Hoop is a contact sport originating from Aden. It is played on a square court 75 feet to a side, with one team in the north and south corners, and the other team in the east and west corners.

There is a single hoop with a diameter of 20 inches in the center of the court atop a pole, such that the hoop stands 11 feet from the ground. The court is arranged with a ten-foot-wide strip from the center of each side to the hoop which is called the “Neutral Cross”. The center of the court is surrounded by a square 30 feet to a side, rotated by 45 degrees such that the corners lie within the cross, this square is called the “Neutral Center”. There is a five-foot wide band around the outer perimiter of the court, which is called the “Neutral Outside”. The Cross, Center, and Outside are the only areas of the court where any player may freely enter and move through.

This sport is somewhat similar to basketball with several major exceptions.

Players are allowed to tackle each other, and a player is considered 'out' if they set foot outside their own team's area or a neutral zone. If a player is declared out, they must immediately leave the playing area for the remainder of the round. Dribbling is optional, and possession of the ball is ended if a player touches the ground at or above their knees (including their back). The player has one second after falling to either pass the ball to a teammate or otherwise let go of the ball.

If a player has possession of the ball while in their own safe zone, and their team is ahead in score, they must either pass the ball to a teammate who is outside the safe zone, or exit the safe zone themselves, within five seconds. This rule exists to prevent a strategy of getting ahead in score and then bringing the ball into the safe zone and keeping it there.

For a shot to be 'legal', both of the player's feet must be firmly on the ground with the player standing still at the time the shot is taken. Jump shots, dunks, and running shots are therefore not allowed. This makes certain tactics (such as attempting a 5-pointer) very risky. The exception to this rule is an interception shot, which must be taken in midair.

A game consists of four quarters, each of which consists of three rounds.

A round lasts either five minutes, or until all three members of one of the two teams are 'out'. A 'round point' is awarded to the team which either outlasts the other, or outscores the other at the end of each round. If one team wins two round points in a row within the same quarter, the game advances to the next quarter with that team winning the 'quarter point'. A minute-long time-out is taken between rounds, with play resuming in the next round as soon as both teams are ready.

If the same team wins the first three quarters, the game ends immediately with that team declared the victor of the game. Due to this, games with unevenly matched teams may end in as few as six rounds, and each round may end as soon as all three members of a team are out. Therefore, some games of hoop may be over in less than fifteen minutes.

If the game reaches the end of the fourth quarter, and both teams have each won one quarter point, the game goes into overtime, which is a special round with no time limit wherein the first team to a ten point lead wins the entire game. Overtime continues until a ten-point lead is achieved, and in some cases, may be significantly longer than the game itself.

Scoring in hoop works as follows.

Points may be scored by getting the ball into the hoop or by pushing a member of the opposing team into their own team's zone. If the ball bounces back out of the hoop without going through, no points are awarded.

✝ Cannot be used to score more than once without using a different scoring method, to prevent 'ball hogging'.

* Interception must have both hands on the ball at some point before taking shot for doubling to be applied. Grazing the ball with one hand does not count as an interception and the opposing team will still get the points for the shot.

Points may be lost if a player sets foot in the opposing team's zone, or outside of the court (beyond the Neutral Outside). Points are also lost if a player causes another player to set foot outside of the court, making it usually disadvantageous to do so.