Danish Longball

Danish Longball

A well-known and beloved ball game that trains fundamental ball skills and controlled power.

  • 6+ years
  • Group size: 6+
  • Duration: 30 min
  • Ball sport
  • Folk game
  • Gym / Sports hall
  • Open space
  • Ball
  • Baseball bat

Draw a goal line and an outfield line about 20–30 meters apart. Just inside the goal line, a ring is marked. One team is the batting team, the other is the fielding team.

A player from the fielding team is the pitcher and stands 2–3 meters from the base, with their back to the batting team. The rest of the fielding team spreads out across the playing area to catch the ball.

The batting team lines up behind the pitcher to avoid being hit by the ball when it's struck. Players step up one by one to bat, and everyone has three attempts. On the third attempt, they can use a flatter and wider bat.

The pitcher tosses the ball slightly into the air for the batter. When someone from the batting team hits the ball, the batter and everyone standing on the base can run out to the outfield line and back again. They can also choose to stop at the outfield line and wait for the next hit, or stay on the base and wait for a longer hit.

The fielding team tries to catch the ball in the air (a 'fly out'). If they succeed, the teams switch roles, and the fielding team becomes the batting team. If they don't catch the ball in the air, they must gain control of the ball as quickly as possible and try to hit one of the running batting team players. If they hit a player, roles are also swapped. After throwing, the entire team must run behind the goal line before the opponents can retrieve the ball and 'shoot' back. It can be advantageous for the fielding team to pass the ball to a teammate who is better positioned to throw.

When the fielding team has thrown the ball back to the pitcher, the batting team must wait behind the base until the next player bats and hits the ball. If there is only one batter left on the batting team, at least one teammate must manage to run out and back without being hit, otherwise the team is out.

The game's objective is to stay in as long as possible, and can theoretically continue for as long as desired. The game is most fun when the teams are evenly matched, leading to frequent role changes between batting and fielding. The batting team's goal is to hit the ball hard and far enough to run both to the outfield line and back again.

Variation

Vary the type of ball, its size, weight, and softness. This will affect both accuracy, speed, and how far the ball can be hit.