How would you describe the game of quidditch to the uninitiated?
I’d describe quidditch as a mixed gender full-contact and fully inclusive sport. A mixture of rugby, dodgeball and handball, the sport also offers a real inclusivity to people no matter what their age, gender, fitness level or sporting background and an incredibly welcoming community.
How popular has it become and what is the competition structure like?
Quidditch was created in the US in 2005, and came over to the UK in 2011. From just a couple of teams, the sport has exploded, with over 32 teams in the country, as well as smaller interest in schools.
The competition structure is mainly through tournaments, the biggest being our regional events (Northern and Southern Cup) and our flagship event, the British Quidditch Cup. Tournaments are also run by clubs throughout the year and they also host mercenary tournaments, where players sign up individually and are chosen by a captain, meaning every team is created from players across the country.
Our teams also have a chance to compete at the European Quidditch Championships and we send a national team to compete at the European Games and World Cup on a biannual cycle (this year TeamUK came 2nd in European Games, and hope to do just as well in the World Cup next summer).
How or where can people get involved with quidditch, either to start a team or club, play, or volunteer at events?
If people want to get involved, the best place to go is our website www.quidditchuk.org. You will be able to find your nearest team and also all our upcoming events. You can also volunteer to help run QuidditchUK. In order to set up a team or club, just email teams@quidditchuk.org who will help you start up the process and also put you in contact with local teams who may be able to help you. Any other questions or queries just email me at president@quidditchuk.org.
What are the plans at QuidditchUK to increase participation for the sport over the next few years?
QuidditchUK has a number of aims to increase participation in the sport. We want to continue expansion across the UK at the current rate (there are already ten more teams in the UK playing competitively than this time last year)and use our successful Hooch initiative (where an experienced club is partnered with a new one) to help make this growth sustainable. Within this, we would like to focus on creating more community based clubs, as the majority of clubs are based at universities.
We would also ideally like to look more into quidditch in schools. As the sport is so unique, it has the ability to encourage those who aren’t interested in traditional sports to try something new, and create a more healthy lifestyle.
You can get a taste for what quidditch is like to play by watching our latest "Alliance Tries" video:
