Quidditch

Linked from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quidditch
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The official rules of Quidditch are (partially) described in Rowling's charity publication Quidditch Through the Ages. They are said to have been laid down in 1750 by the Department of Magical Games and Sports.

Some of the more common rules are as follows:

* Players must not stray over the boundary lines of the pitch, although they may fly as high as desired. The Quaffle must be surrendered to the opposition if any player leaves the boundary. (Quidditch matches in the Harry Potter films show players often straying over the boundary lines and even around the spectator towers.)
* 'Time out' may be called at any time by the Captain of a team. Time out may be extended to two hours if a game has already lasted for more than twelve hours. Failure to return to the pitch after this time will lead to the team being disqualified.
* Penalties can be awarded to teams by the referee. A single Chaser may take the penalty by flying from the central circle towards the scoring area. The opposing team's Keeper may attempt to stop the shot being scored, but no other players may interfere.
* Contact is allowed, but a player may not take hold of another player's broomstick or any part of their anatomy. (Draco Malfoy breaks this rule in The Prisoner of Azkaban by grabbing Harry Potter's broom tail in order to stop him from seizing the Snitch.)
* No substitution of players is allowed throughout the game, even if a player is too injured to continue to play (rare exceptions may be made when the game continues for a great length of time, and players become too fatigued to continue playing).
* Players may take their wands onto the pitch, but they must not be used on or against any players, any players' broomsticks, the referee, any of the four balls, or the spectators.

Quidditch Fouls

Rowling writes that there are seven hundred Quidditch fouls listed in the Department of Magical Games and Sports records, but most of these fouls are not open to the public, owing to the Department's supposed fear the wizards/witches who read the fouls "Might get ideas". In actuality, of course, not listing all 700 fouls meant she need only invent a handful for publication. It is claimed that all 700 occurred during the very first Quidditch World Cup. The most common of those fouls which are described are named below:

* Blagging: No player may seize any part of an opponent's broom to slow or hinder the player.
* Blatching: No player may fly with the intent to collide.
* Blurting: No player may lock broom handles with the intent to steer an opponent off course.
* Bumphing: Beaters must not hit Bludgers towards spectators.
* Cobbing: Players must not use their elbows against opponents.
* Flacking: Keepers must not defend the posts from behind by punching Quaffles out of the hoops - goals must be defended from the front.
* Haversacking: Chasers must not still be in contact with the Quaffle as it passes through a hoop (the Quaffle must be thrown through).
* Quaffle-pocking: Chasers must not tamper with the Quaffle in any way.
* Snitchnip: No player other than the Seeker may touch or catch the Golden Snitch.
* Stooging: No more than one Chaser is allowed in the scoring area at any one time.