The word "intramural" is derived from the Latin words "intra" (within) and "mural" (walls).  Intramural sports, then, are structured competitive/cooperative activities in the game form between teams/individuals within an agencies' boundaries.  Intramural sports are generally limited to participation among the participants which an agency serves.   Examples would include IU intramural sports (only IU students are eligible to play), Bloomington Parks and Recreation softball (citizens of the city of Bloomington), The Forum at Fishers Ice Hockey League (members of the Forum).  Generally, eligibility requirements are restrictive due to the funding systems used to support intramural programs (tax bases, membership fees, student activity fees).

Traditionally, intramural sports tend to be the "signature" program of recreational sports agencies.  Generally, they are the starting point from which agencies develop their overall programs.  This is due to the familiarity of sport participation, the high-profile nature of intramural sport programs, the large participation base, well-organized nature, highly structured, competitive/cooperative atmosphere, and the recognition of participants.  In fact, historically, the term "intramural sports" was used to describe recreational sports programs at colleges and universities.  By 1975, the popularity of other programs in the collegiate setting (instructional, informal, extramural, and club) and other cross-over program areas (fitness, outdoor recreation, aquatics) required the field to expand its terminology, and the term "recreational sports" was born.

Around the turn of the 20th century, municipal and community recreation departments, churches, schools (elementary and secondary), industries and private clubs offered a variety of sport events..  These events, while not thought of as "intramural sports" are in fact meeting our definition of sport played "within the walls" of a particular setting.  Intramural sport represents structured sport participation, which requires design, delivery and leadership for its provision, and becomes a "catch-all" term which we can apply to any setting.   A high quality intramural sports program encourages participation in voluntary and wholesome sport activities for everyone...the very definition of the "sport for all" concept!

Program of Events
The best intramural sports program reflects those activities which are best suited to the most participants.  The best intramural sports programs generally exhibit these features:

Needs, interests and preferences of participants are met by program offerings
Development of program with participant input -- usually accomplished through an assessment of participation base through the use of surveys, participant meetings or reliance on advice of advisory boards.

Balance of program offerings
Balanced offerings of the following types of intramural sports events/activities:

Individual Sports:  allow the individual to participate alone (ex:  singles tennis)
Dual Sports:  require another partner to participate (ex:   doubles badminton)
Group Sports:  allow various sized groups to participate (ex:   team free throw shooting contest)
Team Sports:  specific number of players who play as a unit or organized team (ex.  flag football)
Meet Sports:  organized competitions that include several events and are usually completed within a specified time, ranging from several hours to several days (ex.  swim meet)
Special Events:  non-traditional events, not usually practiced by the participant; generally take elements of traditional sports and add "twist" or new ways of delivering the programs (ex.  Spirit of Sport All-nighter)
Co-Recreational Sports:  balanced programming area that emphasizes fun, team spirit and social interaction with members of both sexes

Flexibility
Factors affecting program selection, including age, number of events, gender, time factors, skill levels, climate and season, levels of competition, budget limitations, physical capacity, area and facility availability, safety, equipment restraints, number of participants, leadership and supervisors.

When programming an intramural sports program the programmer needs to consider the possibilities of breaking the program down into smaller units of participation in order to provide the participant with the maximum amount of choice and in order to ensure the essentials of a well-balanced program.  Units of participation are select groupings that categorize participants for intramural or extramural play.  Examples of different units of participation include leagues broken down by gender, age groups, skill levels, housing units, organizations, physical characteristics, residential zones, etc.

Example:  University Intramural Basketball Program

Leagues offered:    Men, Women, Co-Recreational
Skill levels offered in each league:  Competitive, Intermediate, Casual
Participants also choose:  Greek Division, Off Campus Division, Residence Hall Division
May also choose:  Divisions offered by day and time of participant's need

Typical division of intramural basketball offered to participant:

Men's Off Campus Intermediate playing games at 5:00pm on Wednesdays OR
Women's Greek Competitive playing games at 6:00pm on Thursdays OR
Co-Rec Residence Hall Casual playing games at 2:00pm on Sundays

So....we have our leagues set up, our teams registered, and ready to play.   Are WE, as programmers, ready to allow our teams to tip-it-up?  NO!  We have to consider developing policies and regulations to govern our league!   Important....our policies and guidelines should be clearly stated and available to all participants before the event begins!

Program Policies and Regulations

Rules
So, what rules are we going to play by?  In our basketball league, listed above, could play by NCAA rules, NBA rules, National Federation (High School) rules, WNBA rules, or we could invent our own set of basketball rules, if we wanted to!   Who decides this?  Ultimately, as the recreational sports programmer, you do.   But in order to truly exemplify the concept of a "participant lead, participant run" program (a concept that is consistent with recreational sports philosophy), you should allow your basketball players to have a say in what rules they play by.  Making the decision at a captain's meeting would encourage opposing team captains to decide on the rules they play (adding to the participant's scope of choice) but also encourages cooperation among the opposing captains on deciding on which rules to play by.

So you and your program leaders have decided to play by NCAA rules.   Now YOU have to decide which rules are appropriate and inappropriate for your program.  Are you going to adopt the NCAA rule book by the letter, or are you going to make some program modifications in order to fit your program's needs.   For example, if you don't have the capacity to run a shot clock, this would be a rule you would need to modify and communicate to your participants.  If you have to get your games in under 1 hour, you may not be able to play a "stop clock" game.   You might have to consider a running clock until the last 2 minutes of the game.   Again, you will have to modify your rules to fit your needs.  Are you going to require teams to wear the uniforms stipulated by the NCAA?  This is another opportunity for you to modify your rules.  Remember, whatever you decide to modify, you MUST MAKE THESE CHANGES AVAILABLE TO YOUR TEAMS BEFORE THEY BEGIN PLAY!

Eligibility
How about eligibility?  Remember, intramural sports are sports played "within the walls" of an agency's jurisdiction.  Eligibility guidelines are developed to ensure fairness and to help eliminate controversy.  Generally, eligibility guidelines are broken down into 2 categories.

Individual Eligibility
These eligibility policies are used to govern an individual's ability to participate in an intramural sports program.  For example, in our example of a university intramural basketball league, listed above, we must spell out who is eligible to play in our program.  Are students who pay activity fees eligible?  How about faculty and staff of the university?  Do we allow people from outside the university to play?   If so, under what conditions?  Do we allow players to play for more than one team, or are they only allowed to play for one team during the season?  What if someone who is under the age of 18 wants to play?  Is there an age restriction on your programs?  These are policies which we, as programmers, must spell out clearly and enforce consistently in order to allow fair participation in our league.

Skill Level Eligibility
There will undoubtedly be people who meet individual eligibility policies, but their participation may create unfair advantages for certain teams in your league.   Generally, skill level eligibility policies are used to spell out your agency's stance on professional athletes, intercollegiate athletes, and club sport athletes and their participation in a program that is the equivalent of their pro, college or club sport.  For example, are you going to allow Reggie Miller to play in your intramural basketball league (he may want to!).  Would you allow a member of the college women's soccer team to play intramural soccer?  How about a member of the ice hockey club to play intramural ice hockey?  There is no right or wrong answer to these questions, but they are questions that you, as a recreational sports programmer, will undoubtedly have to face in your career.  These decisions will be based on your philosophy of what recreational sports should be to participants, and should be based on your knowledge of broad recreational sports philosophy.  Some restrictions that are typically placed on these participants include not allowing them to participate in your program, limiting the number of pro, college or club sport athletes competing on one team, enforcing a "waiting period" for a time after they are completed playing their sport (pro athletes must are ineligible to play in an intramural program for 3 years after their pro career is over), or developing a policy stating that pro, college or club sport athletes must compete in the most competitive league only.

Other Procedural Considerations discussed in class include:

Protests (rules and eligibility)
Forfeits (and ways to discourage forfeits)
Disciplinary Action (use of sportsmanship systems, program control, sanctions)
Rescheduling Games
Appeals Process
Accommodation

Extramural Sport
If intramural sport means, literally, "within the walls", then extramural sport means, "outside the walls."  Extramural sports usually take place as events that give the opportunity for participants from various intramural programs to compete against one another for some type of prize or championship.   Usually, these participants were winners of their particular intramural sport setting.  Participants in extramural sport games which strictly adhere to the formal definition of extramural sports are members of the winning all-setting championship team.   The NIRSA Flag Football National Championship is an example of an extramural sport.   Winners from all university intramural flag football programs around the country are extended an invitation to compete for the flag football "national championship".  It is usually up to individual intramural programs to determine who is eligible to represent their particular setting.  Another example of an extramural sport event is the ASA National Championship Tournament in softball, or the Little League World Series in youth baseball.