Handball

A sport that plays like a fast, physical hybrid of basketball and soccer — except you score using your hands, on a goal that looks a lot more like soccer's.

Cheat Sheet

Team handball is a fast-paced Olympic sport in which two teams of seven players each try to throw a ball into the opposing team's goal, using their hands rather than their feet.
The sport is especially popular across Europe, with countries including France, Germany, Denmark, and Norway among its most dominant national teams.
Matches are played on a court roughly the size of a basketball court, with games consisting of two 30-minute halves at the senior level.
Players can take up to three steps while holding the ball before needing to dribble, pass, or shoot, a rule that shapes the sport's fast, fluid style of play.
Only the goalkeeper is permitted inside the goal area itself, a marked zone close to the goal that outfield players must shoot from outside of or while airborne.
Handball is not to be confused with the very different sport also called "handball" played in walled courts, most notably in the US and Ireland, which involves striking a small ball against a wall.

The 60-Second Version

Team handball is a fast-paced Olympic sport in which two teams of seven players each try to throw a ball into the opposing team's goal, using their hands rather than their feet. The sport is especially popular across Europe, with countries including France, Germany, Denmark, and Norway among its most dominant national teams. Matches are played on a court roughly the size of a basketball court, with games consisting of two 30-minute halves at the senior level. Players can take up to three steps while holding the ball before needing to dribble, pass, or shoot, a rule that shapes the sport's fast, fluid style of play. Only the goalkeeper is permitted inside the goal area itself, a marked zone close to the goal that outfield players must shoot from outside of or while airborne. Handball is not to be confused with the very different sport also called "handball" played in walled courts, most notably in the US and Ireland, which involves striking a small ball against a wall.

The Long Version

A European Powerhouse Sport

While relatively under-the-radar in some parts of the world, team handball enjoys major popularity and a passionate following across much of Europe, where countries including France, Germany, Denmark, and Norway have historically dominated top international competition, including the Olympics and World Championships.

Fast Movement Governed by the Three-Step Rule

Handball's distinctive fast, fluid style of play is significantly shaped by its three-step rule, allowing a player holding the ball to take up to three steps before needing to dribble, pass, or shoot, encouraging quick decision-making and constant motion rather than the more static holding patterns seen in some other team sports.

Guarding the Goal Area

A key structural feature of handball is the goal area, a marked zone close to each goal that only the goalkeeper is permitted to stand inside, forcing outfield players to shoot from outside that zone or while airborne, having jumped into the restricted area momentarily as part of a shot attempt, a rule that produces much of the sport's distinctive aerial shooting style.

Same Name, Completely Different Sport

Team handball should not be confused with the entirely different sport also commonly called "handball," played in enclosed walled courts, particularly popular in the US and Ireland, in which players strike a small ball against a wall using their hands, an entirely separate sport sharing essentially nothing beyond its name and the basic use of hands rather than a bat or racket.

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Glossary

Goal area: A marked zone close to the goal that only the goalkeeper is permitted to stand inside.
Three-step rule: The rule allowing a handball player to take up to three steps while holding the ball before dribbling, passing, or shooting.
Pivot: An offensive position in handball, similar in role to a basketball center, positioned near the opposing goal area.
Seven-meter throw: A free throw awarded from seven meters out, roughly equivalent to a penalty kick in soccer, for certain fouls.
IHF (International Handball Federation): The global governing body overseeing international team handball competition.