If you can swim, tread water, and throw a ball we can teach you to play water polo.
Ninety percent of our team had never played before their first Atlanta Rainbow Trout water polo practice, but after twenty years our team won its first gold medal at an international tournament in Stockholm, Sweden in 2015.

We welcome players of every level, and we believe that a strong and sustainable team accommodates and supports all level of player, from beginner through advanced. Please see our FAQs section for more information on fitness requirements.

Water polo is a team sport that essentially takes aspects of soccer, football, basketball, and hockey and puts them together in a 12-foot deep 30 meter pool. Water polo players are allowed to use only one hand at a time to pass and shoot a bright yellow, soccer-sized ball into the opposing team’s goal. Each team fields seven players at a time (with subs on deck to replace tired players throughout the game). Games last approximately 45 minutes; including time for competitive play and rest periods. The game is generally broken into four quarters of seven minutes each.

Despite its reputation water polo is not meant to be a contact sport. The level of contact is much like basketball. You might see some pushing and leaning, but any grabbing, pushing, or hitting of any kind is a foul. The potential injury in a spirited soccer game is much greater than in water polo; remember, water is much more forgiving than a hardwood floor.

We are a co-ed team, and our players range in age from early 20s to 60s. Water polo players have some of the longest careers of any sport participants due to the limited wear and tear on knees and other joints that usually accompanies field sports. It’s common to see water polo teams at tournaments that consist of brand new players in all age-ranges alongside teammates who’ve been playing for twenty years or longer.

Like most rambunctious and social team sports, the Atlanta Rainbow Trout water polo team strives to be as much a social as a competitive team. Team dinners and social events (both scheduled and spontaneous), and we compete in 3-4 tournaments per year; including college, regional, national, and international tournaments.

See the Calendar.