Objectives
- To promote sportsmanship, goodwill and unity among players of the game of foosball.
- To teach and learn more about the game.
- To offer rules, methods, and procedures to enhance the sportsmanship of the game so it may be played in an organized, competitive manner.
- To promote business and goodwill of local businesses
House Rules
We began with just a few, but each time we had to explain something during a match, a mental note was made to add it here. True, not all mental notes made the journey but the idea was to keep it simple.- Introduce yourself to your opponent(s) if they don't know your name(s)
- For casual games or when others are waiting to play, a game is won by the first team to score 5 goals
- For some tournaments, we do first to 5 by 2 or first to 8.
- So long as the shooting rod was not spun, all shots that enter the goal, score 1 point. (eg.., there is no slop rule, so *all shots* count equally)
- If the table is open, a coin toss shall determine who has first possession. Winner of the coin toss can take possession or side. (not both)
- If the table is held, the new team gets first drop.
- After a goal is scored, the ball is handed to the other team where it is then hand-placed directly under their 5 line (ok to place it there for them, however the serving team can decide where on the 5 line the ball begins)
- Possession goes to the team who was last scored upon
- Neutral dead balls (e.g., between 3-5 or 5-5) are reset at the center, possession going to the team that last served.
- A dead ball in the goalie area can be touched by that goalie however the ball is dead until it touches another man.
- A ball that leaves the table, as a result of a goalie stop, is reset at that goalie position.
- A ball that strikes the top of the table or advances *over* any bar and then re-enters the playing area is considered a neutral dead ball.
- A dead ball becomes llve when it touches two men on the same rod. a.k.a., "a double-tap"
- A ball may be held on the 5 for no more than 20 seconds.
- A ball that comes to rest on the 5 for more than a few seconds is deemed dead and must be reset by contact with double-tap on that same rod before the ball can be advanced.
- Set shots are permitted on the offensive 3 and for goalies. e.g., Unlike the 5, a ball may come to rest in these areas and remains a live ball.
- One the 5, a ball "dribbled" against the wall more than 2 times becomes a dead ball
- It is legal to shoot from the 5 as long as the ball is live
- When a ball is held on the offensive 3, only the opposing goalie is permitted to move; all other player movement can been deemed a distraction.
- Movement of any kind, with the intent to distract an opponent, is not permitted.
- When defending the 5, the walls must not be intentionally bumped in such a manner as to disturb or cause the movement of the ball or table. (no wall slamming)
- If the rod goes around more then 360 degrees either BEFORE or AFTER contacting the ball, the ball must move away from the rod it is on, either direction forward or back. i.e., If you spin the rod and "whiff" and the ball stays, that would not count as a spin. If you spin the rod, and the ball enters the goal, the point does not count and is considered a neutral dead ball.
- If a player takes one or both hands off of the handles, it is considered a time out and the ball must be restarted by touching two men on that same rod
- A ball may be held on the offensive 3 for no more than 30 seconds. The "shot clock" is reset when the ball contacts any man (forward or back) of the offensive 3.
- One timeout per ball is permitted but may only be called when the ball is held in control of the team calling the timeout.
- A timeout is no more than 60 seconds. The dead ball is restarted from the point where the timeout was called.
- You are allowed one time out per point.
- If a player, while in control of the ball, removes either hand from either handle, the ball shall be immediately considered dead.
- Speaking during a match is limited to within a team. i.e., You are not allowed to talk to an opponent while a ball is in play.
- Any type of communication between team members must not be intended to be heard by the other team. e.g., "Hey Fred, I'll bet you a beer he's going to miss" is not allowed.
- If there are others waiting to play, matches must be limited to first-to-5.
- The winning team may stay on ("hold the table") as long as they continue to win or until they give up the table.
- In league play, the winner is determined by total points scored. Tie-breaker is total wins.
- Shake hands, high-five or any type of "good game gesture" is important as the idea is to always leave wanting to play again :)
