Gateball (Japan): Rules, Court Dimensions & Scoring

What is this game?

Gateball is a team ball sport invented in Memuro, Hokkaido, Japan in 1947 by Eiji Suzuki (who later changed his given name to Kazunobu). Inspired by croquet, he made sticks and balls by hand from whatever materials were available in the lean post-war years, as a game for local children.

Players hit red or white balls with a T-shaped stick through three gates in order, then strike the goal pole in the centre to finish. Two teams of five play a 30-minute game, and the team with more points when time runs out wins.

The strategic core is the touch and the spark: when your ball hits another ball, you pin your ball under your foot and strike it to send the other ball flying. Because the game is all about pushing teammates forward and sending opponents away, it is sometimes called "shogi on the lawn."

From the 1960s gateball spread across Japan as a sport for older people. So many groups with different rules appeared that the Japan Gateball Union (JGU) was founded in 1984 to unify them. The World Gateball Union (WGU) followed in 1985, and according to the JGU the sport has now spread to more than 50 countries and regions.

Figure: The WGU court. The proportions are to scale, but the gates are drawn larger so they are easy to see. The pale band around the edge is the outer field.

Gateball vs ground golf and croquet

Japanese parks host several stick-and-ball games that are easy to mix up. Gateball is a team game scored in points, while ground golf, another Japanese invention, is played like golf: fewest strokes wins. Park golf and mallet golf are close relatives of ground golf.

	Gateball	Ground golf	Croquet (Golf Croquet)
Origin	1947, Memuro, Hokkaido	1982, Tomari village, Tottori (now Yurihama)	Popular in Britain from the 1850s, reportedly arriving from Ireland
Format	Teams of five, 5 vs 5	Each player counts their own strokes	1 vs 1 or 2 vs 2
Goal	Run three gates in order, then hit the goal pole	Hole out in the hole post (a "tomari")	Contest six hoops one at a time
Playing area	15 m × 20 m inner field	Standard course of 8 holes: two each of 50, 30, 25 and 15 m	32.0 m × 25.6 m
How to win	More points when 30 minutes are up	Lowest total strokes; a hole-in-one deducts 3 strokes	Majority of 7, 13 or 19 points

Ground golf figures are from the Japan Ground Golf Association rules. The Croquet article has a fuller croquet comparison.

Equipment & setup

Gateball uses a specific set of gear, but once you have a set, setup is quick. All you really need is a flat, open space and something to mark out the court.

• Stick: a T-shaped tool made of a head and a shaft. You hit the ball with one of the two end-faces of the head
• Balls: a set of ten synthetic-resin balls. Five red balls carry the odd numbers (1, 3, 5, 7, 9) and five white balls the even numbers (2, 4, 6, 8, 10)
• Gates: three U-shaped rod gates, set at fixed positions and in fixed directions
• Goal pole: a rod in the centre of the court. A ball that has cleared the third gate finishes ("agari") by hitting it
• Numbers: each player wears their batting-order number on the chest and back (or the chest only)
• Timer and score: to track the 30 minutes and each player's points

To start, borrow gear from a community centre or senior club and get a feel for the stroke; buy certified equipment once you're hooked (as of April 2025, six manufacturers belonged to the JGU's certified-equipment association). Pick a flat, open lawn or ground where ten balls can roll around safely.

Court and equipment dimensions

The table follows the WGU's Official Gateball Rules 2025 and the JGU's equipment guide. Domestic competitions in Japan follow the JGU rules.

Item	Standard	Tolerance / notes
Inner field (court)	15 m × 20 m rectangle	The inside line around it is 5 cm wide in principle
Outer field	1 m wide around the inner field (in principle)	Set between 50 cm and 1 m
Start area	Outside the fourth line, between 1 m and 3 m from the first corner	A rectangle within the outer field
First gate	4 m from the first corner along the first line, then 2 m in	Passed from the fourth-line side towards the second line
Second gate	12 m from the second corner along the second line, then 2 m in	Passed from the first-line side towards the third line
Third gate	2 m in from the centre of the fourth line	Passed from the third-line side towards the first line
Gate	22 cm inner width, 19 cm high	1 cm (±1 mm) rod, legs vertical
Goal pole	Centre of the court, 20 cm above ground	2 cm (±1 mm) diameter
Ball	7.5 cm diameter, 230 g	Diameter ±0.7 mm; weight ±10 g
Stick	Shaft 50 cm or longer, including the grip	Head 18 to 24 cm long; face 3.5 to 5 cm across
Player number	At least 10 cm high	Chest and back, or chest

A 22 cm gate is almost three balls wide, so gates are far easier to run than croquet hoops; the challenge comes from ten balls crowding a small court.

Players & ages

Format	Players	Notes
Official	5 vs 5 (10 total)	Five players plus up to three substitutes, and one manager
Practice / casual	Smaller sides such as 3 vs 3	Fewer numbered balls, same idea

Gateball is especially popular with older people in Japan, but the JGU points out that an eight-year-old girl and a 93-year-old man can play on the same team, and people with and without disabilities play together too.

Rules

Gateball is a team game about sending your ball through three gates in order and finishing on the centre goal pole. Learn the minimal rules below and your team can play the same afternoon.

How a round works (minimal rules)

1. Split into two teams of five. Each player owns one numbered ball: the Red team takes the odd numbers (1, 3, 5, 7, 9) and the White team the even numbers (2, 4, 6, 8, 10)
2. Play runs in number order from 1 to 10 (so red and white alternate), repeating for the full 30 minutes
3. Your first stroke, the start stroke, is played from the start area and must send the ball through Gate 1. If it misses, the ball is taken off the court and you try again next turn
4. Clear Gate 1 → Gate 2 → Gate 3 in order. Each gate is worth 1 point and earns you one more stroke (a continuous stroke)
5. After all three gates, hit the centre goal pole to finish ("agari") for 2 more points, so one ball can score up to 5 points
6. Touch and spark: hitting another ball with yours is a "touch." You then step on your own ball, set the touched ball against it, and strike your ball so that only the other ball flies off. That is the "spark," and a successful spark earns one more stroke
7. When the 30 minutes are up, the team with more points wins

At first, just focus on clearing the gates in order and finishing on the pole. Once that feels natural, add the touch-and-spark tactics in the standard rules below.

Standard rules (adding skill)

• The stroke: hit the ball with the face of the stick. Keeping the face against the ball and pushing it is a foul. Control of direction and distance matters far more than power
• Sparking with purpose: use the spark to "feed" a teammate's ball into a better spot, or to knock an opponent's ball out of the court. This is the tactical heart of the game
• Out-balls: a ball that leaves the inner field for the outer field becomes an "out-ball," and its next turn starts by playing it back in from there. Hitting a ball on the court with an out-ball stroke is a foul
• Managing turn order: you can only play on your own number, and once called you have 10 seconds to play. Teammates call out the next number to avoid mistakes
• Formation and teamwork: deciding which balls push for gates and which play defence turns the game deeply strategic

Official competition rules

The WGU's Official Gateball Rules 2025 are the international rules used at the World and Asia championships (domestic play in Japan follows the JGU rules). Key points:

• Order and time: players strike in order from 1 to 10. Failing to strike or spark within 10 seconds of being called is a "time-over" foul
• Continuous strokes: one for clearing a gate and one for a successful spark. If one stroke both clears a gate and makes a touch, you spark first and then get two strokes
• A successful spark: the sparked ball ends at least 10 cm from your ball, finishes on the pole, or goes out
• Touch limits: a ball that has not yet cleared Gate 1 cannot make a touch. Touching again a ball you have already sparked in the same turn is a foul
• Perfect game: if a team reaches 25 points (all five players finished), the game ends
• Ties: compare the number of players who finished, then who cleared Gate 3, then Gate 2. If still level, play a Gate 1 shoot-out or record a draw

The first World Gateball Championship was held in Hokkaido in 1986, and since 1994 it has been held every four years.

Scoring examples

Example 1: one player's maximum. The start stroke clears Gate 1 (1 point), then Gate 2 (2), Gate 3 (3), and a finish on the pole (5). If all five teammates finish, the team has 25 points, a perfect game, and play stops.

Example 2: a tie. At the end of 30 minutes, Red and White both have 18 points. Red has two players who finished, White has three, so White wins. If that were level too, the teams would compare how many players had cleared Gate 3.

Example 3: gate and touch together. A ball clears Gate 2 and rolls on to touch another ball. The player sparks first and then plays two more strokes.

Figure: How one ball collects its 5 points. Each green ring is 1 point and the double ring is 2. Normally this takes several turns.

Common fouls and tricky calls

These are treated as fouls under the WGU Official Gateball Rules 2025. After most fouls, the player's turn ends and their ball becomes an out-ball.

• Pushing and double hits: pushing the ball with the face in contact, hitting it twice in one swing, or hitting it with anything other than the face
• Stick touches another ball: if your stick touches a different ball while you strike, it's a foul
• Ball escapes during a spark: if your own ball slips out from under your foot, or you hit only your foot, it's a sparking foul
• Spark under 10 cm: if the sparked ball stops less than 10 cm from your ball, the spark fails and is a foul
• Touching a ball by hand: touching a ball on the court except where the rules allow is a foul
• Clearing a gate: a ball clears a gate when it moves from the front side to the back side and completely crosses the gate line between the legs. A ball that goes through a gate when played as an out-ball does not count

Figure: Touch and spark. The triangle is the player standing on their own ball. A spark succeeds when the other ball ends up at least 10 cm away.

Tips for enjoying the game

How to swing the stick: golf style and croquet style

The Japan Gateball Union's beginner materials show two swing styles. The rules treat them the same, so use whichever feels more accurate.

• Golf style: stand beside the ball, side-on to the target, and swing the stick like a putter
• Croquet style: stand behind the ball facing the target and swing the stick back and forth in front of you like a pendulum

In either style, keep the swing short, strike with the centre of the face, and never keep the face on the ball and push it (a striking foul). For a spark, pin your own ball firmly under one foot, then strike it so only the other ball flies away.

Common beginner mistakes

• The swing: don't swing big like golf or baseball; use a short swing and strike with the centre of the face. Pushing the ball is a foul
• Losing track of turn order: you only have 10 seconds once called, so call out the number before each shot
• Wasting the spark: after a touch you must spark, so decide where the other ball should go before you place your foot

How to make it more fun

• Pre-game team strategy: decide which balls go first based on gate positions
• A clean spark that knocks an opponent's ball out of the court gets everyone on their feet
• The 30-minute clock creates genuine late-game tension, so watch the time

Age variations

• Kids: smaller court, wider gates, skip the spark to start
• Seniors: walking pace and little physical strain, a sport you can keep playing for years
• Competitive: regulation court, official timer, referee

Playing Gateball in Japan

• The Japan Gateball Union (JGU) works through prefectural associations and runs national events including the All Japan Championship and tournaments for juniors, high schools, working adults and mixed generations
• Referees and coaches: the JGU runs certification schemes for referees and sports coaches
• Venues: large park lawns and dirt grounds are typical. On artificial turf or indoors, free-standing gates and poles are used instead of ones driven into the ground
• Trying it out: local senior clubs and community centres often hold sessions, and the JGU runs taster events for juniors and young people around the country

Frequently asked questions

Q. What is a perfect game in gateball, and how many points is it?

25 points. Each player can score at most 5 points (1 point for each of the three gates, plus 2 points for hitting the goal pole, called "agari"). When all five players on a team finish, the team has 5 × 5 = 25 points — a perfect game — and the match ends on the spot, even before the 30 minutes are up.

Q. How big is a gateball court?

The official inner field is a 15 m × 20 m rectangle, surrounded by an outer field 1 m wide (anything from 50 cm to 1 m). Including the outer field, you need a flat area of about 17 m × 22 m.

Q. How many points do you need to win?

There's no target score. The team with more points when the 30 minutes are up wins. One player can score at most 5 points and a team at most 25; reaching 25 is a perfect game and ends the match immediately.

Q. How many players are on a team, and what colour are the balls?

An official team has five players, so a game is 5 vs 5 (ten players), with up to three substitutes. Teams are named after their balls: the red team plays the odd-numbered red balls (1, 3, 5, 7, 9) and the white team the even-numbered white balls (2, 4, 6, 8, 10). For practice, 3 vs 3 works fine.

Q. Is it fun for kids and younger players?

Yes. Gateball was invented as a children's game, and the JGU runs national junior and high school championships. Direction and distance control matter more than strength, so adults and children can play on the same team.

Q. Can you play somewhere other than grass?

Yes. Flat, well-kept dirt grounds are very common. Where gates can't be driven into the ground, such as artificial turf or indoor floors, free-standing gates and poles are used.

Q. Does gateball have other names?

In English it is simply "gateball," the name used by the World Gateball Union. In Chinese it is called ménqiú ("gate ball"); according to Chinese Wikipedia, the game was introduced to China in 1983.

Q. How is it different from croquet?

Both involve hitting balls through gates, but gateball is a five-a-side team game with three gates and a 30-minute clock. When knocking another ball away, croquet players don't stand on their own ball; gateball players pin it under their foot and strike it.

Learn more

• Japan Gateball Union (JGU, in Japanese): events, taster sessions and certification
• JGU equipment guide (in Japanese): ball, gate and stick specifications
• JGU gateball history (in Japanese): from its invention to worldwide play
• World Gateball Union: Official Rules: PDFs of the Official Gateball Rules 2025
• JGU beginner materials (in Japanese): Lesson 1–8 PDFs, including swing styles and tactics
• Ground golf rules, Japan Ground Golf Association (in Japanese)
• Related: Croquet, Pétanque, and Lawn Bowls