How to Explain Hurling To An American Without Sounding Insane

Ireland has a few very special sports that are traditional and Irish to the core. 

Hurling is one of those sports. Now, if you’re American, or really anyone who’s not Irish, it looks like people are just chasing a tiny ball. Lunatics, perhaps? Wait wait wait, there’s more to this.

Don’t fret – we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about hurling, so you won’t get lost, and so that it’ll make sense, promise.

In a nutshell – what is it?

Let’s start with the shortest and easiest way to explain hurling: it’s a traditional Irish sport. It’s an incredibly fast-paced game (maybe even the fastest?), played between two teams on a grass pitch.

It can be described as a mix of lacrosse, hockey, and baseball. Now, before you start wondering what that could possibly look like, don’t worry, we’ll get there.

Hurling is one of the oldest field sports in Europe. It’s extremely popular, not just at home, but also around the world in the Irish communities abroad.

You can basically compare the All-Ireland Hurling Championship in Ireland with the Super Bowl in the US – it’s that big and that popular. Some people might even call it mental, but the atmosphere is truly spectacular.

The goods – what do you need?

First things first – you need two teams. Each team has 15 players. Sounds easy, right? You have the following positions: goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and forwards.

Next, you need the equipment. It’s a ball-and-stick type of game. The stick is called a hurl or a hurley (hence, the name). Isn’t “hurley” just cute? The ball is called a sliotar (pronounced “slit-er”).

The sliotar is the thing that you’re hurling across the field – and not, you know, your stomach’s contents. The aim is to score as many points as possible.

Last, but not least, you need a goal. It looks like a big H. You have the top part that is similar to the goal in American football. The bottom part has a net on it, just like in football (soccer).

The rules – but the short version, OK?

So let’s get into the nitty-gritty. We won’t go into all the details when it comes to the rules of hurling, but the gist of it will do. Remember – It’s not insane, it’s fun. 

A game of hurling is played in two halves. The duration per half varies a bit depending on the age group and the level of play, but at top level it’s usually 35 minutes. Sounds doable, right?

You can score either one or three points. If the ball goes in between the top goalposts (the upper H part, so to speak), it’s one point. If the ball goes into the net, it’s three points.

For fouls, you have yellow and red cards that you probably already know from football (soccer). Hurling also has a black card, which means the player is sent off temporarily for 10 minutes.

The verdict – should you watch it?

We can’t force anybody to sit down and watch a game of hurling, but trust us, it definitely is worth the experience. Even if you watch the audience going wild instead of the action on the field.

Hurling is an integral part of Irish culture. Going to a stadium or a pub to watch a match might just add that special moment to your Ireland trip that you didn’t expect.

The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was listed in second place by CNN, just after the Olympic Games, in their “10 sporting events you have to see live”. That’s a good reason, isn’t it?

If you want to experience a type of Ireland outside your guidebook, try to get tickets to a game and just enjoy being there with all the other – maybe slightly intense – fans.

Fun facts – did you know?

Now that you know what hurling is about, let’s look at a few pretty cool facts:

• Hurling is inscribed in UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
• If the players in hurling are women, it’s called Camogie.
• Before the rules were all set, the game and the number of players were unregulated. Just imagine the mayhem!
• The US Marine Corps has two hurling teams.
• Hurling features strongly in Irish mythology, especially in the saga around Cú Chulainn.

Now that you’ve got a bit more details about hurling (perhaps the best game in the world?), how insane does it really sound? It’s so fast-paced, it might be hard to follow the ball, but you’ll have fun.

One thing to note: The skills it takes to play the game are something. So just imagine how much goes into training for the big match. It’ll be worth cheering on the players.