the ball across this line, score. In front on the goal line is a rectangular key.
7. Similar to basketball, offensive players can not remain in the opposing teams key for more then 10 seconds.
8. A defensive team may not have more then 3 players in their key at any one time.
9. The game is played over 4 eight minute quarters and a tied game at the end of regulation play would result in a three minute overtime.
10. An athlete must be a Quadriplegic to play the game.

The manual wheelchairs are often heavily modified to account for their constant contact with other chairs on the court. If you have seen one of these modified wheelchairs, you will know what I’m talking about. They can look pretty mean with the amount of metal protective plating put on them.

To learn more about the rules of the game and where to find a team, you may want to visit your countries local quad rugby website. You can use the search box at the top of this page to locate a website.

If you have ever played the game or observed a game, we would love to hear your experiences. Please feel free to drop a comment at the bottom of the page.