Grow the Game®

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Did You Know There Is Box Lacrosse In France?

Only a few years ago, there was little to no box lacrosse in France. There was a small, but growing, field presence in the country, but beyond that, growth was extremely limited. I’m not exactly sure what changed, but something did, and the sport is poised to continue to rise now that a solid foundation has been laid.

The BoxMania tournament takes place in November in Lille, France, and it is definitely making its way onto my bucket list over the next couple of years, assuming my rotator cuff holds out.

It would be great to go to France in general, but it would be even better to help spur the growth of lacrosse over there… especially since they gave the game its modern name.

The level of box lacrosse over there is not particularly high… in fact, it’s still relatively low. The goalies don’t have their angles down (or big pads), many players still tend to dodge the alley, few wear box jerseys, and the skill level is not where it needs to be to compete internationally. But it’s still so early in the evolution of French box lacrosse that I could honestly care less. It’s all part of Growing the Game, and I love what I’m seeing here.

In the above video, one team stands out above the rest, and those are the guys in black and blue. A lot of those guys play for Aitcom Pardubice, which is a Czech team, and that is the level the current French players have to be shooting for right now. Within a couple of years, I could see some of the guys in the video getting there. The majority of the guys out there played hard, took and gave some big hits and enjoyed playing box. To start out, that’s more than enough.

Interested in checking out Boxmania for yourself in November of 2013? You have a year to plan! Hit up their Facebook page for more details.