What is Ultimate?

Ultimate is an exciting, non-contact team sport, played by thousands the world over. So why play?

It’s not football The ball is dead! Frisbee is a great alternative because it is just as athletic, but the game is based on mutual respect. This means no flagrant fouls or trash talk within or outside the field. Sorry! To do a Van Hanegem imitation or a Schwalbe like Robben is so yesterday!

The disc Want to look good at the park next summer? After learning Ultimate, you will be able to throw with confidence and accuracy - be the king of the Vondelpark! Besides, throwing a Frisbee is relaxing fun. You can also discover lots of other discsports, for example: Freestyle, Guts or Discgolf.

Avoiding real work Is your head at the same height as your study book? You have to finish a paper by the end of the weekend but you have no inspiration? Getting out there and running after a plastic disc is an excellent way to kill the stress of studying. Get fit: You don’t have to be Ruud van Nistelrooy to play Ultimate…you can start out barely mobile. All you have to do is be willing to learn and improve and Ultimate will put you in great shape.

International Ultimate is a very international sport. Every year we have some international students that want to play there beloved sport outside their homecountry. Also, in Amsterdam we have two international tournaments. During these tournaments people from all over Europe (or further) gather to play Ultimate for 2-3 days. It’s great fun!

Spirit Ultimate was invented by some high school students that were tired of the negative attitude that surrounded most sports on offer. One important rule of Ultimate is that you play to win…without a win at all costs attitude. The makings for a competitive, but also very fun atmosphere.

Ultimate in Ten Simple Rules

1. The Field
A rectangular shape with endzones at each end. A regulation field is 100 meters by 37 meters, with endzones 18 meters deep.


2. Initiate Play
Each point begins with both teams lining up on the front of their respective endzone line. The defense throws ("pulls") the disc to the offense. A regulation game has seven players per team.

3. Scoring
Each time the offense completes a pass in the defense's endzone, the offense scores a point. Play is initiated after each score.

4. Movement of the Disc
The disc may be advanced in any direction by completing a pass to a teammate. Players may not run with the disc. The person with the disc ("thrower") has ten seconds to throw the disc. The defender guarding the thrower ("marker") counts out the stall count.

5. Change of possession
When a pass in not completed (e.g. out of bounds, drop, block, interception), the defense immediately takes possession of the disc and becomes the offense.

6. Substitutions
Players not in the game may replace players in the game after a score and during an injury timeout.

7. Non-contact
No physical contact is allowed between players. Picks and screens are also prohibited. A foul occurs when contact is made.

8. Fouls
When a player initiates contact on another player a foul occurs. When a foul disrupts possession, the play resumes as if the possession was retained. If the player committing the foul disagrees with the foul call, the play is redone.

9. Self-Refereeing
Players are responsible for their own foul and line calls. Players resolve their own disputes.

10. Spirit of the Game
Ultimate stresses sportsmanship and fair play. Competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of mutual respect between players, adherence to the rules, and the basic joy of play.

Want to know more about the rules? Check out these websites:

- Rules in Dutch stated by the NFB (Dutch Flying Disc Organization)
- Rules stated in English stated by the WFDF (World Flying Disc Federation)