Quidditch is a mixed-gender contact sport often described as a combination of rugby, dodgeball, and handball.

 

Each side has seven players: the keeper, three chasers, two beaters, and a seeker.

 

The keeper and chasers play using the QUAFFLE, a slightly deflated volleyball, which they attempt to put through one of their opponents' three hoops while defending their own; a hoop is worth 10 points.

 

The beaters use BLUDGERS (slightly deflated dodgeballs), which they throw at other players to knock them off their brooms; a player hit by a bludger must dismount their broom and return to their hoops to re-enter play.

 

Oh, that's right. Brooms. Most teams use wooden or PVC brooms, which players must keep between their legs at all times during gameplay. If you're off your broom, you're out of play and must remount at your hoops.

 

The seekers are introduced after 18 minutes and must catch the GOLDEN SNITCH, which takes the form of a tennis ball in a sock down the back of the shorts of the SNITCH (who is a person). Catching the snitch awards 30 points and ends the game.

 

Quidditch is a high-intensity game, so rolling subs are used. The maximum squad size is 21. A strict GENDER RULE is in effect: of the starting six players on a team, at least two must identify with a gender different to that of the other four players. Quidditch is strongly committed to supporting not just female players but also players who do not identify as a binary male/female gender; it's the most inclusive sport in the world, and anyone who might feel unwelcome in other sporting environments will find nothing but acceptance and equal treatment in quidditch.