The Quidditch Pitch

• Type: Sports Arena
• Location: On the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland
• Owner/Residents: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; primarily used by the four House Quidditch teams: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin.
• Key Features: A large, oval-shaped grass pitch, three fifty-foot-high golden goalposts at each end, elevated spectator stands, and changing rooms for the teams.

The Quidditch Pitch at Hogwarts is the site of the school's Quidditch training and the annual Inter-House Quidditch Cup. The pitch is a vast, perfectly smooth oval of grass, situated a significant walk from the main castle. At each end of the pitch stand three towering golden poles topped with hoops, which serve as the goals. Surrounding the pitch are spectator stands, which are raised high in the air to give the audience a clear view of the aerial gameplay. During matches, these stands are decorated with banners and flags representing the competing Houses, such as scarlet and gold for Gryffindor or green and silver for Slytherin. There is also a small, elevated box for the match commentator. Beneath the stands are the changing rooms, where players prepare and team captains give pre-game talks. While its primary function is for Quidditch, the pitch has been repurposed for other major events. In the 1994-1995 school year, the pitch was transformed for the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament. The entire area was converted into a massive maze, with towering, twenty-foot-high hedges grown upon it. During the Battle of Hogwarts, the pitch and its surrounding area served as a temporary encampment for Voldemort and his army of Death Eaters and dark creatures. It was from here that they launched their final assault on the castle.

The Quidditch Pitch is the setting for numerous significant events throughout the series:

• In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, during Harry Potter's first ever Quidditch match, Professor Quirrell attempts to jinx him off his broom, while Severus Snape mutters a counter-curse. Hermione Granger, believing Snape to be the culprit, sets his robes on fire to break his concentration. Harry ends up catching the Golden Snitch in his mouth to win the game.
• In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, a rogue Bludger, bewitched by the house-elf Dobby, relentlessly pursues Harry during a match, eventually breaking his arm. Later, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart disastrously attempts to mend the bone, removing it entirely. The pitch is also where Ron Weasley's slug-vomiting charm backfires after he defends Hermione from Draco Malfoy's “Mudblood” slur.
• In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, a horde of Dementors invades the pitch during a stormy match against Hufflepuff, causing Harry to faint and fall from his broom. His Nimbus Two Thousand is blown into the Whomping Willow and destroyed. In the final match against Ravenclaw, Harry casts a powerful Patronus Charm to repel Draco Malfoy and his cronies disguised as Dementors.
• In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the pitch is not used for Quidditch but is instead the location of the maze for the final task of the Triwizard Tournament.
• In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, after a Gryffindor victory, Harry, Fred Weasley, and George Weasley are given lifetime bans from Quidditch by Dolores Umbridge for physically attacking Draco Malfoy.
• In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry, as the new Gryffindor Captain, holds tryouts on the pitch. The arena also hosts memorable commentary from students like Luna Lovegood and Zacharias Smith.
• In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the pitch becomes a grim staging ground for Voldemort's army. It is across this ground that Rubeus Hagrid is forced to carry what he believes to be Harry's dead body back to the castle.

• The Playing Field: The central grassy oval where the game takes place.
• Goalposts: Six fifty-foot-tall golden poles with hoops, with a set of three at each end of the pitch.
• Spectator Stands: Elevated seating for students, staff, and visitors.
• Changing Rooms: Facilities where teams prepare for matches.
• Commentary Box: A high seat or small booth from which a commentator announces the game's progress.

The depiction of the Quidditch Pitch in the film adaptations differs significantly from the description in the novels. In the films, the spectator stands are portrayed as immensely tall, precarious-looking wooden towers that entirely encircle the pitch, creating a much more dramatic and enclosed arena than the more open stands described by J.K. Rowling (film).