Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively modified by European colonists, reducing the violence, to create its current collegiate and professional form.
The World Lacrosse Men's Championship, formerly World Lacrosse Championship, is the international men's field lacrosse championship organized by World Lacrosse that occurs every four years.
Lacrosse in England is an amateur sport played mainly by community based clubs and university teams. Field lacrosse was introduced to England in 1876 by William George Beers and other Canadians who toured the country playing exhibition matches. A second tour was arranged in 1883; by then England had 60 clubs playing regular fixtures in Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Lancashire, Middlesex and Yorkshire.
Canada won its second gold medal at the 2006 World Lacrosse Championship, held in London, Ontario from 14 to 22 July. The Canadians defeated the United States in the final 15–10 in front of 7,735 fans. It marked only the second loss by the Americans since the championship was founded in 1967. The first was Canada's historic 17–16 overtime win in the 1978 final. Canadian Geoff Snider was the tournament MVP for his outstanding face-off performance, winning 19 of 28 draws in the final.
Sport in Israel plays an important role in Israeli culture and is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Sport. The most popular sports in Israel have traditionally been Association football (mainly) and basketball (secondly) – with the first being considered the national sport – in both of which Israeli professional teams have been competitive internationally. Israel is an international center for Jewish sport around the world and since 1932 the Maccabiah Games, an Olympic-style event for Jewish athletes, is held in the country. Despite Israel's location in the Asian continent, the Israeli sports associations in various sports belong to the European associations due to the refusal of many Arab Asian countries to compete with Israeli athletes.
The Dutch Lacrosse Association is the official governing body of lacrosse in the Netherlands. The Nederland Lacrosse Bond sponsors both a men's and women's national team. The national team programs are supported by a burgeoning domestic club league. The NLB is a full member of both the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) and the European Lacrosse Federation (ELF).
Sport in Serbia includes football, basketball, handball, tennis, volleyball, and water polo. Professional sports in Serbia are organized by sporting federations and leagues. Serbian professional sports includes multi-sport clubs, biggest and most successful of which are Crvena Zvezda, Partizan, Radnički and Beograd in Belgrade, Vojvodina in Novi Sad, Radnički in Kragujevac, Spartak in Subotica. Serbia had successes in basketball, winning the Olympic silver medal and Nikola Jokic winning 3 NBA MVPs, as well as the 2023 NBA Championship and Finals MVP, Novak Djokovic winning a record setting 24th Grand Slam, and in handball, volleyball and water polo as well.
Sports play a significant part in the life of many Czechs who are generally loyal supporters of their favourite teams or individuals.
The 2008 Men's U–19 World Lacrosse Championship (U–19) was held at Percy Perry Stadium in Coquitlam, British Columbia from July 3 to July 12. The event was sponsored by the International Lacrosse Federation. This international field lacrosse tournament is held every four years, and teams are composed of players that are under the age of nineteen.
World Lacrosse (WL), formerly the Federation of International Lacrosse, is the international governing body of lacrosse, responsible for the men's, women's, and indoor versions of the sport. It was established in 2008 by the merger of the previously separate men's and women's international lacrosse associations. Its headquarters are in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States.
The 2009 Women's Lacrosse World Cup, the eighth World Cup played, is the preeminent international women's lacrosse tournament. The tournament was held at SK Slavia Praha Sport Centre in Prague, Czech Republic from June 17 to June 27, 2009.
The Welsh Lacrosse Association (WLA) is the governing body for lacrosse in Wales. It was recognized by the International Federation of Women's Lacrosse Associations in 1972, the first year of the IFWLA. It is one of 34 full members of the Federation of International Lacrosse, the current international governing body for men's and women's lacrosse. The WLA is responsible for international competitions, including the International Festival of Lacrosse at Ebbw Vale, Blaenau Gwent county borough in 1992, the first Welsh men's international game in 85 years and the first to be played in Wales. WLA manages the Welsh men's and women's national lacrosse teams that play in the European Lacrosse Championships, the World Lacrosse Championships, and the Women's Lacrosse World Cup.
The Canada national indoor lacrosse team represents Canada in international tournaments of indoor lacrosse. It is the best national box lacrosse team in the world, having won all five World Indoor Lacrosse Championships, starting with the 2003 ILF World Indoor Lacrosse Championship held in Canada. Team Canada has never lost a game in the tournament. Their biggest rivals are the Iroquois Nationals, who have finished in second place in all four tournaments.
The United States national indoor lacrosse team represents the U.S. in box lacrosse at the World Lacrosse Box Championships. Team USA has won the bronze medal in all five WILC tournaments. The team is organized by US Lacrosse, the national governing body. US Indoor Lacrosse was named to form and manage the 2007 and 2011 Teams. The roster usually consists of professional players, some of which play in the National Lacrosse League or Major League Lacrosse.
Lacrosse in Israel is a minor sport, with 700 players as of June 2015.
The 2018 World Lacrosse Championship was the 13th edition of the international men's field lacrosse tournament for national teams organized by the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL). As many as 50 countries were expected to compete in the tournament; with the official total coming in at 46, which made the 2018 WLC the largest of all-time. The games were held in Netanya, Israel on 12–21 July 2018. The United States won the tournament, its 10th championship in the history of the event.
First Nations Lacrosse Association is the governing body of lacrosse for First Nations within Canada and Native American tribes within the United States.
The Israel men's national lacrosse team is governed by the Israel Lacrosse Association. Their best finish was at the 2016 European Lacrosse Championship, winning the silver medal. Israel finished in 7th place at the 2014 World Lacrosse Championship. In both tournaments, England defeated Israel by one goal in the single-elimination round.
The Haudenosaunee Nationals Indoor Lacrosse Team, known as the Haudenosaunee Nationals, represents the Iroquois Confederacy in international box lacrosse competitions. They are currently ranked second in the world by World Lacrosse and have won silver medals in all five World Indoor Lacrosse Championships. The team is organized by the First Nations Lacrosse Association.
The European Box Lacrosse Championship (EBLC) is the international men's box lacrosse championship organized by the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) and European Lacrosse Federation (ELF) that occurs every four years.
