History of Lacrosse

Lacrosse was first played and invented by North American Indians around the region of current Montreal. During the colonization the British settlers got interested in this "ball game" as it was called then, featuring hundreds of players with coloring outfits. Instead of eradicate this form of culture, the colonizers decided to appropriate the game by modifying and codifying the rules. Quickly the sport became a symbol and even help to forge Canadian national identity. It rapidly spread first in England then to the rest of Europe. Lacrosse was proclaimed Canada's national summer sport in 1994 and today it is played everywhere in the world. There exist 4 different forms of the game: men's and women's field lacrosse, box lacrosse and Super Sixes, the Olympic version. 

Olympic Vision

World Lacrosse’s decades-long vision to return the sport to the Olympic stage has been realised, with the International Olympic Committee approving lacrosse’s inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.  

LA28 will mark the third Olympic appearance for North America’s first sport that is now played in nearly 100 countries around the world, after it was contested in 1904 (St. Louis) and 1908 (London). Lacrosse was later featured as a demonstration sport in three Olympics: Amsterdam 1928, Los Angeles 1932 and London 1948.

In 2028, men’s and women’s lacrosse will be competed in sixes, an incredibly fast-paced, compact version of the sport at the intersection of field and box lacrosse. It offers an inclusionary opportunity to all lacrosse athletes and an easier entry point for new players, and is characterized by an accelerated, open style of play with quick transitions and non-stop, high-scoring action.  

Developed in 2018, sixes has advanced global growth, increased accessibility and approachability, created greater competitive balance, and reduced cost and complexity of participation and event staging. It is the next generation version of the game. Sixes combines the most exciting elements of the more traditional disciplines. It is the next generation version of the game.

Lacrosse in Belgium

Lacrosse has existed in Belgium since 2001 thanks to a Canadian teacher who implemented it at the International School of Brussels. But the Belgian lacrosse league really started with the initiative of two brothers, Kevin and Kristof De Smet who founded the Red Rhinos club in January 2009. After a few months some players from Ghent decided to create their own team; the Ghent Lacrosse Goblins. With these two clubs they created the Belgian Lacrosse Federation in order to manage the teams and the playing calendar. Some ladies started to play as well and founded the women's league. the Buggenhout Lacrosse club and the Heist Hunters club joined the league a bit later. In 2012 Belgium participated in the European championships in Amsterdam and In 2014 the men national team went to the world cup in Denver and ended up 27th over 30 participating teams. In 2015 the women's league formed a national team to take part in the European championships in Budapest. In 2016, the country sent both national teams to the European Championships in Budapest.

Since then, Belgium has taken part in most of the European competitions and continental qualifiers in all the disciplines of the game.

Modern Day Lacrosse

Lacrosse spread from the US and Canada to the rest of the world and has been gaining popularity over the last 10 years. Men's lacrosse has gone from 4 countries competing in the 1967 World Championships to 38 countries in 2014. The first women's World Cup was held in 1982 with 6 countries competing.

Lacrosse is often described as "hockey... but in the air", but perhaps a better description would be a multi-sport hybrid combining basketball, hockey, football, American football, rugby, and many more. But the best way to get an idea of lacrosse is to try it out for yourself!

Check out all the disciplines below: