To no longer be associated with JK Rowling, Quidditch changes its name

“Quadball is not just a new name, it is the symbol for the future of limitless sport”. It is with these few words that Major League Quadball, formerly Major League Quidditch, made its announcement this Tuesday 19 July: quidditch, a sport born in the pages of the saga Harry Potter and becomes a real sport (staying on the ground, it goes without saying), changes its name and becomes the quadball.

With it is also the American federation of the discipline that evolves and also changes its name, becoming the US Quadball:

Because changing the name of our sport opens up unprecedented opportunities for its development, visibility, partnerships, and our league intends to leverage each of them to stay at the forefront of innovation and engagement. “

Quadball is played by today 600 teams in 40 countries around the worldaccording to the US sports authority.

Step away from JK Rowling and take to the skies

What are the reasons behind this change?

The American Quadball explains and fully assumes it: the sports organizations that supervise the discipline want to distance themselves from the one who is at the origin of the saga. Harry Potter and his entire universe, JK Rowling. For several years, the British author she is more controversial for her stances against trans people than for her books.

The decision is therefore not exactly a surprise when we know that quadball, which is logically a young discipline, has included in its rules the inclusion of all players, regardless of their origin, sexual orientation or gender identity, as Pink News reminds us.

This is demonstrated by a study conducted in Great Britain 11% of people who play quadball identify as trans. A quarter of male and female gamers say they are bisexual and 10% define themselves as gay or lesbian. In 2021, over 10% of respondents said they were non-binary.

A sport that therefore tends to welcome all those who want to enter the field.

It is also the desire to continue growing the sport that led to this decision, explains the US Quadball, taking as an example the latest, originally called Ultimate Frisbee. And yes, for quadball, as for all other sports, it is still a question of economic and image issues.

In any case, this name change symbolizes the will expressed by a part of the fans ofHarry Potter that he is no longer always associated with the creator of the literary phenomenon, due to his alleged rapprochement with ideology gender critic which keeps the transphobic talk more nauseating.

Photo credit: Daniel Breitenbach via Flickr.