Tournament Rules & Regulation Guides
Explore official rulebooks, court dimensions, scoring systems, foul penalties, and tournament guidelines for backyard, club, and professional sports.
Official Cornhole Rules (ACA & ACL Standard)
The complete 2026 rulebook featuring interactive court layout blueprints (27ft adult / 12-15ft junior), board & bag dimensions, live cancellation scoring calculator, foul violation guides, and FAQs.
All Sport Rules & Format Guides
Explore scoring, tiebreaker mechanics, and tournament formats.
March Madness
The NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament utilizes a 64-team single-elimination knockout format spanning 6 rounds: Round of 64, Round of 32, Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four, and the National Championship Game. Each game consists of two 20-minute halves (40 minutes total regulation). If tied at the end of regulation, 5-minute overtime periods are played until a winner is determined.
Pickleball
Standard competitive pickleball matches are played Best 2 of 3 games to 11 points (win by 2), or one single game to 15 in the consolidation/losers bracket. Serves must be delivered underhand with paddle contact below the waist, and players must adhere to the two-bounce rule and Non-Volley Zone (kitchen) restrictions.
Soccer
Official soccer knockout matches consist of two 45-minute halves (90 minutes total regulation). In elimination stages where a winner is mandatory, tied matches proceed to 30 minutes of extra time (two 15-minute halves). If still level, the match is decided by a FIFA standard penalty shootout (5 kicks per side, followed by sudden-death kicks).
Cricket
In limited-overs cricket (T20 / ODI / 10-over tape-ball), each team bats for a fixed maximum number of overs. The team scoring the most runs wins. If the chasing team reaches the target before 10 wickets fall, they win by the remaining wickets; otherwise, the defending side wins by runs.
Tennis
Standard tennis matches are played Best 2 of 3 advantage sets (or Best of 5 in Men’s Grand Slams). A set is won by the first player to win 6 games with a 2-game margin. At 6-6, a 7-point tiebreak (win by 2) decides the set. For local weekend tournaments, a 10-point match tiebreak is often played in lieu of a full 3rd set.
Esports
Esports matches are contested as series: Best of 1 (Bo1 for early rounds), Best of 3 (Bo3 for quarterfinals and semifinals), and Best of 5 (Bo5 for Grand Finals). Teams conduct coin tosses or veto phases to ban maps/agents before commencing server play.
Cornhole
Cornhole is played with two boards placed 27 feet apart (front edge to front edge). Teams take turns pitching 4 bags per frame: 3 points for a bag in the hole ("airmail/in the drink") and 1 point for a bag resting on the board. Cancellation scoring is used (e.g., Team A scores 5, Team B scores 2 = Team A earns 3 net points). The first team to reach or exceed 21 points wins.
Beer Pong
Standard beer pong is played 2v2 on an 8-foot table with 10 plastic cups arranged in a triangle on each side. Teams take turns shooting 2 ping-pong balls per turn. Sinking a cup eliminates it. If both teammates make their shots in the same turn ("balls back"), they shoot again. Re-racks are typically allowed at 6 cups and 3 cups.
Darts
In 501 Darts, players start with 501 points and take turns throwing 3 darts each to reduce their score exactly to zero, finishing on a double or the bullseye (double 50). In American Cricket, players race to open/close numbers 15 through 20 and the Bullseye, scoring points on open numbers until opponents close them.
Badminton
Badminton matches use the BWF Rally Point scoring system (Best 2 of 3 games to 21 points). Every rally results in a point regardless of who served. The side winning a rally serves next. At 20-20, the side gaining a 2-point lead wins the game (capped at a maximum of 30 points; 29-29 golden point).
Volleyball
Indoor matches are played Best 2 of 3 (or Best 3 of 5) sets to 25 points (win by 2, no cap). Deciding sets (3rd or 5th set) are played to 15 points (win by 2). Beach volleyball uses 2v2 teams with matches played Best 2 of 3 sets to 21 points (15-point deciding set).
Dodgeball
Standard dodgeball is played 6v6 with 6 balls placed on the centerline for the opening rush. A player is eliminated if struck by a live ball below the neck, or if an opposing player catches a thrown ball in the air (which also allows one eliminated teammate to re-enter). Matches consist of multiple fast-paced games (e.g. Best of 5 or Best of 7 games).
Boxing
Sanctioned boxing tournaments adhere to official Olympic / AIBA (International Boxing Association) and USA Boxing rules. Standard amateur bouts consist of 3 rounds of 3 minutes each for elite male boxers (or 3 rounds of 2 minutes for elite female, youth, and masters divisions), separated by 1-minute corner rest intervals. Bouts are scored by 5 ringside judges using the standard 10-Point Must System, where points are awarded based on clean power punches landed with the knuckle area, effective offensive aggressiveness, ring generalship, and defensive evasion. A bout concludes via Unanimous Decision (UD), Split Decision (SD), Knockout (KO), Technical Knockout (TKO / Referee Stopped Contest - RSC), Disqualification (DQ), or Walkover (WO).
Kabaddi
Standard International Kabaddi Federation (IKF) and PKL matches consist of two 20-minute halves (40 minutes total regulation) with a 5-minute halftime break. Two teams of 7 players compete on a 13m x 10m EVA foam mat. A raider enters the opponent court chanting "Kabaddi" with a 30-second raid clock, attempting to tag defenders and return across the midline. Each tagged defender is out (+1 touch point), while tackling a raider awards +1 tackle point (or +2 points for a Super Tackle with 3 or fewer defenders). Inflicting an All-Out (Lona) scores +2 bonus points and revives all 7 teammates.