World Lacrosse announced a major strategic step towards the adoption of a shot clock in international field lacrosse. Moved through a vote of WL full members, this was adopted almost unanimously. The current proposal stands at setting an 80-second shot clock for both men’s and women’s lacrosse. However, the WL Rules Committee will finalize all details of the rule changes. It will also introduce the shot clock, starting from January 2026 for the men and from January 2027 for the women.
This is huge for the sport. The shot clock really is a new concept— it was introduced to the NCAA game in 2019 and has changed the game a lot since that time.
Before the shot clock, there was no possession limit for the teams, and it was possible to hold the ball for an elongated period vexing the fan experience. The game got devoid of speed and dynamism as there wasn’t anything that would stop an offense from stalling except for a hit-or-miss stall warning. Most fans have no idea about the absolute change in lacrosse with the implementation of the shot clock over the past five years. The game has evolved to incorporate this very essential aspect that indeed enables faster gameplay and Reduces reliance on way-too-formulaic plays. This builds up to a much more enjoyable fan viewing experience and a more engaging playing field for the athletes. This became quite evident last summer at the World Lacrosse Championships in San Diego.
I was lucky enough to attend this game, and I couldn’t believe how vastly different the sport was without a shot clock. Even the better teams in the world were focusing on attempting to have really long possessions, similar to milking the clock in a football game by keeping it on the ground. Every statistical element of the game dropped as teams took fewer shots. the announcement by World Lacrosse to employ a shot clock at both men’s and women’s levels, which would be another stringent norm for the game, will make this play more exciting to fans—a key component toward the global growth of the game.
If the game’s exciting to young fans, they’ll be more apt to pick up a stick themselves and join in playing the sport. That is what growing the game is all about. The sport must grow further, certainly on an international basis, and certainly this would be a step in that direction.
