Intramural Sports and Activities. The term intramural is taken from the Latin expression which actually means, “Within the walls.”  It is used here to describe those organized recreational activities which we conduct within our own church membership.  A balanced program of intramurals will include a wide variety of recreational activities, both indoor and outdoor.

Intramural Sports and Activities in the Church.  Intramural recreational activities have great value in the church because of their appeal to the unskilled.  The emphasis is upon participation for all just for the fun of playing.  Each person or team tries to win, of course, but development of friendships and enjoyment of the activity are primary.  Friendly competition and vigorous physical activity help to develop a well-rounded person.

No Athletic Facilities? A church or organization need not own expensive indoor or outdoor recreation play areas to plan and promote intramurals.  Many schools, YMCAs, YWCAs, and city recreation organizations make facilities available to church and service organization groups, either free or on a rental basis.  Many commercial establishments for bowling, skating, and golfing are anxious to accommodate church and community organization groups.  A resourceful person in a church or organization with limited facilities can operate a very successful and comprehensive intramural sports program.

More Than Just Sports.  The trend today is toward purely recreational activities which could include a marble shooting marathon, jump rope contest, bicycle derby, quiet game tournaments, table game contests, archery and riflery marksmanship and many others.

Individual and Team Sports.  Some individual and team sports opportunities are:  archery, riflery, badminton, aerial tennis, baseball, slow pitch softball, basketball, volleyball, bowling, track and field events, deck tennis, flag football, handball, golf, roller or ice skating, horseshoes, croquet, shuffleboard, table tennis, swimming, tennis, tetherball, and kick ball.

Keen Ideas and Enthusiasm.  The administration of an intramural program is usually handled best by one person with keen ideas and enthusiastic interest.  The recreation committee will want to select this person prayerfully and then lend their support.  This person may or may not be a member of the recreation committee.  This person would become the Intramural Director.

The Intramural Calendar is divided into the four seasons.  Before actual competition begins, dates should be decided and publicized well in advance.  A deadline date for entries should be established.  Advance publicity should give brief details on who, what, when, where, and why, including rules of play.

Planning and Promotion are the Keys to Success.  Plan ahead six months to a year.  Schedule events at least a minimum of three week in advance.  Start promoting early with printed handouts and mail outs.  If possible, use the church paper to promote the new schedule.  Word of mouth and telephone conversations usually bring good results.  A phone calling promotion using senior adults to make the calls usually produces many new registrants.

Registration Campaign.  Before final plans can be made for most intramural activities the director must know the number of people that will be participating.  A registration campaign is usually necessary to get the needed number of applications for an intramural event.  A good plan is to set up registration tables in the hallways of the church on Sundays before Sunday school, after each worship service and at all church fellowships and suppers.  A person sits at the table and uses friendly persuasion to get entries.  Use bulletin boards and poster boards with posters done with Magic Markers to show what events are being offered and who is eligible.  After registering a sufficient number of participants the schedules can then be drawn up making certain that available facilities, dates, and hours of play do not present a conflict.

Come, Signup and Play.  Occasionally, spontaneous group intramural tournaments are held. This on-the-spot plan is great when it is impossible to get pre-registrants.  Teams can be determined after the participants arrive by assigning each person to a particular team.  The schedule can be preplanned and preprinted for each sport.  For instance, blank tournament brackets can be thumb-tacked to the wall next to the table tennis tables or activity tables and the team sport schedule can be printed using a predetermined number of teams schedule.  The person in charge of each activity is to handle the administrative matters for each activity that is to be played.  Sign up and team assignments should be held at the place of competition for each activity whether indoors or out of doors.

Annual Tournaments.  It is a good policy is to make intramural activities annual affairs.  For instance, schedule an all-church table tennis tournament every summer, usually in July.  This is not to imply that our people only play Ping-pong during that time, but the table tennis highlight of the year, in the form of a tournament, is held only once each time.  Unless it involves a seasonal sport, such as a basketball or free-throw tourney, it does not matter when the event is scheduled during the year.  Repeating once or twice at about the same time each year helps to stimulate interest and response.  A table tennis tournament could be held just as well in January as in July.  Basketball, football, softball and soccer are usually seasonal sports.

Recognize The Winners.  Attach the name “tournament” or “contest” to the activities to emphasize that they are intramural competition.  Also, it is a good idea to list the winners’ names in the various activities so that they will be seen and known.  Of course, publish a story or small article in the church or organization’s publications and place the winners’ names on a placard above the trophy case for everyone interested to see.  At a glance anyone can tell who won the roller skating contest, not only this year, but even back in past years!  Recognition (Tim, link to Awards Banquet article under the leagues page) is one of the keys to success of any activity.  Everyone enjoys being recognized and most people thrive on it.

A Certificate of Participation.  A part of the success in any intramural program is the fact that we believe in awards.  Not expensive, huge trophies, but something to indicate success and give personal recognition.  We have used ribbons, small plaques, certificates, medals, and pins.  The idea is not to compete just to win the prize, but to enjoy participating in good competition and enjoying good fellowship.  In our situation we usually offer a first, second and third place aware.  In some activities everyone who takes part receives a printed “certificate of participation.”

Spread the Activities Over the Entire Year.  In planning year’s recreation calendar, we try to spread our intramural activities so that there will be some kind of organized event going on all year for all ages and interests.  These intramurals are interspersed with all the other fixed activities of the recreation program such as: organized leagues, camps, fellowships, banquets, arts and crafts, etc.

Plan Activities for All Members.  Our intramural activities are “all church” in most cases.  Everyone in the church membership, Sunday school, or other church organizations is eligible to participate.  Certain activities which are of interest only to a specific age group should be set up for that group.  Depending upon the number of interested people who sign up various activities and divisions can be made to separate ages or sexes, or to make other skill adjustments for the event as necessary.  For example, pairing an adult man against a junior girl in a badminton tournament may not be wise!

Selecting Teams and Scheduling Play.  Whenever feasible in organizing units for competition in team intramural sports, use a group already organized (such as a Sunday school class or department).  At other times the group needs to be divided because of age, skill, or sex.  Take the names of persons who have registered for the activity, then the coaches’ meet and select participants for their teams.  Boys and girls from all age groups are divided so that each team has an equal number of players of every age and skill level.  Each team entered in the intramural league chooses a nickname appropriate to the sport.  Usually the best scheduling procedure for such intramural teams is the round-robin schedule.  This method permits each team to play against every other team in the intramural league.

Intramurals to Build Fellowship.  Almost any activity can be turned into a very worthwhile intramural event which will attract participants.  For instance, someone who will not join a volleyball team might thoroughly enjoy an intramural church golf tournament.  Those not so inclined to participate in sports might compete in a checker or chess tournament.  It is a good practice to include as many different activities as possible.

Intramurals in the church are planned for several reasons: 

·         To build fellowship and help people develop new friendships;

·         To help minister to the whole life, not just a section of it;

·         To give the programs of classes, groups, and departments new enthusiasm;

·         To provide physical activities that will promote fun, self-improvement, and personal satisfaction.

The benefits of the intramural program are many.  Perhaps the most worthwhile contribution of the program is the breaking down of social barriers.  People become better acquainted and develop lasting friendships through initial contact in various intramural events.  Individuals are drawn closer to the church and a greater loyalty to church attendance is developed.

(Adapted from an article by Larry Jackson and featured in the Church Recreation Magazine, published by the Church Recreation Department of the Southern Baptist Convention.  This magazine is no longer in print. 
Used with permission)