Para-wheelchair dodgeball gets official rules, World Cup plans announced

Para-wheelchair dodgeball kept the familiar logic of dodgeball intact, but the official rules reshaped the court, roster and contact rules around wheelchair movement. The World Dodgeball Association described it as an officially recognised discipline played around the world, and it paired that status with plans for an inaugural Para Wheelchair World Cup.

The published rule set fixes the format at two teams of four players on court, with up to four substitutes. Matches use three balls on a 15-metre by 6-metre court, last 30 minutes and are split into two 15-minute halves, with sets lasting up to three minutes. That structure keeps the game recognizable to dodgeball players, but it gives para-wheelchair competition its own dimensions and clock.

The mechanics are where the adaptation is clearest. A direct hit eliminates a player, and a ball that strikes a wheelchair before hitting the player without bouncing also counts as an out. Catching still works the traditional way, with the thrower eliminated and one teammate returned to the match. Blocking is allowed too, and the rules include a specific safety detail for the blocking player’s fingers, a reminder that the code was built around hand contact and wheelchair movement rather than copied wholesale from the standing game.

World Dodgeball has said it works with regional governing bodies around the world to grow the sport through grassroots, senior teams and events. Its federation page lists national federations across Africa, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe, underlining that para-wheelchair dodgeball sits inside a wider international structure rather than as a one-off exhibition format. The organization has also said it wants dodgeball to stand as a model participatory sport at every level of inclusion, from grassroots to professional.

The push toward a global para-wheelchair stage has been on the table for years. In April 2018, World Dodgeball said it would release more news in August 2018 about the inaugural Para Wheelchair World Cup, which was planned for 2020. British Dodgeball’s inclusive activity guidance makes the same case from the grassroots side, saying coaches, teachers and leaders should deliver dodgeball so participants with disabilities or additional needs feel welcome, included and challenged.