What is Royal Shrovetide Football? Dates, rules, history, teams, winners, more

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As the worst of the bleak midwinter begins to give way to the green shoots of spring, the English market town of Ashbourne marks Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday with a communal descent into anarchy as the annual Royal Shrovetide Football match takes place.

An ancient form of 'mob' or 'medieval' football, the contest is famous for the violence dished out by competitors. The event has taken place at the same location for centuries and remains a highlight of the local calendar to this day.

Each year thousands of competitors take to the town's streets and surrounding fields in a match that prompts global attention, and a few raised eyebrows.

- Royal Shrovetide Football: Inside England's most chaotic game

When is it? Where is it? And how can I watch it?

When: The 2026 Royal Shrovetide Football match will take place on Feb. 17 and 18 (Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday). Play begins at 2 p.m. and ends at 10 p.m. on each day.

Where: Ashbourne, Derbyshire.

How to watch: Royal Shrovetide Football is not broadcast on television so to take in the action live you will need to go to Ashbourne and watch from a safe distance.

Royal Shrovetide Football history

Shrovetide football is known to have been played in Ashbourne since at least 1667, however the game has likely been played for far longer. Records of some of the earliest meetings were lost in a fire towards the end of the 19th Century.

There are numerous recordings of various forms of 'medieval' football matches being played at the time of religious festivals across the British Isles during the Middle Ages but many traditional contests died away when sports such as 'association' football and rugby were codified by public school graduates in the Victorian period.

Shrovetide football continues to be played in three locations: the Royal Shrovetide Football match in Ashbourne, Scoring the Hales in Alnwick, Northumberland and Atherstone Ball Game in Atherstone, Warwickshire.

The reason behind the Ashbourne game being termed 'Royal' is disputed.

Some say it got its name in 1928 when the then-Prince of Wales -- later King Edward VIII -- 'turned up' the ball (the act of throwing the ball into the crowd to start the game). King Charles III -- then the Prince of Wales -- turned up the ball in 2003.

Others claim it took on its 'Royal' name after a Shrovetide football was gifted to Princess Mary, daughter of King George V, when she was was married in 1922 on Shrove Tuesday.

Whatever the reason, the sizeable crowd and combative nature of play causes shops and other businesses in Ashbourne to board up their premises to reduce the chance of accidental damage. Cars are advised to be removed from streets in the town centre.

After an invitation-only three-course meal at the local leisure centre, the ball is 'turned up' from a plinth, usually by a well-respected local, from the Shawcroft car park -- named after the field on which the modern development now stands.

What are the rules?

Once the ball is 'turned up', the opposing teams (known as Up'ards and Down'ards) attempt to get it to their corresponding goal. Unlike in association football, each team attempts to manoeuvre the ball back to their own goal, rather than scoring in the opponents' goal.

The goals are stone obelisks located three miles apart on opposite ends of the town. A ball is 'goaled' when it is tapped against one of the stones three successive times.

If a goal is scored -- or 'goaled' in the local parlance -- before 6 p.m. then a new ball is 'turned up' and play resumes. If a ball is 'goaled' after that time then play ends for the day.

The ball is very rarely kicked -- it is carried, thrown or usually batted towards a side's goal by clawing hands that reach up from a series of 'hugs' made up of dozens or even hundreds of people. 'Hugs' bear some resemblance to a rugby scrum but without the choreography.

The nature of the 'hugs' means the ball often travels through the town centre, on the river and in the surrounding fields. Marshals ensure a level of safety is maintained.

Rules in brief

Official rules are hard to come by but there are a few recognised laws that players must adhere by:

The game cannot be contested in churchyards, cemetries or places of worship, private property and a few designated areas of no play, but otherwise the game can take place anywhere in Ashbourne.
There is no limit to the number of players that can take part.
Committing murder or manslaughter is of course illegal and unnecessary violence is frowned upon (note: not prohibited).
The ball cannot be carried in a motorised vehicle or hidden, for example in a bag, coat or rucksack.

What type of ball is used?

The Royal Shrovetide ball is bigger and heavier than a normal football, owing to the fact it is made with real leather and packed with cork chippings that ensure it will float if and when it ends up in the river. The balls each weigh around 4 lbs.

The hand-painted balls -- there is one for each day -- often reflect the 'turners up' selected for each year. While flags and crowns are a recurring theme, previous balls have also depicted shopfronts, coats of arms and cars.

Many of the balls from previous years are on display in local pubs, although some are lost during the course of the game.

How are the teams selected?

Unlike 'modern' association football where allegiances are often passed down through generations or picked on whim based on kit or their appeal in video games, Royal Shrovetide Football teams are traditionally based on an individual's place of birth.

If a competitor is born on the north side of Henmore Brook -- a tributary of the River Dove that runs through the town -- they are an Up'ard. If a competitor is born on the south side of the brook, they are a Down'ard.

Up'ards try to 'goal' the ball at a stone obelisk marking the site of the old Clifton Mill and Down'ards at a near-identical marker for the old Sturston Mill three miles away.