Thumb Wrestling Rules

The Rules of the World Thumb Wrestling Championships

The Beauty of Thumb Wrestling is the sheer simplicity of the sport. The World Thumb Wrestling Championships do not wish to restrict any purity of the sport, however as this is a prestigious international event, it is clear that rules need to be understood and adhered to by all competitors in order to have a fair and fun championships.

When competing in a Thumb Wrestling contest players hook the four fingers of their right (or left) hands together such that both hands are clasped tightly. Then a short pre-contest starting chant is repeated, the variant as used for UK Events follows: One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb-a-war! Then the 60 second contest begins.

To win a contest 1 player must pin their opponents thumb down for as long as it takes to say: one, two, three, four, I win thumb-o-war! If the referee agrees that this has been achieved then that player is the winner. When competing in the World championship you would then progress to the next round of the tournament.

If this cannot be achieved within 2 separate 60 second rounds then the tie will be settled with a game of sudden death “scissors, paper, stone”.

Additional Thumb Wrestling Match Rules:

• Elbows must be on surface at all times
• Please keep fingernails to a short length
• Thumb decoration is encouraged [although nothing that is deemed performance enhancing will be permitted]