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,
Field lacrosse two feet". Lacrosse is governed internationally by the 59-member Federation of International Lacrosse, which sponsors the World Lacrosse Championships once every four years. A former Olympic sport, attempts to reinstate it to the Olympics have been hampered by insufficient international participation. Field lacrosse is played professionally in North America by Major League Lacrosse. It is also played on a high amateur level by the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the United States, the Australian Senior Lacrosse Championship series, and the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association. Lacrosse is a traditional Native American game. According to Native American beliefs, playing lacrosse is