Salt Lake City To Host 2021 U.S. Quidditch Cup
Jul 5, 2019, 9:18 AM
Utah Hex and University of Utah students playing as the Crimson Flyers battle during a game of quidditch in this file photo. (Laura Seitz, Deseret News)
(Laura Seitz, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – It promises to be a magical sporting event.
The Regional Athletic Complex in Salt Lake City will be hosting the 14th U.S. Quidditch Cup on April 17 – 18, 20201, according to a statement from RAC.
This will be the first time a major quidditch event will be held west of the Rocky Mountains.
“We are thrilled to be the first western host site of the U.S. Quidditch Cup, a one of a kind, exciting event for both players and attendees,” said Chris Laughlin with the Regional Athletic Complex. “The U.S. Quidditch Cup will be a great addition to the wide variety of sporting events hosted at this premier athletic facility and we look forward to introducing quidditch to our region.”
The U.S. Quidditch Cup is the national championships for U.S. Quidditch, featuring 84 teams from two divisions: collegiate and community, according to the RAC statement.
Quidditch is a mixed-gender, contact sport played by more than 450 teams worldwide, according to usquidditch.org.
“(Sixty) collegiate teams and 24 community teams will qualify through regional championships and at-large bids and have the opportunity to compete at US Quidditch Cup to be crowned the National Champions in their division,” the website states.
Quidditch is played with seven players to a team all mounted on brooms. Three chasers score goals by putting the quaffle (a volleyball) through any of three hoops at the opposite end of the field. A keeper defends the hoops, while two beaters throw bludgers (dodgeballs) at opposing players to temporarily knock them out of the game. Meanwhile, each team’s seeker tries to catch the snitch: an autonomous yellow-clad athlete who has a tennis ball in a custom-made velcro tail hanging from the back of their shorts, similar to flag football. A game of quidditch ends when the snitch tail is caught, and the capturing seeker’s team is awarded an additional 30 points.
According to RAC, the 2021 event in Salt Lake City is anticipated to draw around 7,000 attendees with a direct estimated economic impact of $2.6 million.
