Ultimate frisbee is a fast-paced, action-filled sport predicated on teamwork, with constant movement and multiple scoring opportunities. It is one of the most inclusive and accessible of sports. All you need is a disc, some cones, and a place to play. As a non-contact sport, safety is paramount.

The game is also known as “ultimate disc” or simply “ultimate.”

Ultimate is played around the world at all competitive levels. In the United States, there are more than 800 college teams with 18,000 student athletes playing each year.

The Chicago Union is one of 24 teams in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) professional league which spans the US and Canada. The Western Ultimate League (WUL) and the Professional Ultimate League (PUL) are professional leagues for women and non-binary athletes. USA Ultimate is the national governing body for the sport at the youth/club/college level.

History

The game of ultimate seems to have started with a pie pan. The first known contemporary tossing of a disc was by Yale undergrads in the early 1900s, who used metal pie pans from the nearby Frisbie Pie Company of Connecticut.

The sport progressed with the invention of a plastic flying disc by Fred Morrison in 1948, and the first mass-production of the "Pluto Platter," by the Wham-O toy company in 1951.

In 1967, Joel Silver and other students at Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey,  proposed that the school host an ultimate Frisbee game. The first known game was played in 1968 between Columbia’s student council and school newspaper. The newspaper won.

The game continued its ascent in popularity. Yale hosted the first college-level ultimate tournament in 1975 with a total of eight schools. Rutgers won. Ultimate made its debut later that year at the World Frisbee Championships (which covered a variety of frisbee-focused sports).

The professional-level American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) was formed in 2012. In 2024, the league and Wham-O entered into a licensing arrangement, resulting in the league changing its name to the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA).

Field Size, Team Size, and How to Win

Like many sports, there are variations in the rules and field size for amateur and professional versions of ultimate.  Check out this video for an overview of the game.

The UFA plays two teams of seven on a field measuring 80 yards long, with 20-yard end zones. Games consist of four 12-minute quarters. Each goal is worth one point, and the team that scores the most goals wins.

At the college/club level, there are a few differences that slightly change gameplay. Games are played to score caps as opposed to timed quarters; usually 13 or 15. The pull happens from the endzone instead of the 30 yard line, and the field is 12.5 yards narrower. While some important games have “observers” (basically a third party to resolve arguments about the rules or fouls), all other games are fully self-officiated with players on the field being the only ones who can make calls about infractions. One major difference along with lack of refs is that penalties for fouls are different. In the UFA, a foul results in the player with the disc advancing or backing up 10 yards. In college, fouls (called out by the players) often result in a redo of the play depending on whether everyone agrees.

Ultimate is an invasion game – a team scores in an endzone by working as a group to move the frisbee up the field. If one team drops it, it is the other team’s disc going towards the opposite endzone.

Players cannot move while holding the frisbee, a rule that reinforces teamwork -- especially at youth levels. They must pass the disc back and forth with their teammates until they score or no longer have possession. When a player catches the frisbee, they must establish a pivot foot, and that foot must remain in the same spot until the disc is passed again.

The game play starts with a “pull,” essentially a kickoff from one endzone to the other. After a goal, the scoring team “pulls” to the other team, so possession changes.

Pivots, Marks, and Stalls

Once a player has caught the frisbee, they must slow down as soon as their momentum allows, then immediately establish a pivot foot (as in basketball when you pick up your dribble). If a player runs farther than their momentum takes them, or moves their pivot foot while throwing, it is a travel violation. This results in a redo in club/college, and a 10-yard penalty in UFA.

Passes must take place within ten seconds of receiving the disc (if in the UFA, within seven seconds). The count is called the “stall” and is said out loud by the defender. It is the responsibility of the defender to count down the time accurately. If the player holding the frisbee does not throw it before the end of the stall counts, possession goes to the other team.

Non-Contact

Ultimate is a non-contact sport.  Defense can block a disc out of the air or upon release of a throw but cannot touch it while an offensive player has possession of the disc, possession defined as the rotation of the disc being stopped (could be before the disc has left the thrower’s hand, or as it enters a receivers hand).

However, it is very important when playing to remember that your safety and the safety of others is paramount. You should never attempt to make a play on the frisbee that could result in injury to you or another player.

Not only could a play like this hurt someone, but they are also against the rules. Fouls in ultimate are very similar to fouls in professional basketball. You cannot contact another player aside from basic, non-aggressive body positioning. You may make contact with the disc in the air but not your opponent’s body as they try to make a catch.