Quidditch

Quidditch is the most popular and preeminent sport in the wizarding world. It is a team sport played on broomsticks by two teams of seven players. The game is known for its high speed, complexity, and inherent danger, involving four different magical balls and various player positions. Quidditch is a major cultural phenomenon, with intense rivalries between professional teams and Hogwarts houses, culminating in events like the Quidditch World Cup.

The history of Quidditch is detailed in the book Quidditch Through the Ages by Kennilworthy Whisp. The sport evolved from several ancient broomstick games. The earliest recorded instance of a game resembling Quidditch comes from the diary of the witch Gertie Keddle, who lived near Queerditch Marsh in the 11th century. Her writings describe watching a group of people “chucking a leather ball around” and trying to score in trees at either end of a field, while also being bombarded by “two heavy black rocks that flew about of their own accord.” The most significant development was the introduction of the Golden Snidget, a small, fast, magical bird. In 1269, the Chief of the Wizards' Council, Barberus Bragge, released a Golden Snidget during a match and offered 150 Galleons to the player who could catch it. This tradition became a permanent feature, but the practice endangered the Golden Snidget species. In the mid-14th century, the wizard Bowman Wright of Godric's Hollow invented the Golden Snitch as a magical, mechanical replacement, with its capture being worth 150 points in memory of the original prize. The other balls also evolved. The Quaffle was originally a simple leather ball, which later gained a handle and was enchanted to fall slowly to allow Chasers to catch it in mid-air. The Bludgers began as flying, bewitched rocks, later replaced by enchanted iron balls. The rules were gradually standardized, and by the 14th century, the sport as it is known today was largely established, overseen by the Department of Magical Games and Sports.

A Quidditch match is played between two teams on a large, oval-shaped Quidditch Pitch. At each end of the pitch stand three golden goal hoops of varying heights.

Each team has seven players, filling four distinct positions:

• Three Chasers: Their primary role is to score goals by throwing the Quaffle through the opposing team's hoops. A successful goal is worth ten points.
• Two Beaters: Armed with bats, Beaters are responsible for protecting their teammates from the two rogue Bludgers. They do this by hitting the Bludgers away or directing them towards opposing players.
• One Keeper: The Keeper's job is to guard their team's three goal hoops and prevent the opposing Chasers from scoring with the Quaffle.
• One Seeker: The Seeker has the sole task of catching the Golden Snitch. This is often the most difficult and dangerous position.

• Broomsticks: Each player flies on a broomstick, with models ranging from older models like the Cleansweep series to high-performance racing brooms like the Nimbus 2000 and the Firebolt.
• Quaffle: A single, bright red ball, approximately the size of a football. It is bewitched with a Gripping Charm to make it easier to handle.
• Bludgers: Two identical, jet-black iron balls. They are bewitched to fly on their own and aggressively pursue the nearest player.
• Golden Snitch: A tiny, walnut-sized golden ball with silver wings. It is incredibly fast and difficult to see, making it the central challenge for the Seekers.

The game operates on a continuous scoring system.

1. A goal scored with the Quaffle is worth 10 points.
2. Catching the Golden Snitch is worth 150 points.

The match only ends once the Golden Snitch has been caught by one of the Seekers. The winning team is the one with the higher total score after the Snitch is caught. This means a team can catch the Snitch but still lose the match if their opponent has a lead of more than 150 points, as famously occurred when Viktor Krum of the Bulgaria national Quidditch team caught the Snitch during the 1994 Quidditch World Cup final against Ireland.

According to Quidditch Through the Ages, there are 700 listed fouls. While most are not commonly seen due to a ban on using wands during play, several common fouls are enforced by the referee.

• Blagging: Grabbing an opponent's broom tail to slow them down.
• Blatching: Flying with the intention of colliding with another player.
• Bumphing: A Beater hitting a Bludger towards the crowd, necessitating a restart of play.
• Cobbing: Excessive use of elbows against opponents.
• Flacking: A Keeper defending the hoops by pushing the Quaffle out from behind the hoop, rather than blocking it from the front.
• Haversacking: A Chaser's hand being on the Quaffle as it passes through a hoop (the Quaffle must be thrown).
• Stooging: More than one Chaser entering the scoring area at the same time.
• Snitchnip: Any player other than the Seeker touching or catching the Golden Snitch.

Quidditch is a central element of Harry Potter's life at Hogwarts. In his first year, he is recruited as the Gryffindor Seeker by Minerva McGonagall, making him the youngest House player in a century. His natural talent for flying makes him a star player. Key events involving Quidditch include:

• Harry's first match, where he catches the Snitch in his mouth after swallowing it.
• The match against Hufflepuff in his third year, where Dementors invade the pitch, causing Harry to faint and fall from his broom.
• The 1994 Quidditch World Cup final, which Harry, the Weasley family, and Hermione Granger attend.
• Harry being banned from playing by the tyrannical Dolores Umbridge in his fifth year.
• Harry becoming Gryffindor Captain in his sixth year and leading the team to win the Quidditch Cup, though he misses the final match while serving detention with Severus Snape.
• Ron Weasley's struggles and eventual triumph as the Gryffindor Keeper, and Ginny Weasley's emergence as a talented Chaser and Seeker.

• Gryffindor Quidditch team
• Slytherin Quidditch team
• Hufflepuff Quidditch team
• Ravenclaw Quidditch team

• Ireland national Quidditch team
• Bulgaria national Quidditch team
• Puddlemere United
• Holyhead Harpies
• Chudley Cannons
• Tutshill Tornados
• Appleby Arrows
• Wimbourne Wasps

J.K. Rowling has stated that she invented Quidditch in a hotel room in Manchester after an argument with her then-boyfriend. She explained, “I had been pondering the things that hold a society together… and I knew that I needed a sport.” (J.K. Rowling interview). The sport has been adapted into a real-world game, known as quadball (formerly Muggle Quidditch), played by teams at universities and in communities worldwide. In the film adaptations, the Quidditch matches are depicted as extremely fast-paced and vertically-oriented events, often with significant visual flair. Some matches from the books, such as the Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw match in Order of the Phoenix, are omitted, while the sequence of events in others is sometimes altered for cinematic effect. The companion book, Quidditch Through the Ages, was published in 2001 by J.K. Rowling under the pseudonym Kennilworthy Whisp to raise money for the charity Comic Relief.