International rules football

Overview The rules are designed to provide a compromise or combine between those of the two codes, with Gaelic football players being advantaged by the use of a round ball and a rectangular field measured about long by wide (Australian rules uses an oval ball and field), while the Australian rules football players benefit from the opportunity to tackle by grabbing between the shoulders and thighs and pulling to the ground, something banned in Gaelic football. The game also introduces the concept of the mark, from Australian rules football, with a free kick awarded for a ball caught from a kick of over , where the kick must be in the forward direction if originating from a teammate. • Over the crossbar and between the two large posts (an over): 3 points, umpire waves red flag and raises one arm above his head. • A yellow card now means a 15-minute sin bin for the offending player, who will be sent off if he receives a second card. Further alterations were made before the 2008 International Rules Series: • Maximum of 10 interchanges per quarter. • Teams are allowed only four consecutive hand passes (ball must then be kicked). ==Around the world==

International rules has been played in various locations throughout North America and the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and Australia and New Zealand between fledgling Australian rules football and Gaelic football clubs. In 2006, an exhibition match between South African youth teams and an Indigenous Australian touring side composed of players from the Clontarf Foundation, led by Sydney's Adam Goodes, was held at Potchefstroom. The University of Birmingham holds an annual International Rules match between its Australian Rules football team and its Gaelic Football team, with the 2013 edition won by the Australian Rules team 56–55, before a crowd of over 400 students. In the International Rules Series, the most well-known International Rules event, Australia and Ireland are at an impasse, with 10 series wins apiece. Most recently in 2017, Australia defeated Ireland with two Test wins and an aggregate score of 116–103. Amateur tours The Australian Amateur Football Council has sent an amateur Under-23 All-Australian team to Ireland in both 2005 and 2008. The Australian amateur team wore a different jersey to the AFL representative side, dark green and gold, with a kangaroo emblem. Recently, the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) has sent a squad of players sourced from the top six divisions of its competition to tour Ireland and play various clubs and representative teams. So-called "masters" series featuring teams made up of players aged 40 and above and Ladies' series, unsanctioned by the AFL and GAA, have sporadically been played. In 2024 an over-40 men's, over-50 men's and over-40 women's series was played in and won comprehensively by Ireland, and featured former AFL player Jason Akermanis as head coach of one of the Australian teams. ==See also==