Could lacrosse become an Olympic sport?

Lacrosse is one of five additional sports being proposed for inclusion at the LA 2028 Olympic Games with the final decision to be announced on Monday at the 141st IOC session in Mumbai, India.

Having been included as a contested sport at the 1904 and 1908 Olympic Games and appearing as a demonstration event at the 1928, 1932, and 1948 Games, Lacrosse has a long association with the Olympic Games that stretches back over 100 years.

It hopes to make its return in 2028 with a new format of the game: Sixes Lacrosse; the version of the game that is played at The Fly.

What is Sixes Lacrosse (we know you already know, but just to refresh your memory)?

Sixes Lacrosse is a small-sided version of lacrosse that sees traditional teams of 10 reduced to six and a traditional 100m field reduced to 60m.

There are fewer pitch markings and the rules for the contact men’s and non-contact women’s formats have been evened out a little bit so they’re more similar.

A shot-clock has been introduced, like that used in basketball, allowing attacking teams just 30 seconds to take a shot on the opposition goal and instead of four 15-minute quarters, there are four eight-minute quarters.

All of this has the intention of keeping the game fast paced and flowing.

This Sixes version of lacrosse really strips the game bare meaning it is more accessible to new-comers and, with the reduction in the number of players needed in a team, allows smaller communities to get involved in the sport.

Lacrosse: The Global Picture

Lacrosse is only played at a top, professional level in the US and Canada with the creators of the game, the indigenous peoples of North America, competing as a separate nation in international competition but there are several teams vastly improving their standard and aiming to reach those heights.

Teams such as England, Japan, Australia as well as a few of the other European nations have pushed the traditional big players in recent years with England claiming a second consecutive bronze medal at the women’s world championship in 2022 and Japan finishing fifth for the first time at the most recent men’s world championship earlier this year.

In fact, World Lacrosse, the world governing body for lacrosse, now has 86 member countries, including 10 in Africa and 13 in Asia cementing its position as a fast growing and global sport.

Sixes Lacrosse is a great way for World Lacrosse to broadcast the sport to a wider as it lends itself nicely to a television audience. The shortened version of the game means there’s less of a commitment from the viewer and, a shot-clock ensures there are plenty of goals and lots of play which keeps the game exciting.

With the likes of Rugby Sevens at the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games and Futsal at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games proving that these smaller, slightly different versions of sports can captivate an audience at international tournaments and inspire the next generation of players to try the sport, Sixes Lacrosse is hoping to add its name to the list of Olympic team sports in 2028.