IHF Rules of the Game — Indoor Handball 2025
The International Handball Federation's Rules of the Game for Indoor Handball, in force from 1 July 2025.
| In force | 1 July 2025 — approved by the IHF Council |
| Structure | Chapter IX, Section A of the International Handball Federation's body of regulations |
| Status | Current edition — 18 rules together with interpretative annexes |
What do the Rules of the Game cover?
The regulations of the International Handball Federation (IHF) form a set of numbered chapters headed by the Statutes, each chapter governing one area. This document is Chapter IX, Section A of that body.
Eighteen rules determine everything from the dimensions of the court and the playing time to fouls, sanctions and the duties of the referees, the scorekeeper and the timekeeper. As the document itself states, the text of the rules, the comments, the referees' hand signals, the supplementary explanations and the substitution area regulations are all part of the rules; the "Guidelines and Interpretations" guide the application of certain rules, and the "Guide for court and goals" is provided for the user's convenience only and is not part of the rules.
Key points of this edition
- Structure of the documentRules 1 to 18, followed by five parts: comments on the Rules of the Game, the substitution area regulations, the Guidelines and Interpretations, and the guide for court and goals. The referees' hand signals also appear in this same document.
- Restructuring under wayThe document itself states that the Rules of the Game are being reorganised into three separate documents; the present structure is therefore provisional.
- Language of the document and equalityThe text uses the masculine form for simplicity, but states expressly that the rules apply equally to women and men — with one exception: the size of the ball, which is set out separately in Rule 3.
- Connection with other regulationsThe technical specifications for the ball, the goals and the flooring are found in Chapter XIII, and permitted protective equipment in its own separate regulations; video review and the electronic time-out also have independent regulations.
Who this document matters to
In any protest or disciplinary case arising from an on-court incident, the first question is what the Rules of the Game provide and whether the referee acted within the scope of their authority. Because the comments and the substitution area regulations are themselves part of the rules, reliance on them carries the same authority as the principal text.