What is Roll Ball?
Maybe do you already know roller soccer and roller basketball, here is Roll Ball! A sport mixing skating and handball with a basket ball. The practice saw the light in India around 2002-2003. Discovery...
Par alfathor

Roll Ball: A sports hybridization
Roll Ball saw the light at the instigation of Raju R. Dabhade of the Maharashtra Education Society’s Bal Shikshan Mandir English Medium School inKothrud, Pune, India. This game is an hybridization of handball and basketball on skates.
Today, the practice is managed by the IRBF (International Roll Ball Federation), the president of which is Penninah Aligaweesa Kabenge.
Equipment
Skates
Inline or quad skates to your liking. Also works on ice.
Protective
Helmet and knee pads for all players, and a chest protector for the goal keepers.
Goal Post
- For U11 and U14 categories, goal posts are 1.75-m high, 2-m wide, with a 1-m deep nylon net.
- For U17 and senior categories, goal posts are 2.25 m high, 2.5 m wide and 1 m deep.
Ball
It is an actual basketball…
- For U11 and U14 categories, a Roll Ball basketball of size 5 with 450 to 500 gms of pressure, and a circumference of 60 to 70 cm.
- For the U17 and seniors, the ball has a 570 to 650 gms pressure, for a circumference of 75 to 78 cm.
Other equipment
- A timer that can be seen by both players and spectators.
- A scoreboard.
- A sound system to announce the game phases (start and end, penalties, break, extra time…)
- A 35×25 mm red card to indicate when a team cumulates 5 penalties.
- A game sheet, the content of which won’t be detailed here.
Liens utiles
Vidéo d’une rencontre entre UP et le Rajasthan
Relecture : Iggnorance
Photos : IRBF
Playing area
- May be concrete, woood, ice or clay — any hard surface.
- The area is a rectangle on a hard surface, free from any obstacle.
- The maximum dimensions are 28×15 m, and the minimum dimensions 25×12 m for U11 and U14 categories.
- It has to be between 40×20 m and 35×15 m for U17 and senior categories.
- The lines are 5 cm wide and are all drawn in the same color. They are not part of the playing area.
Basic rules
Two teams of 12 players face each other. For each team, there are 6 players on the field and 6 on the bench. The aim of the game is to score the maximum goals in the regulation game time.
The ball can be held with one or two hands, even during passes to other players. The players must make it bounce on the ground.
The ball can be passed, thrown, hit or dribbled in any direction. Backward passes are allowed.
A player may hit the ball in any direction with open hand.
The ball must cross the goal line completely for the goal to be validated.
After a goal, the game starts from the right corner.
In case of a tie, two extra times of 5 minutes are added with a 2-min break in-between.
Just like in soccer, dangerous actions are sanctioned, first by a yellow card, then by a red card.
It is forbidden to:
- Run with the ball without dribbling
- Skate with the ball without dribbling
- Deliberately hit or block the ball with any part of the leg
- Accidentally touch the ball with the foot or the leg
Game times according to categories:
- U11: 7-2-7 min
- U14: 10-2-10 min
- U17: 15-5-15 min
- Senior: 25-10-25 min
International competitions
Two world cups have already taken place. The last one was held in Kenya in 2013, with 30 nations.
The organization announces 50 nations in the running for the 2015 edition, that will take place in the cradle of the discipline, in Pune, India.
- April 16-22, 2011: Pune, India
- 2013: Kenya
- 2015: Pune, India
The Afro-Asian Roll Ball Championship
There is also a competition gathering both Asian and African continents.
The last edition took place from November 27 to 30, 2014 in Uganda, under the aegis of Uganda Roll Ball Association, at the MTN Arena Lugogo Kampala, a big sports hall.
Roll Ball practicing countries
- Bangladesh
- Belgium
- Belorussia
- China
- Denmark
- Egypt
- Germany
- Great-Britain
- Guyana
- Hong Kong
- India
- Iran
- Ireland
- Japan
- Kenya
- Koweit
- Malaysia
- Nepal
- Netherlands
- Pakistan
- Romania
- Singapore
- Sweden
- Tanzania
- Uganda
- United Arab Emirates
- USA
- Uzbekistan
Links
Translation: Chloe Seyres
Photos : IRBF