Teams

• Each team has 3–5 players: three on the court and 1–2 substitutes.
• A game must start with three players on the court.
• All players must play in at least one of the first two games.

Start of the game

• A coin flip decides who gets the first possession. The winner of the coin flip chooses: the ball at the start of the game, or at the start of a possible overtime.

Scoring

• A basket inside the arc: 1 point.
• A basket behind the arc: 2 points.
• A free throw: 1 point.

Playing time and winner

• A game lasts 15 minutes, or until a team reaches 15 points – whichever comes first.
• Semi-finals and finals: 20 minutes, or until a team reaches 21 points. (The points limit applies to regular playing time only, not to overtime.)
• In the semi-finals and finals, the clock stops in the last 2 minutes on free throws, out of bounds and made baskets. It starts again once the ball is in play.
• A tie at the end of playing time goes to overtime: the first team to be 2 points ahead wins.
• A team that is not on the court with three players ready at the scheduled start time loses by forfeit (w–0).
• A team that leaves the court before the end, or has no players left because of injury or disqualification, loses by default. The winning team can keep its score or take the forfeit; the defaulting team's score is set to 0.

Fouls and free throws

• A team is in the penalty situation after 7 team fouls.
• A foul on a shot inside the arc: 1 free throw. A foul on a shot behind the arc: 2 free throws.
• A foul on a shot that goes in: 1 extra free throw.
• After the last free throw of an unsportsmanlike or technical foul, the team keeps possession; play continues with a check-ball behind the arc at the top of the court.

How the ball is played

• After a made basket or last free throw, the ball is checked at the top of the three-point line by the defending team. The attacking team must pass the ball in (no dribble or shot) within 5 seconds.
• After a missed shot or last free throw: if the attacking team gets the rebound, it can shoot again straight away. If the defending team gets the rebound or a steal, it must take the ball behind the arc first (pass or dribble).
• After any dead ball, play starts with a check-ball between the two teams behind the arc at the top of the court.
• A player is behind the arc when both feet are behind it.
• A jump ball goes to the defending team.

Shot clock and stalling

• A team must take a shot within 15 seconds. The referee counts down the last 5 seconds with a hand.
• Stalling, or not trying to score, is a violation.

Substitutions

• Substitutions can be made when the ball is dead, before the check-ball. The substitute enters after their teammate steps off the court and touches them, behind the end line opposite the basket. No referee action is needed.

Disqualification

• A player with two unsportsmanlike fouls is disqualified from the game by the referees, and from the event by the organisers.
• The organisers will also disqualify players for violence, verbal or physical aggression, interfering with game results, and dunking.

The tournament

• Juniors (8 teams): two groups of four; everyone plays everyone in their group (3 games). Then crossover games: 1st of group A v 1st of group B, 2nd v 2nd, 3rd v 3rd, 4th v 4th. The winner of crossover 1 is seed 1, its loser seed 2; crossover 2 gives seeds 3 and 4, and so on. All eight teams play the Elite 8, then the Final Four and the Final.
• Women (8 teams): straight to the quarterfinals (seed 1 v 8, 4 v 5, 2 v 7, 3 v 6), then the Final Four and the Final. The organisers set the seeds.
• Open Men (24 teams): eight groups of three; everyone plays everyone in their group (2 games). The top two of each group go to the Sweet 16, where group winners play a runner-up from another group. Then the Elite 8, the Final Four and the Final.
• Ranking in a group: most wins, then the result between the tied teams, then point difference, then points scored.
• Your games, times and courts are in the timetable on this page – pick your team at the top to see them. Standings and the knockout bracket update live after every game.