Hurling (GAA) — Official Rules

Hurling is contested by two teams of 15 players each (one goalkeeper and 14 outfield players) on a large grass pitch. Each player uses a wooden stick called a hurley (camán) to strike a small ball called a sliotar. The aim is to score more than the opponent by sending the sliotar between the opponents' posts: over the crossbar for a point or under the crossbar into the net for a goal. The ball may be struck with the hurley on the ground or in the air, caught, hand-passed, kicked, or carried balanced on the hurley, but it may not be thrown nor lifted directly off the ground with the hand.

A goal is worth 3 points and a point is worth 1 point. A score is written in the format goals-points (for example 1-14), and a team's total is calculated as (goals × 3) + points. Thus a score of 1-14 equals 17 points. A goal is registered when the sliotar passes wholly over the goal line between the posts and under the crossbar; a point is registered when it passes wholly over the crossbar between the posts.

The team with the higher total score (goals × 3 plus points) at the end of normal time is the winner. If the scores are level, the match may be drawn, replayed, or decided by extra time of two halves of 10 minutes each as prescribed by the competition rules. Some competitions provide for a further winner-on-the-day procedure (additional extra time or a free-taking competition) where a result is required on the day.

A hurling match is played in two halves with a half-time interval. At senior inter-county level each half is 35 minutes (a 70-minute match). At club and most underage levels each half is 30 minutes (a 60-minute match), unless the competition rules specify otherwise. The referee adds time at the end of each half for stoppages. Teams change ends at half-time.

Play is started and restarted after each half by a throw-in: the referee throws the sliotar in between two opposing players from each team (the midfielders), positioned between the two 65-metre lines. Play also restarts with a throw-in after certain stoppages where no other restart applies, and after a simultaneous infringement by both teams.

Each team may make a maximum of 5 substitutions during normal time, with a further 3 substitutions permitted in extra time. A panel typically comprises the 15 starters plus named substitutes. A player who has been substituted may not return to the field except as a permitted blood substitute or temporary (sin-bin) replacement where those provisions apply.

The pitch is rectangular, 130 to 145 metres long and 80 to 90 metres wide. Across each half of the pitch, lines are marked parallel to the end line at 13 metres, 20 metres and 65 metres from it, and a line is marked across the centre. The small rectangle in front of each goal measures 14 metres wide by 4.5 metres deep, and the large rectangle (parallelogram) measures 19 metres wide by 13 metres deep. A penalty/free taken in front of goal is referenced to these lines and rectangles.

At each end stand two goalposts placed 6.5 metres apart, joined by a crossbar 2.5 metres above the ground, with the posts rising well above the crossbar to form an H. A net is attached to the goalposts and crossbar to receive the sliotar for a goal. The sliotar passing over the crossbar between the posts scores a point; passing under the crossbar into the net scores a goal.

The sliotar is a small hard ball with a cork core and a leather (or approved synthetic) cover. Its diameter, not including the rim, shall be between 69 mm and 72 mm, and its mass between 110 and 116 grams. The raised rim (rib) shall be between 1.8 mm and 2.6 mm in height. From 1 January 2024, all hurling games at Minor (U17) level and above must use a Fluorescent Yellow / High-Vis sliotar from a GAA Sliotar Licensee.

The hurley is a curved wooden stick, traditionally made of ash, with a flat blade (the bas) at the striking end used to lift, strike and control the sliotar. There is no fixed maximum length in the rules; players select a hurley sized to their height and play. Metal bands or other unsafe modifications to the bas are prohibited.

Every player must wear a helmet with a faceguard that meets the required safety standard (IS 355 / approved standard), at all levels and ages. The helmet must not be modified from its original manufactured state. A player who removes or loses the helmet must not continue to play until it is replaced, and a referee may caution or penalise non-compliance.

Each team fields 15 players: a goalkeeper plus 14 outfield players arranged in lines of backs, midfielders and forwards. The goalkeeper is the only player who may handle the ball more freely within the small rectangle when defending and is the only defender permitted to guard the goal during a penalty.

A match is controlled by a referee, assisted by two linesmen, a sideline (fourth) official, and four umpires (two at each goal). The referee is the sole timekeeper and decides on scores, fouls and discipline. Umpires signal scores (a white flag for a point, a green flag for a goal) and wides; linesmen indicate which team takes a sideline cut and which way the ball crossed the line.

A player may strike the sliotar with the hurley on the ground or in the air, catch it in the hand, hand-pass it (a clear striking action with the open hand, not a throw), kick it, and run with it balanced or bouncing on the hurley (soloing). The ball may be lifted off the ground only with the hurley (the player may then catch the rising ball in the hand).

A player may carry the ball in the hand for a maximum of four consecutive steps. To keep possession longer the player must bounce or balance the ball on the hurley (the ball may not be caught more than twice in a row when soloing without striking or releasing it). Throwing the ball, carrying it for more than four steps, or picking it directly off the ground with the hand are fouls punished by a free puck to the opposing team.

Common fouls include over-carrying (more than four steps), throwing the ball, handling the ball on the ground, picking the ball off the ground by hand, a third consecutive catch when soloing, and physical fouls such as tripping, pushing in the back, charging dangerously, pulling an opponent, holding, and dangerous use of the hurley. The standard punishment is a free puck to the opposing team from where the foul occurred.

A free puck is taken from the ground (by lift-and-strike) or struck from the hand from the place where the foul occurred (the referee may advance it for certain offences). Opponents must stand at least 13 metres from the ball until it is struck. A free puck may be struck directly over the bar or into the net to score. If the defending team fouls again before the free is taken, the referee may move the free forward.

After a score or after the ball is put wide by the attacking team, play restarts with a puck-out taken by the goalkeeper from inside the small rectangle. All players (other than the goalkeeper) must be outside the 20-metre line until the ball is struck, and the sliotar must travel at least 13 metres before it is played by a team-mate of the striker. The puck-out is taken by striking the ball from the hand or off the ground.

When the ball crosses a sideline, play restarts with a sideline cut awarded to the team that did not put it out. The cut is struck off the ground from where the ball crossed the line; opponents must be at least 13 metres away. A sideline cut may be struck directly over the bar for a point, but may not be scored as a goal directly without another player touching the ball first.

When a defending player puts the ball wide over his own end line (outside the posts), or last touches a ball that goes wide off a defender, the attacking team is awarded a 65-metre puck (the 65), taken from the 65-metre line opposite where the ball crossed. It is struck from the ground by lift-and-strike, with opponents at least 13 metres away, and may be scored directly over the bar for a point.

A penalty puck is awarded for a cynical or serious foul by a defender inside the large rectangle (parallelogram) that denies a clear scoring chance. The penalty is taken by lift-and-strike, with the sliotar struck on or behind the 20-metre line. Since the 2015 safety change, only the goalkeeper may defend the goal (standing on the goal line); all other players must remain outside the 20-metre line and the arc until the ball is struck. A penalty may be scored as a goal or a point.

Adult hurling uses a two-card system: a player is cautioned with a yellow card for offences such as reckless fouling, persistent fouling, or dissent, and is sent off with a red card for serious foul play, striking, dangerous play, or violent conduct. A second yellow card in the same match results in a red card and the player being dismissed for the remainder of the game. A dismissed player may not be replaced and the team plays on with 14. There is no black card and no general sin bin in adult hurling (other than the under-age dissent provision in Article 11.2).

Under the rules passed at Congress on 28 February 2026 and effective from 28 March 2026, when a player dissents (argues with or protests a referee's decision), the already-awarded free is advanced 30 metres towards the offending team's goal — up from the previous 13 metres — up to a maximum of the opponents' 20-metre line. Continued dissent after the advancement is punished by a yellow card.

At Under-18 and younger grades, a player guilty of dissent is not only penalised by advancing the free: the player is also black-carded and sin-binned for 10 minutes and may be temporarily replaced by a substitute while in the sin bin, returning at the end of the 10 minutes. This sin-bin provision is the only sin bin in hurling and applies only to these under-age grades.

If team management or sideline personnel challenge a referee's authority, use abusive or provocative language, behave disruptively, or interfere with match officials, a penalty applies. Where the misconduct occurs during play, the opposing team is awarded a free puck from the offending team's 20-metre line, directly in front of goal. Where it occurs before the match or at half-time, play is restarted with the same free.

Hurling has no team timeouts and no coach's challenge. Play is continuous and stops only for scores, fouls, the ball going out of play, injuries, or at the referee's discretion. The referee is the sole arbiter of time and adds stoppage time at the end of each half. Teams have no mechanism to pause play or to formally challenge a refereeing decision during the match.

At designated major venues (such as Croke Park), an electronic Hawk-Eye score-detection system assists the umpires in deciding whether a shot has passed over the crossbar and between the posts for a point. High-speed cameras track the sliotar and create virtual extensions of the posts; on a referee's referral the decision (POINT or NO SCORE) is shown on the stadium screen within about a second. Hawk-Eye is used only for point/no-point detection at equipped grounds and does not review fouls or other decisions.