The History of Paintball

It’s widely accepted that the first-ever game of paintball took place on 27th June 1981 in New Hampshire, USA, when 12 friends played a primitive version of ‘Capture the Flag’.

Legend has it that the winner captured all of the flags without firing a single shot. How times have changed!
Yet from those humble beginnings the game has now become a truly global leisure activity with paintball fields now found in places as far apart as England, New Zealand, Mexico and Korea.

In fact, describing paintball as a mere “leisure activity” does it something of a disservice because some players now actually play professionally for a living!

The game was born when its creators had the idea of using guns (or more correctly markers) designed for marking trees and cattle as weapons on each other.

Minor modifications were made to the markers to limit the power and so paintball came into existence. The actual balls themselves also changed and water-based liquid replaced the old oil-based paint in order to make it easier to wash off clothes.

Since then paintball has evolved at a rapid rate and diversified from a recreational game to a more organised tournament-style game.

Although the vast majority of enthusiasts will probably only ever play Rec Ball (short for recreational paintball), professional teams are being formed all the time (like the Harrogate Hustlers) and competing at national and international level.

Tournament play is fast and furious, with paintball fields standardised in order to provide a consistent game between sides competing in the same league. It’s not for everyone although that’s the beauty of paintball – whether it’s a romp in the woods or the thrill of speedball, the game provides something for players of all ages and abilities.

It’s thought the first tournament with a cash prize was held as early as 1983 which means competitive paintball is now well into its third decade.