EDDIE IZZARD

NEW SPORTS
Jorkyball, a fast-paced
form of football, could
be just the thing for sports
centres looking to fill a
small space with something
that excites members
and generate revenue
BY TOM WALKER
JORKYBALL
When French petrol station
manager Gilles Paniez
came up with a new form
of football in his garage in
Lyon in 1987, he probably
didn’t foresee the impact his newly
invented game would eventually have.
For the first three years, Paniez and his
friends would be the only people to play
jorkyball – a high-intensity version of the
beautiful game – when, rather unexpectedly,
the sport was exported to Italy, thanks
to its inclusion as an exhibition sport at the
1990 FIFA World Cup.
Leonardo Giangreco Biancheri, an Italian
convert to jorkyball who had met Paniez,
struck a deal to have the sport featured in
the fanzone outside the Stadio Olimpico in
Rome – the main venue for the event.
As a result, the sport spread rapidly in
Italy, and by the end of 1999, the number of
jorkyball courts had reached 100.
It grew in France too, with jorkyball clubs
popping up in around 35 locations.
For more than two decades, jorkyball
enjoyed a reputation as a popular
underground sport in both countries,
remaining so largely due to having no
centralised organisation to develop it.
NEW BEGINNINGS
However, there’s now a new push to spread
jorkyball globally – a drive orchestrated by
the same man who first took the sport to
Italy – Leonardo Giangreco Biancheri.
What you need
The court
An enclosed, rectangle space with
at least one transparent wall to allow
fans and referees to see the action
Length: 9.80m (minimum 9.50m)
Width: 4.80 m (min 4.50m)
Height: 2.70 m (min 2.50m)
Goal size: 110 x 110 cm
The ball: Hand-made felt, weighs 200g
Official supplier: 3bble
Tel: +39 (0)689 277 720
info@3bble.com
www.3bble.com
After introducing jorkyball to Italy
in those early days, Biancheri left for
London where he enjoyed a successful and
lucrative career in banking.
More than 20 years later, he’s is
back in Italy and in 2014 – with capital
raised during his banking career – he set
up a company, 3bble, with the aim of
introducing jorkyball to new markets.
3bble is the official supplier of jorkyball
courts and balls and works closely with the
newly established Jorkyball International
Federation (JIF) – the sport’s world
governing body. Thanks to Biancheri’s
efforts in the past 18 months, the sport
is going global and JIF currently has 12
countries affiliated to it.
HOW TO PLAY
The rules for jorkyball are simple and help
make it a fast-paced sport. Each match
is played inside a “caged” court between
teams of two players – consisting of one
forward and one defender. The roles are
appointed before the match and have to be
reversed for each set, the forward becomes
the defender and vice versa.
The forward is allowed to move around
the entire court, while the defender is not
allowed to cross into the opposition half.
The walled court measures 9.80m x 4.80 m
– so is slightly smaller than a squash court.
Matches are based on a best of three sets
format, with each set being won by the
team to first score seven goals.
“This is a sport for everyone,” says Alessio
Di Maio, president of JIF. “It’s great for
children, due to the small dimensions of
the court, and perfect for adults who are
looking for an intensive sport which will
give them a fitness workout. As it’s basically
football in a small space, the rules are
easy to learn and there are no specialist
equipment needs.”
Biancheri adds that jorkyball is a great
way to keep fit – for all ages. “Jorkyball
is intense,” he says. “Playing 50 minutes
is equal to playing around three hours of
11-a-side football. There’s no let up.”
The small space needed also means that
a jorkyball court can be fitted pretty much
anywhere – and this is where Biancheri
sees a great opportunity for the sport
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sportsmanagement.co.uk issue 4 2015 © Cybertrek 2015