Box lacrosse 1998, the NLL entered into the Canadian market for the first time with the Ontario Raiders. Although 5 of the league's 9 teams are based in American cities, more than two-thirds of the players are Canadian. During play, a team consists of six players: a goaltender and five "runners". A runner is any non-goalkeeper position player, including forwards, transition players, and defenders. Runners usually specialize in one of these roles and substitute off the field when the ball moves from one end to the other. When the sport originated teams played with six runners. However, in 1953 the sixth runner,
Box lacrosse use a lacrosse stick to catch, carry, and pass the ball in an effort to score by shooting a solid rubber lacrosse ball into the opponent's goal. The highest levels of box lacrosse are the National Lacrosse League (NLL) (professional), Box Lacrosse League (semi-pro), Senior A divisions of the Canadian Lacrosse Association (semi-pro), the Western Lacrosse Association (semi-pro), and Major Series Lacrosse (semi-pro). While there are 59 total members of the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL), only fifteen have competed in international box lacrosse competition. Only Canada, the Iroquois Nationals and the United States have finished in the top three