Humanball is an outdoor team sport in which two teams of varying sizes are separated by a centerline, each attempting to cause the ball to stop all motion on the opposing team's side. The game works best in informal settings in a mixed park enviroment, and during most games running, screaming and laughing are more important than actually scoring points.
Players
editHumanball is played by two opposing teams of equal size. The minimum team-size is two, as a one-on-one game of Humanball is really just kicking a ball back and forth, which is also fun. These rules are not set in stone: unequal team sizes, players joining and subbing out in mid-game, and athletes competing and distracting other players while riding a bicycle are all acceptable.
Equipment
editHumanball only requires two pieces of equipment:
- The ball, which is a 20" inflatable penny floater or beach ball.
- The centerline dividing the two teams, which is usually imagined as being between two points ("from the dead tree in the cage to the garbage can", for example), can be explicitly delineated using an extension cable or shoes.
Field of Play
editPlay takes place in Bickford Park at the corner of Harbord St and Grace St in Toronto, Ontario.
Rules
editEach team attempts to keep the ball in motion on their own side while causing the ball to stop moving on the opposing team's side. Play starts with one team serving the ball across the centerline. Players can use any part of their body (foot, hand, crotch) to keep the ball in motion, and are free to pass or return the ball across the centerline. Each player may only touch the ball once while the ball remains on the player's side. There is no out-of-bounds, and obstacles and non-player interference do not cause play to stop.
A point is scored by a team when:
- the ball comes to a rest on the opposing team's side.
- a player on the opposing team touches the ball twice without the ball crossing the centerline.
Games are played to two (2) points, then teams switch sides and a new game starts.