Korfball, invented in 1901 by an Amsterdam schoolmaster Nico Broekhuysen, is a game comparable to netball and basketball with one major exception - the game is designed to be played by mixed teams. It was designed in this way because he wanted a game which could be played by his schoolchildren where both boys and girls were able to compete on an equal footing within the same game.

It is the world's only true mixed team sport with the rules laid down so that both men and women have equal opportunities.

Korfball is a sport played within a rectangular field of play, 40m by 20m. Teams of four female players and four male players try to shoot a ball into a korf (basket). The sport’s main characteristics encompass all-round skills, team play, controlled physical contact and gender co-operation.

Teams of eight players divide into two sections – two male, two female in each section. Playing area consists of two large squares joined along the centre line, each square with a ‘korf’ set in one third from the back line. One section starts the game in attack, the other in defence. Sections swap roles after two goals have been scored.

For more info about korfball in and around the London area, visit the London & District Korfball Association.
For more info about korfball in the UK, visit the British Korfball Association or KorfballNet.
For more info about korfball worldwide, visit the International Korfball Federation.