Gym class just got that much more interesting.
Childhood is flooded with games. There's a tendency to describe sport as childlike, coaxing out feelings of glee and anxiety, melancholy, and rage — sentiments that are central to most adolescents' experiences.
Still, some sports are more childlike than others, and which athletic pursuit can claim to have a stronger reputation among the masses of children who flock to gymnasiums across the country than dodgeball?
Dodgeball is as heavenly as it is harrowing, both a blissful outpouring of joy and comfort and a dizzying display of fury and vigor. Soon, it will take center stage on ESPN's "The Ocho," further legitimizing the competition — both for professionals and the millions of amateurs who partake across the globe.
So, just what is the National Dodgeball League? And what edicts does it rely on to craft an enjoyable viewing experience? Here's what you need to know.
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What is the dodgeball?
Founded in 2004, the National Dodgeball League represents the lone professional dodgeball league in the United States. The league has two conferences. American Conference and National Conference. The league has experimented with rule changes throughout its history, looking to speed up the pace of play and foster increased unpredictability atop the glistening hardwood surface.
For the most part, that has worked. The league carries 24 teams — 12 in each conference — and plays all of its regular season matches in one day. Games are less wars of attrition and more bursts of high-intensity activity. They last just five minutes, at which point the heavens open and another matchup takes center stage.
While far from a sporting mainstay, the National Dodgeball League has quietly emerged as a budding force on the sports stage.
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Dodgeball scoring rules
The National Dodgeball League's scoring system is simple: players win points if they hit opposition players or catch their throws. USA Dodgeball uses a tennis-like system in which matches consist of multiple (often five or seven) games.
The National Dodgeball League also employs this approach, with the number of games and time allotted in each game adjusted depending on what best suits fostering a strong viewing experience.
Dodgeball format
There are multiple ways to win a National Dodgeball League match. Some games revolve around eliminating opponents — the first team to send all opposition shooters to the sidelines is declared the winner.
Other matches are timed. When the clock strikes zero, the team with the most remaining players wins.
Then, there are scored affairs. Points are doled out not based on wins and losses but rather the number of players who remain at the end of each fixture.
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Blocking is allowed, but players must retain possession of the ball they used to block in order for an out to be given. Substitutions also must be made before a game starts (excluding injuries). The Rush — a scramble to the middle to collect as many balls as possible — kicks off the contest, while players must bring the ball behind the attack line for a strike to be deemed legitimate.
Players are prohibited from pinching the ball to change its form and pathway. They're also not allowed to stall. Headshots often are illicit, although that's not always the case. Players can also pull off sacrifice flies if they so choose — in those circumstances, an attacker crosses the neutral zone to get a player out but lets go of the ball before breaching into enemy ground.