The quick version
Mark two 4 m squares with 9 m between their facing edges. Take three serves each in turn. Hit the shuttle before it touches the ground and aim for the other square. A landing inside that square, including its line, earns you a point; a shot that lands elsewhere earns the opponent a point. First to 16 wins with a two-point lead; from 15–15, alternate individual serves.
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Two squares and a clear gap
Use crossminton rackets and a red Fun shuttle designed for recreational play. Lay two 4 m-by-4 m squares 9 m apart, facing one another. Use flat markers, with room to move outside every edge; avoid rocks and raised cords in the running area. Mark a service line halfway through each square, 2 m behind its front edge. Choose calm conditions and stop if the shuttle becomes uncontrollable.
Toss a coin: the winner chooses the initial server and the other chooses an end. Play one set. The first server makes three serves, then the opponent makes three, regardless of who won those rallies. Remember the serve count separately from the score.
Keep the shuttle in flight
Serve from the rear half
Wait until the receiver is ready. Stand inside your square, behind or on its middle service line, with a foot on the ground. Strike the whole shuttle below your racket-hand wrist. A missed or illegal serve loses the rally; there is no second serve.
Return once
Alternate one racket strike each. You may move outside your square to reach the shuttle. Do not catch, carry or hit it twice, and do not let it strike your body. Aim for the opponent's square; there is no minimum crossing height.
Call the landing
A shuttle touching the ground inside a square or on its boundary wins the point for its sender. If it lands short, long or wide, its sender loses. Once you strike an otherwise-out shuttle, the rally continues. A body contact or double hit loses the point.
Reset fairly
Say the score and who serves next. Replay a rally interrupted by a person or another ball, using the same server and serve count. Agree a replay for an uncertain line call. Wait for the entire playing corridor to clear before serving again.
Reach 16 with a two-point lead
At 15–15 change to one serve each until somebody leads by two. That player wins the set. For this single-set house session, swap ends when either player first reaches 8 so each experiences both directions; keep the existing score and serve sequence. This halfway swap differs from the tournament match schedule.
Help the first game run smoothly
Start gently enough that both people can return several shots. A reachable return to the center gives a new player a better first rally than a full-power winner. The required space is substantial even without a net: the smaller layout alone is 17 m long before run-off.
Already know the game?
Ideas & Twists
Choose a variation together before you start.
Crossminton · See main rules
Suggested house variationChoose a landing half
Mark each receiving square into left and right halves. Before serving, the server names one half of the opponent's square; the receiver names one half of the server's. Only those halves are legal landing targets for that rally, including the center divider. Volleys remain legal everywhere. Keep normal point scoring and play to 16. Each new serve lets both players change the tactical target.
Crossminton · See main rules
Suggested house variationCooperative crossings
Replace opposing scores with one shared rally count. Count one each time the shuttle legally reaches the other player and is returned; the serve does not count. A drop or out landing resets the count. After ten serves total, record your longest rally. Alternate server after every attempt and choose a reachable central flight rather than trying to beat your partner.
Crossminton · See main rules
Suggested house variationFront-court bonus
Mark the front half of each square. A shuttle that lands there untouched earns its sender two points; all other won rallies earn one. The service landing is worth only one so a short serve does not dominate. Keep the 16-point target with a two-point lead, and switch to single serves once both scores are at least 15. Now a short placement can outweigh a powerful deep shot.
Crossminton · See main rules
Suggested house variationAlternate-shot pairs
Use four people, two per square, and a larger agreed run-off area. Partners alternate hits whenever the shuttle comes to their side; track each pair's next hitter even across rallies. A wrong partner hit loses the point. The designated next hitter serves when that side's three-serve block begins. Keep one team score to 16, win by two. Call movement early and stop for a collision risk.
Crossminton · See main rules
Suggested house variationEarn the attack
The serve and the next three returns must be cooperative shots aimed near the opposite square's center. If one fails, replay with the same server; after three failed starts, rotate the serve with no point. After the third cooperative return, call 'live': the next strike may attack. Complete that competitive rally for one point. First to 11, win by two, wins. This builds a shared opening before opponents choose their attack.
About this guide
ICO explicitly permits recreational courts and describes the Fun-shuttle layout. Its match-shuttle competition court is larger. The one-set finish, halfway end change and all five variations are labeled editorial house formats. Hamburg university sport lists a 2026 crossminton offering; this is a specific participation example, not a popularity estimate or promise of local availability.
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