Positions, scoring, fouls, key terms and junior game durations — the same rules reference built into the Squaddie app.
Fast-paced, physical swimming sport with standardized international foundation and country-specific rules profiles.
Built on World Aquatics international regulations as the shared foundation, with dedicated rules profiles for New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States (USAWP club, NFHS high school, NCAA college), plus modified junior formats like Flippa Ball and Splashball.
Water polo is a fast-paced, physical team sport played in the water. Teams attack the opposition goal, defend their own goal and use passing, movement, swimming and tactical positioning to create scoring opportunities. Squaddie supports water polo across New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, with international rules based on World Aquatics. National governing bodies, school associations and individual competitions may apply additional rules, particularly for junior age groups. Coaches can select their country, competition type and age group to configure match formats, player positions, substitutions and other coaching settings appropriate to their competition.
7 per side (6 field + 1 goalkeeper)
Players in water
4 × 5 to 8 min periods (by grade)
Match format
25m–30m × 20m (configurable)
Pool size
30s per possession (20s resets)
Shot clock
| Country / Region | Governing Bodies | Key Variations & Focus |
|---|---|---|
| United States | USA Water Polo (USAWP), NFHS, NCAA | Club/Junior Olympics (10U/12U/14U), High School NFHS (4x7m), College NCAA (4x8m). August 1 age cutoff. |
| New Zealand | Water Polo New Zealand (WPNZ) | Secondary Schools, National Club Championships, and Flippa Ball junior shallow-pool formats. Dec 31 age cutoff. |
| Australia | Water Polo Australia (WPA) | National Youth Championships, State leagues, Australian technical rules, and FlippaBall development. |
| United Kingdom | Swim England, Scottish Swimming, Swim Wales, Swim Ulster | Home nation championships, British Water Polo League (BWPL), regional municipal pool adaptations. |
| International | World Aquatics (formerly FINA) | The international baseline: 30s shot clock, 20s reset on corner/exclusion, 6m penalty & direct-shot line. |
Squaddie configures match settings automatically based on the coach’s selected country, competition type, and age group.
Rules are just the start.
Squaddie also gives you Water Polo drills, session plans and full season programmes — free with your first team.