IQA Proposes Changes to Rule Book, Including Gender and Tackling Rules

It was recently announced that the International Quidditch Association (IQA) had started the process of updating its rule book. Part of the process, which happens every two years, is that proposals for changes created by the Rules Team are presented publicly before being forwarded to the Rules Committee.

So let’s take a look at some of the proposed changes to the rules.

Credit: Miguel Esparza and Tom Powers

The first of the suggested changes is regarding equipment. It’s proposed that shin guards will not have to pass the knock test anymore, meaning that hard plastic shin guards will be allowed. Metal cleats on shoes would also be allowed in some cases. However, they must not be sharp and must be in the proper shape.

Rule changes to the pitch regulations center on the team bench. It’s proposed that event directors can extend the team bench to up to 7 meters (23 feet) if there is space to do so. According to the current IQA rule book, the substitute area should be 2.75 (9 feet) meters with another 2.75 meters (9 feet) for the team bench, totaling 5.5 meters (18 feet). Expanding these areas would give Muggle quidditch players more space for their extra equipment, bags, and other items.

There are also some proposed changes to the rules of play. One change is regarding the reset rule. If the player with the quaffle goes back toward their own hoops and passes both the midfield line and their keeper zone line, it would become double reset and result in a quaffle turnover.

There is also a suggested rule about situations when the player holding the quaffle is grounded or multiple players are holding the quaffle and one of them is grounded. In these situations, the head referee would start counting to 10 seconds, and if nothing changes after 10 seconds, the quaffle would be declared stalled. The quaffle would be laid on the nearest boundary point, and the defensive team would take the ball to begin play.

Another proposed change to play is to extend the seeker floor time from 18 minutes to 20 minutes. This would mean the snitch runner would enter on the pitch at the 19th minute and the seekers at the 20th minute.

Credit: Miguel Esparza and Tom Powers

Contact and tackling between players would also be different under the proposed rules. The first change is that players could use two arms during wrapping an opponent or tackling them. Tackles could also happen from behind if a player stops in the motion and has both feet on the ground.

There is a proposed change to the breaks in play if the heat index is predicted to be at or above 32°C (90°F). In this case, a break should take place at 12 minutes into the game and every 5 minutes after the seeker floor expires. This rule could complicate matches in the summer.

Credit: Ajantha Abey Quidditch Photography

Finally, a major change to the gender rule is proposed. This proposed change will need 75% backing from the Rules Committee to pass. Currently, it is mandatory that no more than four players of the same gender be on the pitch at any point in the game. The proposed gender rule specifies that during the seeker floor and overtime, whenever the snitch and seekers aren’t on the pitch, teams may not have more than three players of the same gender on the pitch at the same time.

All proposed changes will be put to the Rules Committee before any changes are made to the next IQA rule book.