Rally20™ Official Rules

1.1 Rally20™ is OutRally's badminton rally game and competition series. Partners keep one rally alive together, and the count of consecutive shots is the score.

1.2 These are the official Rally20 rules. Only rules published by OutRally at outrally.com/rally20/rules are official. Each version has a number and an effective date, and earlier versions stay available.

1.3 Official attempts (at Season events and certified venues) follow every rule on this page. Everyday play in the OutRally app follows the rules of play in sections 5 to 7. Everyday results are self-reported and appear on Top lists, not on the official Rally20 Leaderboard.

1.4 Top list entries must be recorded with the camera in the OutRally app. Videos imported from a photo library are not accepted. The start and end may be trimmed in the app; no other editing is allowed. Each recording may be entered once, on the Top lists for the day, week and month in which it is registered with OutRally.

2.1 Pair (1+1): two players, one on each side of the net.

2.2 Squad (2+2): four players, two on each side of the net. In Season 0, Squad is played as exhibition only. Official Squad play opens in Season 1 (spring 2027).

3.1 Pair divisions:

• Men's: two men, 15 or older.
• Women's: two women, 15 or older.
• Mixed: one man and one woman, 15 or older.
• Family: a parent, grandparent or legal guardian with a child aged 6 to 14.
• Junior U15: two children aged 6 to 14.
• Senior 60+: two players aged 60 or older, any gender.

3.2 Squad divisions:

• Open: any four players.
• Family: four players from the same family, including at least one child aged 6 to 14.
• Junior: four children aged 6 to 14.
• Senior: four players aged 60 or older.

3.3 Age is the age a player reaches on December 31 of the season year. Children in Junior and Family divisions must turn 6 or older that year.

3.4 Players aged 15 to 17 may enter adult divisions with a parent's or guardian's consent.

3.5 A pair in which both players are 60 or older chooses either the Senior 60+ division or the matching adult division.

3.6 Rally20 is for everyday players. The following players do not appear on the official Leaderboard, but they are welcome to play exhibitions: current professional players; players currently on a national ranking list, including junior rankings; and current college varsity players. Players declare their own eligibility. A false declaration disqualifies the result.

4.1 Each player may form up to two Pair partnerships per season, across all Pair divisions. A Family pair does not count toward this limit, for the adult or for the child.

4.2 Each pair has one official attempt per season. An official attempt is three rallies, played back to back with up to 2 minutes of rest between rallies. The best rally counts. The pair may stop before the third rally. After the attempt, the pair is locked: the same two players cannot enter again that season.

4.3 Each player may join one Squad per season. A Squad does not use the player's Pair entries. Each Squad enters under a team name. OutRally may refuse any team name that is offensive.

4.4 Rankings are always by pair or by team. There are no individual rankings.

5.1 Pair: each partner stays inside their Rally Box, from the short service line to the back boundary line and between the singles sidelines. The lines are part of the Rally Box.

5.2 The rally ends if a whole foot lands outside the Rally Box. This includes the Red Front Zone, between the net and the short service line. (Standard badminton does not restrict foot position during a rally; this is a Rally20 rule.)

5.3 Squad: the Rally Box uses the doubles sidelines, from the short service line to the back boundary line. The Red Front Zone rule is the same.

5.4 Official attempts are played on a standard indoor badminton court.

6.1 Before an official attempt, the players may warm up for up to 2 minutes. The attempt starts when the players say they are ready and the official starts the attempt.

6.2 The serve follows Section 9 of the BWF Laws of Badminton. In Pair, the server and receiver stand in diagonally opposite singles service courts. In Squad, they stand in diagonally opposite doubles service courts, and the receiver is the player diagonally opposite.

6.3 In each rally, the first service fault does not count, and the players may serve once more. From the second serve, the rally is official.

6.4 The official shuttle for the season is one model chosen by OutRally.

6.5 If there is outside interference, such as a shuttle from another court or a person walking onto the court, the official may restart the rally. A restart does not use a rally.

7.1 A shot is every hit that crosses the net, starting with the serve as shot 1. A shuttle that touches the net and still crosses counts, on the serve and during the rally.

7.2 The rally ends when any of these happens:

• the shuttle touches the floor;
• the shuttle does not cross the net;
• a whole foot lands outside the Rally Box, or in the Red Front Zone (section 5);
• the shuttle hits the ceiling, a light or any object outside the court;
• the same player hits the shuttle twice in a row;
• in Squad, both players on one side hit the shuttle before it crosses the net;
• a player or a racket touches the net;
• the shuttle touches a player's body or clothing.

7.3 Official time runs from the serve to the last valid shot. A rally that is still going at 3:00 ends at 3:00.

8.1 On Board: 20 consecutive shots in one rally. A rally that ends before 20 shots has no result and is not recorded or published. If none of the three rallies reaches 20 shots, the attempt has no result, and the attempt is used.

8.2 Full Rally: 3 minutes without the shuttle touching the floor.

8.3 R20 Score = the number of consecutive shots in one rally, up to 3:00 of official time. A pair's result is its best rally. The scoring method changes only through the yearly rules review (section 11).

8.4 Squad Participation: on each side, the effective shots are twice the shots of the player who hit fewer. A difference of 1 shot is not counted. Participation = effective shots ÷ total shots. A Squad's R20 Score is its effective shots in one rally, and a Squad is On Board at 20 effective shots. The Participation method is a Season 0 trial.

8.5 Ranking is by the R20 Score of the best rally. Pair: if scores are equal, the shorter official time of that rally ranks higher. Squad: if scores are equal, the higher Participation ranks higher, then the shorter official time of that rally. If results are still equal, the second-best rally decides. If they are still equal, the place is shared.

9.1 Every official attempt has an official who counts shots and time in each rally and records the result. The attempt is also filmed in one uncut take with the whole court in view.

9.2 The official's record is the result. The video is the evidence. Players may ask for a review within 10 minutes after the result is announced. The head official decides from the video, and that decision is final.

9.3 The official Rally20 Leaderboard is published by OutRally. It is a Rally20 ranking only and is not a ranking of any badminton governing body.

10.1 Playing under someone else's identity, hiding ineligibility, editing or faking video, or tampering with a result cancels the player's results for the season. Serious cases may lead to a ban for the following season. OutRally makes the decision.

10.2 Every player signs the event participant agreement and photo and video release before an official attempt. A parent or guardian signs for a player under 18.

10.3 Wear court shoes, warm up, and stop at once if you feel unwell.

10.4 A parent or guardian must be present for every Junior and Family attempt.

10.5 Leaderboards show players under 18 by first name and last initial only. Children's videos are not public without a parent's or guardian's consent. Children under 13 do not have their own accounts in the OutRally app; a parent or guardian takes part through their own account.

11.1 OutRally writes and publishes the Rally20 rules. A Rally20 Rules Committee, chaired by OutRally, advises on changes. OutRally makes the final decision.

11.2 Rules change between seasons. During a season, OutRally changes them only for safety or to correct a clear error, and publishes every change as a new version.

11.3 These rules, including their text and diagrams, are © 2026 OUTRALLY LLC and are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0). You may share them unchanged, with credit to OutRally and a link to outrally.com/rally20/rules. You may not publish changed or adapted versions.

11.4 The license covers the rules text only. It grants no rights to the Rally20™ or R20™ names or logos, which are trademarks of OUTRALLY LLC. Running an event, competition or leaderboard under these names requires OutRally's written permission.