Dodgeball (WDBF) — Official Rules

A ball becomes a Live Ball the moment it is intentionally released from a Live Player's hand as a throw attempt (one or two hands; overhand, underhand, sidearm, chest push or short toss). A ball becomes Dead immediately on contact with: the playing surface; any Dead Object; an opposing thrown Live Ball while both are in free flight; or a blocked ball that later contacts the surface or a Dead Object. A Dead Ball cannot put a player Out and cannot be caught for an Out. Balls retrieved during the Opening Rush must first be activated (Rule 6.2) before they can render a player Out.

Control is established when a Live Player secures a ball so they can retain, carry or direct it without relying on the surface, another object, or another player; control may be established while airborne. Possession is a team-level concept used only to assign Burden. An Active Player participates in a set; a Live Player is an Active Player who is not out; an Out Player has been rendered Out; an Entering Player is re-entering play; an Exiting Player is rendered Out and returning to the Queue. The Queue is the marked area beside each Team Bench where players wait to enter or re-enter.

New in 2026: officials apply a fixed hierarchy - (1) safety first, (2) the black-letter rule as written, (3) definitions control, (4) objective indicators over intent (do not infer motive unless a rule requires it). Officials use the most observable standard available and the least-disruptive remedy. Definitions must be observable and binary wherever possible; any rule needing inferred intent must include a warning-then-penalty ladder.

The Playing Court is a rectangle 18 m long by 9 m wide, divided into two equal halves by the Center Line. It is surrounded by free space at least 1 m wide on all sides, with overhead clearance of at least 4 m (6 m where feasible). All court lines are 5 cm wide. An Activation Line runs parallel to and 3 m (10 ft) inside the Center Line in each team's half. For Women's competitions a back line is drawn 1 m inside the rear back line toward the Center Line.

A team's Fair Territory is the area enclosed by (but not including) its back line, the Center Line and the side lines. Each Queue measures 4 m by 1 m, marked beside the bench on the same side, at least 1 m from the side line, with its rear edge aligned to the back line. The Penalty Area (1 m by 1 m) extends from the Queue toward the Center Line for serving infractions. The Team Bench is 5 m by 1 m, at least 4 m from the Center Line. Boundary Lines are drawn outside the court so as not to consume Fair Territory; the lines themselves are out of bounds.

Foam Dodgeball is played with 6 balls approved by the WDBF. Each ball is polyurethane (PU) coated foam, spherical, 17.8 cm (7 in) in diameter, weighing 134-146 g (4.7-5.1 oz). Players must not compress, pinch or distort a ball in a way that could damage it or materially alter its flight; enforcement escalates from a verbal warning to a Team Yellow Card on repetition.

A team may roster a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 12 players at the start of each match. Up to 6 Active Players per team participate in a set; a set started with fewer than 6 is Short-handed. Active players must remain within and around their Fair Territory, Queue or Penalty Area. Any rostered player not active at the start of a set must remain on the Team Bench. Each player wears a unique number (0-99) front and back; team captains must be clearly identifiable.

A team may have up to 3 designated Ball Retrievers per set, drawn from inactive or non-players. Retrievers operate outside the Playing Court up to their team's side of the Center Line; they may not touch any boundary line, may not affect a Live Player or ball inside the court, and may not retrieve a ball that has crossed the Center Line. A ball retrieved improperly is forfeited to the opposing team. Violations escalate from a verbal warning to removal from retriever duties for the match.

A match has one or two Head Referees positioned at the Center Line, supported by Corner Referees (boundary, line and ball-status calls), a Scorekeeper and a Timekeeper. The Head Referee is the final decision-maker on matters covered by the rules, controls start/restart signals, administers the Opening Rush and Burden, and may issue warnings and penalties. Corner Referees advise but do not administer the start signal, ball activation, Burden countdown, or challenges. Any official may stop play for safety.

A Match consists of two halves of 20 minutes each, tracked by the Half Clock. Halftime is a maximum of 5 minutes, after which teams change sides. The Half Clock starts on the start signal of the first set of the half and stops only for granted timeouts, official suspensions, or the last-minute inter-set pause. After a set ends, teams have up to 30 seconds to reset and line up for the next set; failure escalates from a verbal delay warning to a Team Yellow Card.

Each half contains an indeterminate number of Sets, each up to 3 minutes of regular play tracked by the Set Clock. New in 2026 for foam: sets are time-restricted; if a set is undecided when the Set Clock expires, play transitions to No-Blocking (Rule 9.3) until the set is decided. A set is won when one team has zero Live Players and the opponent has at least one.

Each team is permitted one timeout per half, lasting 60 seconds; only a Head Referee may grant a timeout, and only a Team Leader may request one for their team. The Head Referee determines the moment it takes effect and signals 10 seconds before it ends. During a timeout the Half Clock stops and all balls not in Control remain where they lie. Head Referees may also suspend play at any time for injury, safety, equipment, or administration, stopping all clocks.

Each set win counts as one point. The team with the most points at the end of regulation wins the Match. In Round Robin play a tie may end as a draw per the competition format; in Bracket play a tie is resolved by a Tie-Breaking Set (Rule 9.4). A set is won when one team is fully eliminated (zero Live Players) while the opponent retains at least one Live Player.

A forfeited match ends immediately as a Win by Forfeit for the non-offending team; a forfeited set is awarded to the non-offending team. New in 2026: for standings and tiebreakers only, forfeits use a standardized Forfeit Standings Score on a 12-point scale (this does not cap how many sets a match may contain). A pre-match no-show is recorded 12-0. After play begins, completed sets stand; if combined set wins are fewer than 12 the score becomes 12-B (B = the forfeiting team's set wins).

At the start of each set, the 6 balls are placed on the Center Line - 3 balls on each side, between the side line and the second outermost ball marking. At the start signal each starting player must have at least one foot on the Back Line and the other foot on the playing surface entirely inside the boundary lines; no part of either foot may be outside the boundary lines. Officials call "Line up", confirm "Ready" for each team, then give the start signal within 2 seconds.

On the start signal all players become Live and rush for the balls. During the Opening Rush each team has 3 designated balls (the three on its right when facing the Center Line); a team may retrieve only its own designated balls until all three are activated, after which it may take the opponent's designated balls. Players may touch or cross the Center Line only during the Opening Rush. A retrieved ball becomes Live only once it fully crosses that team's Activation Line (3 m inside the Center Line); before activation it cannot put a player Out or be caught.

A false start occurs if a player's remaining foot loses contact with the Back Line after an official has confirmed a team "Ready" but before the start signal. The first false start in a half draws a warning; after a warning, each subsequent false start by that team causes the offending player to start the set in the Queue, treated as an Out Player until they legally re-enter on a catch. Warnings reset at the start of each half (overtime continues the second half).

Only Live Players may throw, using one or two hands. A throw occurs the moment the ball fully leaves the hand. A Valid Attempt is a genuine, observable effort to release the ball toward an opposing Live Player along a reasonable throwing lane. An Invalid Attempt - throwing into empty space, deliberate discards/drops/rolls, or repeated low-effort lobs that do not threaten an opponent - is treated as Burden manipulation. Invalid attempts escalate: verbal warning, then the offending player is rendered Out, then play is stopped with balls forfeited and a Team Yellow Card.

Burden is a timed anti-stalling requirement assigned to one team at a time by the first applicable condition: the team holding a majority of balls in play; else (if balls are split evenly) the team with more Live Players; else the team that did not throw most recently; else the leading team; else the team that won the last set. The burdened team has 10 seconds to make a Valid Attempt. After 5 seconds without one, officials begin an audible 5-second countdown. If the count expires the team forfeits all balls in its Control to the opponent, players line up on the Back Line, and play resumes on the start signal with all balls Live (no Opening Rush).

A player is Out when a Live Ball contacts any part of their body (including hair), uniform or equipment and that ball then becomes Dead by contacting a Dead Object. Headgear is treated as part of the player's body - a hit to the head is a normal hit (there is no separate headshot rule in foam). A player is also Out if they contact a boundary line or the surface outside their Fair Territory, cross the Center Line, or use a ball to brace themselves from going out of bounds. A Trap (ball hitting the player and the floor simultaneously) is not a catch: the ball is Dead and the player is Out.

A Live Player may use one or more balls in their Control to block an incoming Live Ball. A blocked thrown ball remains Live and may still be caught; it becomes Dead only when it later contacts a Dead Object or is validly caught. A disarming event occurs when a block knocks the blocking ball free; the disarmed ball remains Live and may be caught by anyone. If a teammate regains Control before the disarmed ball contacts a Dead Object, the blocking team is not penalized; otherwise the blocking player is Out.

A Live Ball may be caught only by an opposing Live Player. A catch is complete when the catcher has Control and establishes at least one point of contact inbounds within their Fair Territory; control may begin airborne. A valid catch renders the thrower Out and the caught ball becomes Dead. Using the uniform to trap or cradle the ball voids the catch. On a valid catch the catching team returns one player (an Entering Player) in the order players were rendered Out - the front of the Queue first - re-entering over the Back Line and becoming Live on first inbounds contact.

An Exiting Player must relinquish any balls (Possession stays with their team), leave their Fair Territory by the nearest boundary line, and go directly to the end of the Queue behind earlier-out players, without materially impacting play. An Entering Player must step in over the Back Line and may not be hit, hit an opponent, catch, block, or touch a ball until Live (first inbounds contact); touching a ball early renders them Out. An Entering Player who willfully delays (about 5 seconds) is rendered Out.

When two opposing Live Players throw and both are hit, both are Out (Simultaneous Play). If a simultaneous elimination leaves zero Live Players on both teams, the outcome is a Wash: no point is awarded, the elimination is nullified (those players remain Live), no Ball Reset occurs, possession is not flipped, and the same set continues on the official's signal. The set ends only when one team is eliminated while the other retains a Live Player.

New 2026 endgame administration replaces the old sudden-death model. If a set ends with 1:00 or less on the Half Clock, the Half Clock pauses until the next set's start. If a set ends with 0:05 or less remaining, the next set begins immediately in No-Blocking. If the Half Clock reaches 0:00 while a set is in progress, the set continues; at the next Lull officials distribute 3 balls per side, declare No-Blocking, and resume - the set then plays to a decision with no interruption.

Once No-Blocking is declared, any ball in a Live Player's Control is treated as an extension of their body: if an opponent's thrown Live Ball contacts a ball in the player's Control, it counts the same as hitting the player. The thrown ball remains Live and may be saved by a catch by any teammate (including the blocker); if it is caught the thrower is Out and re-entry applies. If it becomes Dead first, the blocking player is Out.

In Bracket play, a match tied at the end of regulation is decided by a Tie-Breaking Set. Changed in 2026 for foam: it is now up to 3 minutes (formerly 4), after which No-Blocking is declared at the next Lull and stays in effect for the remainder of the set. The team that wins the Tie-Breaking Set wins the Match.

A Player Yellow Card sends the player to the Penalty Area for 3 minutes of active match time (clock-running time); a player may receive only one Player Yellow per match - any further yellow-card offense becomes a Player Red. A Team Yellow Card is a team-level sanction: if issued during a set the team forfeits the current set immediately; if issued between sets it forfeits the next set. Cards are issued for unsporting conduct, delay, ball-integrity or invalid-attempt escalation, and similar offenses, generally after a warning.

A Player Red Card ejects the player immediately; the team plays short-handed for the rest of the match and the player is suspended for the team's next 2 matches (with possible further sanction). A Team Red Card - issued only for severe misconduct such as fighting, attempted assault, discriminatory abuse, leaving the bench to engage, repeated refusal to comply, or any threat to safety - results in immediate Match forfeiture.

Each team is permitted up to 2 unsuccessful challenges per match (a successful challenge does not count). Only a Team Leader may initiate one, and only to correct the incorrect application of a written rule - never a judgment call (whether a player was hit, whether control was established, whether contact was simultaneous, or whether an act was intentional). A challenge must be raised immediately, before the next restart; officials stop play at the next Lull and resolve it before continuing.

Active players for a set are chosen from the roster; non-active rostered players wait on the Team Bench and may enter as active players or Ball Retrievers in the reset between sets. A team may begin a set Short-handed (fewer than 6). There is no free in-play substitution during a live set; mid-set personnel changes occur only through re-entry on catches or under the injury provisions.

If a player is injured and needs attention, officials stop play immediately and suspend it for treatment. If the injured player cannot continue during a live set, the team may substitute an eligible rostered player who did not start the set; that substitute joins the end of the Queue and re-enters only by normal re-entry, and the injured player may not play for the rest of the match. Under the Blood Rule, a bleeding participant is removed at once and may not return until a later set, after treatment, with no visible blood.