{{Short description|Drinking game}} {{other uses|Boat race (disambiguation)}} {{Multiple issues| {{more footnotes|date=March 2017}} {{More citations needed|date=January 2008}} }}
<!-- *******Do not make references to specific regional variations of Boat Racing in this article. ******* --> [[File:OzFest 2015 Munich – 2nd day – 011 (cropped).JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|A boat race between the Australian rules football teams the Munich Kangaroos and the Pasing Hawks, at the OzFest 2015 Munich, Germany]] A '''boat race''' is a drinking game where teams, usually of equal numbers, race to finish their drinks in sequence.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gibson |first=Emma |date=2025-03-14 |title=What Is a Boat Race Drinking? |url=https://trickyfish.co/what-is-a-boat-race-drinking/ |access-date=2025-06-13 |website=Trickyfish |language=en-US}}</ref>
One theory on the name is that it is acronym for "beer on a table", an alternative explanation may come from the Australian term for drinking a full beer in one continuous motion i.e. "to skull" or "skulling" and that term's homonym in the single crewed rowing race "sculling" & hence a boat race.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-03-23 |title=The Ultimate "Boat Race" Drinking Game Guide |url=https://psycatgames.com/magazine/party-games/boat-race/ |access-date=2025-06-13 |website=PsyCat Games |language=en}}</ref>
''The Concise Macquarie Dictionary''<ref>{{cite book | title = The Concise Macquarie Dictionary | url = | year = 1982 | page = 133 | editor = Arthur Delbridge | publisher = Doubleday Australia Pty. Limited | isbn = 0868240567 }}</ref> has this entry for ''boatrace'' {{blockquote|Colloq: A competition between teams of beer drinkers to see which team can drink its beer the fastest; a drinking competition.}}
Common rules include those regulating the number and gender of drinkers, the vessels from which the liquid must be consumed and punishments for spilling. The game appeared in the 2006 Broken Lizard movie, ''Beerfest''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Beerfest: A Competitive Drinking Extravaganza {{!}} ShunBeer |url=https://shunbeer.com/article/how-much-beer-did-they-drink-in-beerfest |access-date=2025-06-13 |website=shunbeer.com}}</ref>
A race begins with all competitors placing their drinks on a mutual table. When a referee begins the race, the first drinker on each team is allowed to pick up their drink and begin drinking. Once a beverage is consumed, the drinker must invert the empty vessel on their head. This is done to ensure no cheating occurs. The next team mate cannot touch their own drink until this has occurred. Empty vessels must be kept on the competitors' heads until the race is over.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KA8SXkLRrwI |title=Boat Race (Drinking Game) |date=2013-08-01 |last=Josh Owen-Jones |access-date=2025-06-13 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
The game is a long-established tradition amongst many Australian amateur Rugby Union leagues. Players receiving points for their on field performance then become the participants for the boat race after, but may sub out for injury. The game is played in Germany as a team version of ''Bierjunge'' ({{lit|beer boy}}).
==Also== * Beer floating
==References== {{Reflist}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20050213150538/http://www.barnonedrinks.com/games/misc/boat_race.html Bar-None Drink Recipes] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20050205041634/http://www.worldbeergames.org/games_br.html World Beer Games] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20050327055751/http://geocities.com/m2f2g2/flipcup2003.html Cleveland Flip Cup Tournament] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20111005055205/http://www.ndybeerpong.com/boat-races.html Ndy Boat Racing Rules!] {{Drinking games}}
Category:Drinking games