How to Play Sepak Takraw Basics

By Jaques of London · Est. 1795 · Updated 2026-08-17

Sepak takraw is a net sport played with a small woven rattan ball, combining the footwork of football with the aerial acrobatics of gymnastics. Six players split into two teams of three and volley the ball across a badminton-sized court, with hands and arms strictly forbidden. The result is a game of extraordinary athleticism, where scissor kicks and bicycle kicks are routine rather than exceptional.

People love it for the spectacle and the genuine skill ceiling: even a basic rally demands balance, timing, and coordination across the whole team. It is played outdoors and indoors on a hard court, and is a fixture at South-East Asian Games, school competitions across Asia, and increasingly at clubs worldwide.

A little history

Sepak takraw is widely documented as having been played across South-East Asia for several centuries, with early written references in the Malay Annals and records from the Ayutthaya period in what is now Thailand. The word combines the Malay "sepak" (kick) and the Thai "takraw" (woven ball). Formally codified rules were established in the 1960s in Malaysia and Thailand, and the International Sepaktakraw Federation (ISTAF) was founded in 1988 to govern the sport globally. Its precise ancient origins are unclear, as similar kicking-ball games appeared independently across the region.

Setting up

1. Mark or confirm the court: 13.4 m long by 6.1 m wide, divided by a centre line and net.
2. Erect the net so its top edge is 1.52 m from the floor at the centre (1.55 m at the posts) for a mixed or men's match; 1.42 m at centre for women.
3. Mark the quarter-circle service line in each half: a 0.9 m radius arc centred on the intersection of the centre line and each sideline, indicating where the thrower (tekong's feeding player) must stand.
4. Mark the tekong circle: a 0.3 m radius circle in each half, 2.45 m from the centre line and centred between the two sidelines. The serving player (tekong) stands inside this circle to serve.
5. Split six players into two teams of three. Each team designates one tekong (server/centre back) and two inside players who stand in the service quarter-circles during the serve.
6. Toss a coin or equivalent to decide which team serves first and which end they take.
7. Both teams take their starting positions: the serving team's tekong inside the tekong circle; the two feeders each in a quarter-circle; the receiving team positioned freely in their own half.

How to play

1. The serving side begins each rally. One of the two quarter-circle players throws the ball to the tekong, who must kick it over the net on that single touch.
2. The tekong must have at least one foot inside the tekong circle when making contact with the ball on the serve.
3. Once the ball is in play, each team may touch the ball up to three times before it must cross the net. No single player may touch the ball twice in succession.
4. Players may use any part of the body except the hands and arms (from wrist to fingertip) to contact the ball. Feet, knees, chest, shoulder, and head are all legal.
5. The ball must pass over the net and land within the opponent's court boundaries to remain in play.
6. A rally ends when the ball lands in court (point to the team that sent it over), goes out of bounds (point to the opposing team), is touched illegally with a hand or arm (point to opponents), or fails to cross the net (point to opponents).
7. Points are scored using rally-point scoring: a point is awarded on every rally regardless of which team served.
8. The team that wins the point serves the next rally. Within a set, service rotates to the next player in the serving team's lineup each time service changes hands after a side-out is earned by the receiving team winning a rally.
9. A player who was not in a designated starting position when the serve was made has committed a fault, awarding a point to the opposing team.
10. The ball is considered out if it lands on or outside the boundary lines. Lines are in-bounds (the ball is live if it lands on a line).
11. If the ball touches the net but passes over and lands in bounds, play continues. If it fails to clear the net, the serving team loses the point.
12. A set is won by the first team to reach 21 points with a lead of at least two points. If the score reaches 20-20, play continues until one team leads by two, up to a maximum of 25 points.
13. A match is the best of three sets. The team that wins two sets wins the match.
14. If a third set is required, a coin toss again determines serve and ends. The third set is played to 15 points (two-point lead required; maximum 17 points).
15. Between sets, teams switch ends and the team that lost the previous set serves first in the next.

Winning and scoring

The match is won by the first team to take two sets. A set goes to 21 points under rally-point scoring, but a minimum two-point lead is required. If the set reaches 20-20, teams play on until one side leads by two, up to a hard cap of 25-25, at which point the team reaching 25 first wins the set regardless of the two-point rule. A deciding third set is played to 15 points under the same two-point lead rule, capped at 17.

The fine points

The most common dispute concerns foot-fault on serve: the tekong must have part of one foot inside the circle at the moment of contact. Lifting both feet entirely (jumping to serve) is illegal and concedes the point. The feeders in the quarter-circles must also keep at least one foot within their arc until the tekong has kicked the ball; stepping out early is a fault. If the throw from a feeder to the tekong is poor, the tekong may let it drop and the feeder may retrieve it for another attempt, but neither player other than the tekong may kick it during the service sequence.

Body-part disputes arise most often around the shoulder and upper arm. Contact on the shoulder blade or the top of the shoulder is legal; contact on the side of the upper arm or the forearm is not. In close cases the standard ruling follows the principle that if the contact was involuntary and incidental, referees may judge accordingly, but deliberate arm use is always a fault. A ball that clips the top of the net and tumbles into the opponent's court is a valid point; a ball resting on top of the net is a let and the rally is replayed.

How to win more often

• Set the ball high and central: a well-placed second touch that sits up above net height gives your designated striker time to position and generate power for a spike or roll spike.
• The tekong should vary serve placement: alternating deep serves to the back line with short serves aimed just over the net keeps receivers off-balance and prevents them settling into a rhythm.
• Communicate constantly about who takes the first touch; failing to call the ball is the most common cause of double-contact faults at beginner level.
• Use the header touch as a reliable reset option when a pass arrives awkwardly. A clean, high header buys your team time to reposition before the third touch.
• Watch the receiving team's formation after the serve: if both inside players drift toward one side, the tekong should direct the next serve to the open corner to exploit the gap.

Variations

Doubles (Regu Doubles)

Played with two players per side rather than three on the same court. The serving player throws and kicks without a dedicated feeder, making the serve harder but reducing court coverage requirements. The same 21-point set format applies. This format is popular for practice sessions and informal competition where six players are not available.

Circle (Takraw Circle)

A non-competitive cooperative form in which all players stand in a circle and attempt to keep the ball airborne collectively for as long as possible using legal body contacts. There is no net, no opposing team, and no points: the shared goal is simply to prevent the ball touching the ground. This version is widely used as a warm-up and skill-building exercise and is particularly good for introducing beginners to the feel of the ball.

Points Circle

A scored version of circle play: the group earns one point for each consecutive legal touch. Agreed fouls (double touch, hand contact, ball hitting the ground) end the sequence and the count resets to zero. Teams or groups compete to set the highest total within a fixed time. This variation adds light competitive pressure while keeping the cooperative feel of circle takraw.

Singles Exhibition

One player per side using the standard net and court dimensions, with each player permitted up to three consecutive self-touches before the ball must cross the net. This format is not used in formal competition but is used in training to develop individual touch, court awareness, and serve accuracy under pressure.

Sepak Takraw Basics: frequently asked questions