If you’ve ever watched a water polo game and thought, “Why is the whistle blowing every three seconds?” this course is for you.
In this short, beginner-friendly course, we break down the basic rules of water polo in the same clear structure as the PowerPoint session I use with my own athletes and parents. By the end, you’ll know exactly what’s happening in the pool and what to watch for in every possession.
Inside the course you’ll learn:
How the game actually works
Number of players, caps and colors
Game time, quarters and the shot clock
What “no touching the bottom” really means for players
The 3 Golden Rules of Water Polo
No bottom
Only the goalie can use two hands
No holding, sinking or pulling under
All the main fouls explained simply
Ordinary fouls (small fouls & free throws)
Exclusion fouls / kick-outs and 6-on-5 situations
Penalty fouls and how penalty shots work
Basic positions and roles
Goalie, center, and perimeter players
What each position is trying to do on offense and defense
Team defense basics
What a press defense looks like
What a drop/help on center is and why teams use it
How to actually watch a game
What to look for after every whistle
How to quickly see if it’s 6-on-6 or 6-on-5
Simple cues to understand if a team is pressing or dropping
This course is perfect for 10U, 12U, 14U players, parents new to water polo, and coaches who want an easy way to explain the rules to their teams. After this, games won’t look like chaos anymore—you’ll understand the rules, the whistles, and the strategy behind them.