Lacrosse is a 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.
Box lacrosse, also known as boxla, box, or indoor lacrosse, is an indoor version of lacrosse played mostly in North America. The game originated in Canada in the 1930s, where it is more popular than field lacrosse. Lacrosse is Canada's official national summer sport. Box lacrosse is played between two teams of five players and one goalie each, and is traditionally played on an ice hockey rink once the ice has been removed or covered. The playing area is called a box, in contrast to the open playing field of field lacrosse. The object of the game is to use a lacrosse stick to catch, carry, and pass the ball in an effort to score by shooting a solid rubber lacrosse ball into the opponent's goal. The highest level of box lacrosse is the National Lacrosse League.
The World Box Lacrosse Championship (WBLC), formerly known as the World Indoor Lacrosse Championship (WILC), is an international box lacrosse tournament sponsored by World Lacrosse that is held every four years. Since the first tournament in 2003, Canada has won all five gold medals and is undefeated in all games. Canada hosted the first two tournaments in 2003 and 2007, the Czech Republic hosted in 2011, the Onondaga Nation, south of Syracuse, New York, hosted in 2015. The 2019 WILC was held in Langley, British Columbia, Canada.
The Onondaga people are one of the original five constituent nations of the Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) Confederacy in northeast North America. Their traditional homeland is in and around present-day Onondaga County, New York, south of Lake Ontario. They are known as Gana’dagwëni:io’geh to the other Iroquois tribes. Being centrally located, they are considered the "Keepers of the Fire" in the figurative longhouse that shelters the Five Nations. The Cayuga and Seneca have territory to their west and the Oneida and Mohawk to their east. For this reason, the League of the Iroquois historically met at the Iroquois government's capital at Onondaga, as the traditional chiefs do today.
The World Lacrosse Championship (WLC) is the international men's field lacrosse championship organized by World Lacrosse that occurs every four years.
The Scotland national indoor lacrosse team represents Scotland at box lacrosse. It is governed by Lacrosse Scotland.
The Iroquois or Haudenosaunee passport is a form of identification and an "expression of sovereignty" used by the nationals of the Six Nations.
England Lacrosse is the national governing body for lacrosse in England. The sport is managed through the Men's and Women's Playing Committees and the leagues administered by region: the South of England Men's Lacrosse Association (SEMLA), North of England Men's Lacrosse Association (NEMLA), South East Women's Lacrosse Association (SEWLA), South West Women's Lacrosse Association (SWWLA), and North Women's Lacrosse Association (NWLA). The England Lacrosse CEO is Mark Coups.
The 2011 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship was the third World Indoor Lacrosse Championship, an international box lacrosse tournament organized by the Federation of International Lacrosse every four years. It took place between 21 and 28 May 2011 in Prague, Czech Republic at the 4,900 seat Eden Arena, an Olympic-sized rink. The Canadian team was the defending champion and for the third time defeated the Iroquois Nationals in the finals, 13–6. The United States defeated the host Czech Republic 16–7 in the bronze medal game.
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 2007 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship was the second World Indoor Lacrosse Championship, an international box lacrosse tournament organized by the Federation of International Lacrosse every four years. It took place between May 14 and 20 at the Halifax Metro Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Canada was the defending champion and again beat the Iroquois Nationals in the final, this time 15–14 in overtime. Eight nations took part in this event, the six nations from the 2003 WILC and two newcomers - England and Ireland. There was an estimated 850,000 television viewers of the tournament in Canada and the games were streamed live in Europe.
The United States national indoor lacrosse team represents the U.S. in box lacrosse at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championship. Team USA has won the bronze medal in all four 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.
Czech Republic national indoor lacrosse team is the national box lacrosse team of the Czech Republic which regularly participates in World Indoor Lacrosse Championship. Team consists of amateur players, who are members of Czech box lacrosse league NBLL. A few Canadian players from the National Lacrosse League with Czech ancestors are also members of this team. Box lacrosse is the most popular form of lacrosse in the Czech Republic, the team has had better results than in field lacrosse.
The 2015 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship (WILC) was the fourth international box lacrosse championship organized by the Federation of International Lacrosse every four years. The 2015 WILC was hosted by the Onondaga Nation, south of Syracuse, New York, and took place between September 18 and 27. Canada defeated the host Iroquois Nationals 12–8 in the gold medal game, the same finals match-up featured in the first three indoor championships. Since the WILC started in 2003, Team Canada is undefeated with an overall record of 23–0.
First Nations Lacrosse Association is the governing body of lacrosse for First Nations within Canada and Native American tribes within the United States. The First Nations Lacrosse Association (FNLA) oversees five national teams, the Iroquois men's national lacrosse team, the Iroquois men's national under-19 lacrosse team, the Haudenosaunee women's national lacrosse team, the Haudenosaunee women's national under-19 lacrosse team, and the Iroquois national indoor lacrosse team. These teams are recognized by World Lacrosse for international competition, making them the only indigenous peoples' national teams sanctioned in any sport.
Miles Thompson is an Iroquois professional lacrosse player who played for the University at Albany in NCAA Division I college lacrosse and plays for the Georgia Swarm in the National Lacrosse League and Chaos Lacrosse Club in the Premier Lacrosse League. He shared the 2014 Tewaaraton Trophy with his brother Lyle.
The Haudenosaunee Nationals Men’s Lacrosse Team, formally known as the Iroquois Nationals, represents the Iroquois Confederacy in international field lacrosse competition. They are currently ranked third in the world by World Lacrosse after winning Bronze at the 2018 World Lacrosse Championship. The team is organized by the First Nations Lacrosse Association.
The Haudenosaunee women's national under-19 lacrosse team represents the Iroquois Confederacy in international women's lacrosse competitions. They are currently ranked tenth by World Lacrosse following the 2019 world championship.
The 2019 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship (WILC) was the fifth international box lacrosse championship organized by World Lacrosse every four years. It was held 19-28 September 2019 at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, British Columbia, Canada. The winner of the WILC wins the Cockerton Cup, named for All-American lacrosse player Stan Cockerton.
The IIJL World Junior Lacrosse Championship is an annual international box lacrosse tournament for players aged 20 and under.
