In sports, a starting lineup is an official list of the set of players who will participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.
The starters are commonly the best players on the team at their respective positions. Consequently, there is often a bit of prestige that is associated with being a starter. This is particularly true in sports with limited substitutions, like baseball or association football (soccer).
When listing a team's lineup, it is common in some sports to include each player's uniform number and their position, along with their name. Position are often designated by abbreviations that are specific to the sport (for example, in American football; "SS" for strong safety). In both baseball and basketball, it is common for a player's position to be denoted by a number, for example: in baseball scorekeeping the shortstop position is "6", while in basketball the small forward position is known as the "three". Thus, the lineups for some sports can include a uniform number, the player's name, and an abbreviation (consisting of letters or numbers) denoting a position.
American football In American football since the 1950s, most upper level teams use a three-platoon system, each with its own starting lineup. The starting lineups for offense and defense, each with eleven players, typically get the most attention. The starting lineups are defined as the eleven players who take the first offensive or defensive play from scrimmage of a given game. (An offensive player does not have to be on the team that gets possession first to be considered a starter, nor does a defensive player have to be on the team that does not; the first play from scrimmage after the first change of possession counts as well.) The third platoon, special teams, in modern times is composed mostly of backup and reserve players from the offensive or defensive platoons, with the exception of the placekicker or punter; the players who, for instance, take part in the opening kickoff are typically not considered starters.
The player positions dictate certain responsibilities and privileges in regard to handling the ball. A uniform numbering system restricts players' ability to change positions in the middle of the game.
Offense The offensive lineup is heavily restricted by rules that have been adopted over the course of the game's development. Several positions (indicated with * in the list below) are mandatory and must appear in any lineup, starting or otherwise. Others can be used or unused at the discretion of a team's coach, provided that no more than 11 players are on the field at any given time and at least seven (usually exactly seven) are positions along the line of scrimmage. Quarterback – Officially listed in the high school rulebooks as a "snap receiver," the starting quarterback is usually the focal point of a team's offense. Though technically not required (the snapper can in theory snap the ball onto the ground), the position is universally used. Running back – In the pro set formation and the I-formation, there are two, the halfback and the fullback. Some teams forgo designating a full back, and instead replace him with an extra tight end, H-back, or wide receiver. Other teams may utilize three starting running backs, especially at lower levels of play where the passing game is not as developed. Historically, teams which utilized the T-formation or the Single-wing formation had three starting running backs as well. Center* – The player in the middle of the line of scrimmage. (This player is almost always the player who snaps the ball, although this role by rule can be taken by any player on the line of scrimmage.) Left and right guards* – Lines up on each side of the center. Left and right tackles* – Lines up outside the guards. Tight end – lines up outside the tackles. Most teams designate at least one starting tight end, though some may have two starting tight ends (by playing with either one less wide receiver or one less running back). Some offensive philosophies, such as the run and shoot offense forgo the tight end entirely. Wide receiver – Modern offenses always have at least two starting wide receivers, though historically the position was the last to develop, originally gaining its modern form as teams moved either a tight end (whose name was changed to a "split end") or running back (whose name was changed to "flanker") out wide to be in a better position to catch passes away from the defense. Many modern offenses designate three wide receivers as starters, rarely (but not unknown) are teams that will designated four starting wide receivers, such as the run and shoot offense popular in the 1990s. Nonstandard positions such as slotback, wingback, or H-back may also be starters depending on the offensive philosophy of the team.
In addition to the center, guards and tackles, at least two ends (be they tight ends or split end wide receivers) must also be in the lineup.
Defense In recent history the 4-3 defense (4 defensive linemen plus 3 linebackers) formation has been standard among college and professional squads. However, the 3-4 (3 defensive linemen plus 4 linebackers) formation is becoming more popular among professional and NCAA Division I teams. Unlike offenses, defenses have no restrictions on positions (as long as no more than 11 players take the field), and the standard lineups have developed largely through tradition, experimentation, trial and error. Defensive tackle – Depending on formation a team may have up to two defensive tackles. If there is only one he is called the nose tackle (NT). Defensive end – A team has two defensive ends which play outside the defensive tackles. Linebacker – A team will generally start between two and four linebackers, depending on the defensive strategy. Most teams either play a 4-3 defense (with 4 lineman and 3 linebackers) or a 3-4 defense (with 3 linemen and 4 linebackers), while some teams employ a nickel defense as their starting defense, such teams typically only use 2 linebackers. Starting linebackers may be designated with names like "outside linebacker", "inside linebacker", "middle linebacker", etc. depending on where they play and the defensive philosophy of the team. Defensive back – A team will usually start four defensive backs, though rarely teams may start five by removing a linebacker from the field. Those defensive backs are known as: Cornerback – Plays outside and near the line of scrimmage, with a primary responsibility of covering the other team's wide receivers on pass plays. Strong safety – plays behind, but close to, the linebackers, usually on the same side of the field as the other team's tight end, the strong safety plays like a linebacker/defensive back hybrid. Free safety – Deepest player on the field, whose primary responsibility is as a last line of defense on long passes or to stop running plays that all other players have missed. Nickel back – In teams which start five defensive backs, the fifth back is called the "nickel" (by analogy to the U.S. five-cent coin, known as the nickel). Such a player typically plays on the line of scrimmage, between one of the cornerbacks and the defensive end, often to cover another team's third wide receiver. Nonstandard defensive positions such as the "rover" position (first employed by George Webster) are rare but may be used as well.
Special teams The third phase, special teams, generally designates only a few positions as "starters"; other than these specialists the other positions on the field are taken up as secondary positions by players who normally play offense or defense. Kicker – Also called the placekicker, kicks the ball on plays where it must be kicked from the ground, either kickoffs or field goals. Punter – Kicks the ball in situations where it must be kicked by dropping it from his hand. This occurs on punts and free kicks. Long snapper – Snaps the ball on field goals and punts, where the ball must normally go much farther than the center usually snaps it. Return specialist – Catches and attempts to run back kickoffs, free kicks and punts. Teams may use separate players to return kicks and punts respectively, or may use the same return specialist for both. Gunner – Plays outside on kickoffs, free kicks, and punts; is usually the first player to reach the other team's returner. Rarely has been a starting-level player, though some such as Steve Tasker and Matthew Slater have achieved wide recognition for their skills primarily as gunners.
Association football In association football, the starting lineup is termed a starting 11 (starting eleven) or starting XI. The starting 11 or starting XI is a list of the players who will actively participate in the game when the match begins.
The starting 11 consists of 11 players, with 1 designated goalkeeper. All other positions are optional, and teams can vary the player formations they use.
The formation are often described using the numbers of defenders, midfielders and forwards. For example, a commonly used formation is 4-4-2, which means there are 4 defenders, 4 midfielders and 2 strikers. Some formations may list 4 numbers, which usually differentiates between defensive and attacking midfielders, e.g. 4-2-3-1 would mean 4 defenders, 2 defensive midfielders, 3 attacking midfielders, and 1 striker.
Australian rules football In Australian rules football, a team starts with eighteen players on the field. The traditional positions are as listed below, however in modern football the players are organised into three main groups, forwards, midfielders and defenders, each consisting of between four and eight players. Only four midfielders from each team are allowed to start inside the centre square, the other 14 players can start anywhere on the field. Three forwards (one full-forward, two forward pocket) Three half forwards (one centre half-forward, two half-forward flank) Three centres (one centre, two wing-men) Three half backs (one centre half-back, two half-back flank) Three backs (one fullback, two back pocket) Three followers (one ruckman, one ruck rover, one rover)
Baseball The starting lineup in baseball comprises either nine or ten players. In the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball, there are nine players in the starting lineup and all players bat. American League, National League (MLB) and Pacific League (NPB) teams have the option of using a designated hitter (DH) in place of the pitcher in the batting order. The DH does not play when the team is on defense.
The fielding positions are numbered and abbreviated as follows: P – Pitcher C – Catcher 1B – First baseman 2B – Second baseman 3B – Third baseman SS – Shortstop LF – Left fielder CF – Center fielder RF – Right fielder
In softball, where ten players are in the field, the tenth is usually placed in the outfield (OF); if placed between the infield and outfield, the extra fielder is known as a "rover."
The designated hitter (DH), when used, is designated with the number zero. In variants of the game where all nine positions plus a designated hitter must bat, the designated hitter is instead known as an extra hitter (EH).
Basketball In the National Basketball Association (NBA), two starting players are traditionally announced as guards, two as forwards, and one as a center. At least ten minutes before the game is scheduled to begin, the scorers need to be supplied with the name and number of each player who is to participate in the game. The various positions are not mentioned anywhere in the official NBA rule book, and most players play more than one position.
The starting lineup on a basketball team usually comprises five positions and is called the 2-1-2 lineup (2 guards, 1 center, 2 forwards): PG – Point guard SG – Shooting guard SF – Small forward PF – Power forward