Nine-man football is a type of American football played by high schools that are too small to play the usual eleven-man game.
The size of the playing field is often smaller in nine-man football than in eleven-man. Some states opt for a smaller, 80 yards long by 40 yards wide field (which is also used in eight-man and six-man); other states keep the field of play at 100 yards long while reducing the width to 40 yards or play on a full-sized playing field. In games played on 80-yard fields, kickoffs take place from the 20 yard line rather than from the 35 yard line.
A similar nine-man modification of Canadian football is played on 100-yard fields by small schools in the province of Saskatchewan and has been proposed, but not yet adopted, in Alberta.
The rules require that the offense align 4 players in the backfield and 5 on the line of scrimmage. A standard I formation has a quarterback, a fullback, a tailback and five linemen. Usually the outside linemen are a tight end and a wide receiver, but it varies by formation. The fourth player in the offensive backfield often plays as an additional wide receiver or tight end.
A common defensive formation is the 4-3-2, with four defensive linemen, three linebackers, and two defensive backs.
The games are frequently high-scoring because the number of players is reduced by more than the size of the field; thus fast players usually find more open space to run within the field of play.
In France, most competitions are played nine-man : games and leagues involving 19 year old players or younger, division 3 (Le Casque d'Argent) and regional leagues. Blocking under the belt is strictly forbidden under nine-man french rules, but the field size remain the same as in eleven-man football.