Red Bull Half Court
It's basketball – but not as you know it! Championing the world’s best streetballers, the Red Bull Half Court 3on3 tournament is set to unleash 8,000+ participants across 20+ countries - stay tuned for more countries to be updated in the calendar throughout the season. While teams advance by winning games, the Own the Court Bonus adds a tasty Red Bull twist, giving the team in each group that scored the most points a golden ticket to the next round. That's right – so even teams that don’t win the most games might still make it through!
Event Series
1 Tour Stop
29
Nov
Red Bull Half Court uses a unique set of rules based on the gameplay of the FIBA rules.
1. Each game has a 10-minute time cap with 21-points maximum for every game. If one team reaches 21 points before the 10-min regulation time, this team has won, and the game is over. If the game is tied at the end of regulation, the team who scores two points first wins the game.
If the game goes into overtime with a score of 20:20, then the final score should be recorded as 21:20, not 22:20.
2. All men’s games are to be played with the official Spalding Red Bull Half Court Size 7 ball, while all women’s games are to be played with the official Spalding Red Bull Half Court Size 6 ball.
3. If a team quits during any round, all of their previous and future games in that round will be cancelled and recorded as 20:0.
4. All teams must sign in 1.5 hours before the tournament starts, at the tournament location. No exceptions. Pre-registration is at the official registration page of the event (determined by each country).
5. Red Bull Half Court organisers reserve the right to disqualify any players or teams that disrupt the event, as indicated by the designated court monitor or game official.
Disruptive behaviour includes: excessive bad language, physical violence, threats and uncooperative attitudes towards officials and/or court monitors. Trying to arrange scores and/or collaborating with other teams to engineer the scoring bonus (collusion) will result in the offending teams being eliminated. This decision is at the sole discretion of the game referees and tournament organisers.
6. Teams will consist of at least three players and no more than four. Only three players can be on the court at any point, with one substitute. Three of the four players must be residents of the country where the tournament is held. One player is allowed to be a non-resident.
7. Players must be 16 or older by the event date. In some cases, players must be 18 years of age. Please check the entry conditions on the event's official registration page (determined by each country).
8. There are no changes to any teams after 10am (this may vary by country, depending on the tournament start time) on the day of the event. All rosters are final at that time.
9. For qualifiers, the first 16/32/64 (depending on registration numbers and courts available) teams who enter online will be chosen and placed into a randomly generated bracket.
Teams will then be split up into pools of four teams, randomly determined by Red Bull Half Court organisers the previous evening. Teams must register in advance before the beginning of the competition at the page for registration.
10. Tournament advancement: the tournament organiser has the right to change the tournament format at any point given local circumstances e.g. more or fewer than 32 teams participating.
01
Pool play:
A coin toss decides the first possession of every game. The team that wins the coin toss decides whether to take the ball or leave it to get it in potential overtime.
Games are 10 minutes long, with a running clock. The clock stops only during the final minute of the game. If the game is tied at the end of regulation time, overtime will be played. The first team to score two points in overtime wins the game.
Team fouls 7, 8 and 9 will be penalised with 1+1 free throws. If the first one is successful, a second one will be granted. Team foul 10 and any subsequent team fouls shall be penalised with two free throws and ball possession as stated in 3x3 FIBA rules.
The top two teams from each pool, based on the highest Own the Court score, advance to the next round.
02
Own The Court score increases:
The Own the Court Bonus is awarded to the team with the highest total number of game points scored (in four three-group games). If two teams have the same total amount of game points, the head-to-head winner of those two teams gets the bonus.
- A) Win: increase by five.
- B) Own the Court Bonus: increase by six.
If two teams have the same Own the Court score, the head-to-head winner of those two teams will advance to the next round.
If three teams have the same amount of Own the Court score after the group has been completed, the total of game points from all group games will decide which teams will advance.
If three teams have the same Own the Court score after the group has been completed and have the same total amount of game points scored, a sudden-death Free Throw Shootout will decide which teams will advance.
A sudden-death Free Throw Shootout will decide which teams will advance if three teams have the same number of wins and losses after the group has been completed and the total number of game points scored.
03
3-Point Shots
Introduced in 2024, 3-point spots will be marked by two circles with a three-foot diameter drawn two metres behind the arc. If a player's foot touches a 3-point spot while shooting and scoring, the shot is rewarded with three points.
04
In the case of Free Throw Shootout
Teams will draw lots to establish the order for the shootout.
Each team will select one shooter who will take a free throw.
If the free throw is missed, that team is out unless all the shooters in that round also miss.
Any remaining teams nominate a second player and the cycle is repeated until one team remains.
If all four team members have taken a free throw and the shootout has not been decided, the shooters cycle through the same order until a winner is established.
These rules apply for the first round of pool play. From the second round onwards knock-out games are played.
The first knock-out games should consist of the team that finished first in Group A (last four teams) playing the team that finished second in Group B (last four teams). The team that finished second in Group A playing the team that finished first in Group B.
The winning team from each national final will be qualified for the Red Bull Half Court World Finals in New York City, USA. Travel expenses will be covered as part of the prize. To be permitted to enter a team to the World Finals, a country has to organise a national competition with at least 16 teams participating in qualifiers/national final. If the prize is not claimed by the winning team, Red Bull reserves the right to appoint another team as representative.
The winners of each national final may change a maximum of one player from the roster of four players that competed at the National Final when competing at the World Final in New York City, USA. A minimum three of the four players representing their country at the World Final must be a resident of the country they are representing.
By participating, you consent to the terms of this Rules Overview and the Prize and Tournament Guidelines.