Rules of Ultimate

12. Receivers and Positioning

12.1. A “catch” occurs when a player has a non-spinning disc trapped between at least two body parts. A catch can enable a player to establish possession of the disc.
Annotation: Catching the disc

The rules have been updated since 2017 to mean that “catch” and “possession” no longer mean the same thing. A “catch” is when the disc is first controlled by the receiver. Once a player has caught the disc, they can go out-of-bounds, or have the disc touch the ground, and this is not a turnover, as long as they maintain the catch while out-of-bounds or while the disc is touching the ground, and they subsequently establish possession of the pass.

A player establishes possession of a pass when:
- they catch a pass and then they maintain that catch for more than one noticeable instant, and
- they maintain the catch throughout all ground contact related to the catch, or until they throw the disc
Extra: For a disc to be considered “trapped” the disc must be held firmly between at least two body parts and should not move relative to those two body parts.

If a player initially catches a pass and then, prior to establishing possession, they do not maintain the catch (‘maintain the catch’ means to continue to have a non-spinning disc trapped between at least two body parts), that initial catch is deemed to have ended

A player may change the body parts that are being used to trap the disc, and as long as the disc continues to be trapped by at least two of the body parts during that change, it is considered the same catch (for example if a player traps the disc to their chest with their right hand, they can grab the disc by the rim with their left hand and take the disc away from their chest, and as long as they only remove their right hand once the left hand has grabbed the disc, it is considered the same catch).
1. 12.1.1. If the player fails to maintain the catch due to subsequent ground contact related to the catch, or contact related to the catch with a team-mate or a legitimately positioned opposition player, possession is deemed to have not occurred.
  
  Annotation: Related to the catch
  
  Ground contact or contact with another player can be deemed to be ‘related to the catch’ if it occurs directly after the catch has been made, is a result of landing after diving to catch the disc, or occurs while the player is off-balance after catching the disc. If, for example, a player takes a running catch in the end zone, subsequently establishes possession through the first few steps after the catch, and then continues to run as part of a celebration and trips over, any loss of possession that occurs as a result of the celebration would not be deemed to be ‘related to the catch’. One way to distinguish if the contact is related to the catch is that once the player could have chosen to stop moving and be stationary and in control of their movement, any further actions are not related to the catch, even if they do not choose to come to a stop.
12.2. After establishing possession, that player becomes the thrower.
12.3. If offensive and defensive players catch the disc simultaneously, the offence retains possession.
12.4. A player in an established position is entitled to remain in that position and must not be contacted by an opposing player.
12.5. Every player is entitled to occupy any position on the field not occupied by any opposing player, provided that they do not initiate contact in taking such a position, and are not moving in a reckless or dangerously aggressive manner.

Annotation: Moving in a reckless manner

This could include running without looking where you are going for an extended period of time, or diving in a way that does not allow you to adjust to any legal changes of movement that an opponent might make.
1. 12.5.1. However when the disc is in the air a player may not move in a manner solely to prevent an opponent from taking an unoccupied path to make a play on the disc.
  
  Annotation: Player positioning
  
  What: Player A, who is making a play on the disc, is allowed to slow down and to impede an opponent’s movement to make a play on the disc. However Player A must not move in a way that the opponent could not reasonably avoid them – this is a Blocking foul (17.4).
  
  Some minor contact may occur in these circumstances but minor contact is not a foul.
  
  Extra: If Player A is not making a play at the disc, but is instead allowing a teammate to make a play at the disc, Player A may not move to impede an opponent. However if Player A is stationary, or does not intend to impede, this is not a violation, even if their actions do in fact impede an opponent.
  
  The key word in this rule is ‘solely’. The intent of the player’s movement can be partly motivated to prevent an opponent from taking an unoccupied path to the disc, so long as it is part of a general effort to make a play on the disc. If a trailing player runs into a player in front of them, it is nearly always a foul on the trailing player.
  
  After a turnover, and/or whenever a thrower is not at the pivot location, the defence must allow an unobstructed path by the offence to the disc and/or to the pivot location
12.6. All players must attempt to avoid contact with other players, and there is no situation where a player may justify initiating contact. This includes avoiding initiating contact with a stationary opponent, or an opponent’s expected position based on their established speed and direction. 'Making a play for the disc' is not a valid excuse for initiating contact with other players.

Annotation: Making a play on the disc

A player can be deemed to be “making a play on the disc” (Rule 12.6) when the disc is in the air and they are attempting to make contact with the disc in any way e.g. to catch it or block it.

When making a play at a disc, players need to ensure that they will not cause non minor contact with another player (neither their stationary position, nor their expected position based on their established speed and direction), before, during or after the attempt at the disc.

Minor contact is contact that involves minimal physical force and does not alter the movements or position of another player.

If non-minor contact does occur, the result of the play will likely not stand if the breach affected the play.

A breach affects the play if it is reasonable to assume that the outcome of the specific play may have been meaningfully different had the breach not occurred – eg if the player would not have been able to intercept the pass without causing significant contact with their opponent, or the opponent would have been able to make a play at the disc had the player not caused contact with them.

The relative skill, height and/or athletic ability, of the players involved should not typically be taken into account when considering if something affected the play or not.

Annotation: Resting a hand on an opponent

What: A defender is resting a hand in their opponents back to enable them to know where their opponent is, even if they are not looking at them

Result: This is a violation.

Why: It is not necessarily a foul, but it is a violation as per rule 15.1.1 which says “a player intentionally initiating minor contact is still a breach of the rules, but is to be treated as a violation, and not a foul.”

Annotation: Player positioning when the disc is in the air

What: Player A is chasing after the disc and slows down to ensure they can remain between Player B and the disc. Player B runs into the back of Player A and they both trip over.

Result: Player B has fouled Player A.

Why: Player A is allowed to slow down to make a play on the disc. Player B could have reasonably avoided Player A and is therefore initiating contact.

What: Player A is chasing after the disc and stops suddenly and runs immediately backwards into their approaching defender. Player B runs into the back of Player A.

Result: Player A has fouled Player B.

Why: Player B could not reasonably have avoided Player A, therefore Player A has initiated contact.

What: Player A is chasing after the disc and slows down and moves from side to side to prevent Player B from getting around them and making a play at the disc (eg ‘Boxing out’). Player B runs into the back of Player A. Player A catches the disc.

Result: Player B has fouled Player A. Player A has possession so does not need to make a call, or must call “play on” if they had made a call.

Why: Player A is allowed to slow down and to impede a player’s movement to make a play on the disc. Player B could have reasonably avoided Player A and is therefore initiating contact.

Extra: Impeding a player’s movement is different from initiating contact.

Some minor contact may occur in these circumstances but minor contact is not a foul.

What: Player A and Player B are teammates and are chasing after the disc. Player B slows down and moves from side to side to prevent an opponent, Player C, from getting around them and making a play at the disc. Player A catches the disc.

Result: Player C can call a violation against Player B.

Why: Player B is not making a play for the disc. Player C is making a play on the disc and therefore Player B is not allowed to intentionally impede their movement.

Extra: If Player B is stationary they are allowed to remain there, even if that impedes Player C’s attempt to make a play at the disc. However if Player B sticks out their arms to impede Player C – that is still considered a movement to impede Players C’s movements and is a violation.

What: Player A is stationary and waiting to catch the disc. Player B is running towards Player A, then jumps, intercepts the pass, and then collides with Player A

Result: Player B has fouled Player A.

Why: Rule 12.6 expressly says that making a play for the disc is not a valid excuse for initiating contact with other players.

Extra: When making a play at a disc, players need to insure that they will not cause an unavoidable collision with another player’s position, if stationary, or their established speed and direction, before, during or after the attempt at the disc.

What: Player A is stationary and waiting to catch the disc. Player B is running and then jumps in a way that would avoid player A and intercepts the pass. Player A moves into Player B’s path while Player B is in the air. There is contact between Player A and Player B.

Result: Player A has fouled Player B.

Why: Player A has initiated contact by moving to a position that a moving opponent will be unable to avoid. This is a blocking foul.
1. 12.6.1. If a player is not reasonably certain that they will be able to make a legal play at the disc before an opponent who is moving in a legal manner, they must adjust their movements to avoid initiating contact. If that adjustment is made, the result of the play still stands.
12.7. The player who initiates contact is deemed to be the player who:
1. 12.7.1. arrived at the point of contact after the opponent had already established a legitimate position at that point (either a stationary or moving opponent), or
2. 12.7.2. adjusted their movements in a way that created unavoidable contact with an opponent moving in a legal manner, when taking into account all players’ established position, speed and direction.
  
  Steinar's comment (unofficial!): Conflicting contact rules
  
  It would seem that 12.7.1 and 12.7.2 can both apply at the same time. However, if one is creating “unavoidable contact with an opponent” (12.7.2), one has not established a legitimate position, so in this case, 12.7.2 wins.
  
  There is much more to say on these issues, but I've generally deferred it to section 17 (on fouls) where more people will be looking for it.
12.8. Some minor contact may occur as two or more players move towards a single point simultaneously. Minor contact should be minimized but is not considered a foul.
Annotation: Moving towards a single point simultaneously

What: Two opposing players are moving towards the same point in order to make a play on the disc. They are both aware of each other and are aware that minor body contact may occur. Minor body contact does occur.

Result: Even though contact has occurred, this is not necessarily a foul.

Why: In circumstances where one player clearly initiates contact with another, the person who initiates the contact is the person who caused the foul (ie one player is stationary and another runs into them, or one player clearly has a right to a space and an opponent changes direction and impedes that space in an unavoidable way). However there are times when both players have a right to a space and neither player can be deemed to have initiated contact. In these circumstances, if minor body contact occurs (ie players lightly bump shoulders or hips) this is not necessarily deemed a foul, as both players were responsible for causing the contact and both players were aware that contact may occur.
- Scenario 1: Both players caused the contact and only minor body contact occurs.
  Result: The result of the play should stand.
- Scenario 2: Both players cause contact but the body contact is not minor (ie causes a player to fall over).
  Result: This is a foul by both players and it to be treated as an Offsetting Foul (17.9.2). The disc shall be returned to the thrower.
- Scenario 3: Both players cause body contact and only minor body contact occurs. However one player hits the arms of the other as they make a play for the disc.
  Result: Even though both players caused body contact, the player who initiated contact with the arms has caused a foul as this is not minor contact.
Extra: These scenarios should only be taken into account when both players have caused contact simultaneously. If one player clearly initiated the contact, that player has caused the foul.

If one player is not aware that contact is going to occur, the player who is aware that contact will occur should avoid the contact and call a Dangerous Play foul if appropriate.

As per rule 17.9.2.1 if this contact occurs after the disc has been caught, or after the relevant player/s involved can no longer make a play on the disc, this must be treated as an Indirect Foul (excluding contact related to Section 17.1).

Players involved in these incidents should be mindful that they often do not have the best perspective on who initiated the contact and should ask nearby players for their perspective.
12.9. Players may not use their arms or legs to obstruct the movement of opposing players.

Steinar's comment (unofficial!): Principle of verticality

USAU rules include a “principle of verticality” in that players have special rights on the area above their torso. WFDF has no such rule, and this is governed mostly by the normal foul rules; however, 12.9 takes on one task that would be covered by this principle. Namely, you cannot hold your arm over someone (e.g., their shoulder) to prevent them from legally jumping.
12.10. No player may physically assist the movement of another player, nor use an item of equipment or object to assist in contacting the disc.

Annotation: Assisting a players movement or using equipment

If an offense player physically assists the movement of another, or uses an item of equipment to assist in contacting the disc, this is a turnover – see rules 13.2.6, and 13.2.7.

If a defender physically assists the movement of a team-mate, or uses an item of equipment to assist in contacting the disc (e.g. throwing a hat in the direction of the disc), this is a violation. The intended receiver should be awarded possession.

Steinar's comment (unofficial!): Wall jump

Likewise, one should not jump onto a nearby wall (which often exists in tight indoor spaces, where the regular 3m buffer zone might not be available) to try to reach the disc. For one, it would be out-of-bounds if done by an offense player, since ground is defined to include walls (after a wall-jump incident in European indoors club). But even for defense players, it's probably not within the spirit of the rules and possibly unsafe.