Written by Jim Banko, U.S. Steinholding Founder

Official Steinholding Rules

In the experience of the U.S. Steinholding Association, rules and enforcement are critically important to the legitimacy of any competition. In order to ensure that all competitors are judged fairly and to the same standards, our Executive Rules Committee has created the following rules, which are updated periodically to improve clarity for competitors and judges alike. It is important for all competitors to know the rules in advance and incorporate them into their training early on to ensure good form, so if you are planning to host a competition, share these rules with all potential competitors. The images below help to demonstrate the rules visually along with our video demonstrating the rules and proper form.

Our goal is to improve the quality of all Steinholding matches and build a better experience for everyone involved with the sport, so we are also making our USSA Judging Manual available to everyone for free here: Download via Google Drive. If you want to prove your expertise based on the additional context and details available in the Judging Manual and become a USSA-certified Steinholding Judge, check out our Judging Certification program.

In addition to the official USSA Steinholding Competition Rules described below, competitors are also expected to adhere to the USSA Competitor Code of Conduct. For more information, please review the Code of Conduct here.

U.S. Steinholding Association Official Competition Rules

Version 1.5 - Updated May 2026

How to Compete and Win:

1. The competitor who can hold their stein the longest with proper form, as described in the Competition Rules, without being eliminated by the judge(s), will be considered the winner.
2. An infraction of any rule will result in a strike being issued by the competition judge(s). Issuance of a third strike (or any spillage) results in immediate elimination of the competitor.
3. When a judge has signalled for the match to begin, the competitors will immediately lift and extend their stein, and may not set the stein back down or switch hands.

The Rules:

1. A 1L dimpled glass Masskrug-style stein with handle, weighing approximately 3 lbs, must be used. Steins used for each match should be of the same brand and style to ensure consistency.
2. The stein must be filled with liquid up to the 1L line marked on the stein.
3. The stein must be held by the handle and gripped so that the logo area (the side of the stein opposite the handle) faces directly away from the competitor, extending in parallel with the arm.
4. The hand holding the stein should be positioned in a closed fist. The thumb may not rest on top of the stein handle.
5. The pinkie finger may be held outside of the stein handle. If positioned outside the handle, it may not be extended.
6. The stein must be held out directly in front of the competitor, not out to the side. The line between a competitor's shoulders should remain close to perpendicular with the arm holding the stein.
7. The arm holding the stein must remain parallel with the ground and, from a side view, should remain close to perpendicular with the line of the torso from the neck to the bottom of the rib cage.
8. The arm holding the stein must be extended straight with no bending at the elbow.
9. The arm holding the stein should remain separated from the chest and torso of the competitor. The holding arm may not be held on or against the chest or torso such that it supports the arm.
10. The off-hand should remain at or near the competitor's side and may not touch or support the stein or the arm holding the stein and must remain visible to the judges. If the non-holding arm is held against the body, it must remain in a straightened position against the competitor's side but must not otherwise be used to brace or support the torso.
11. Arching of the back is permitted, however only minimal leaning is acceptable. In the vertical plane, the competitor's elbow may not cross behind the front of the ankle of either foot, and the competitor's armpit may not cross in front of the hips or toes of either foot.
12. Significant leaning to the left or right side is unacceptable. The upper torso may not be noticeably angled to the competitor's left or right side, and the line between a competitor's shoulder blades should remain close to parallel to the ground.
13. Competitors must stand within their personal area and may not contact any other structures, objects, or people while the match is in progress.
14. Competitors are intended to remain generally stationary during a match and may not move more than is necessary to make minor adjustments ensuring proper form. Large or aggressive movements to adjust form are not allowed.
15. If any amount of the liquid filling the stein spills or drips off of the stein, the competitor is immediately disqualified, regardless of the number of strikes otherwise assigned.

U.S. Steinholding Association Competition Apparel:

1. No brace, support, or strap of any kind may be worn during competition.
2. Athletic compression clothing may be worn, however stiff or supportive clothing (such as a bench press shirt) is prohibited.
3. The elbow of the holding arm of each competitor must be visible to the judge to ensure straightness at all times. If any competitor is wearing a shirt with sleeves that cover the elbow, they will be asked to roll up the sleeve so that the elbow can be viewed.
4. The wearing of gloves or the use of grip powders, pine tar, or any similar substance is prohibited.

U.S. Steinholding Association Judging Guidelines and Extended Regulations:

1. Within the first 60 seconds of a competition, judges may provide corrections to competitors about their form without assigning an official strike. However, if a rule is being violated and a competitor does not immediately make the correction, a strike should be issued. The allowance for corrections does not apply to spillage, which results in immediate disqualification even during the first 60 seconds.
2. Judges should be conservative but consistent when officiating a match. Failing to enforce all of the rules will negatively impact the competitors and spectators, damage the reputation of the competition establishment, and improperly prepare competitors for further competition.
3. In the event that there is a disruption to a competition event which impacts the ability of one or more competitors to continue, through no fault of their own, competition judges should pause the match and ask all competitors to stop. After confirming which competitors were still active in the match at the time of the disruption, and resetting any impacted equipment, the match may resume with the remaining competitors. The delay between stoppage and resuming of the match should be as short as possible. Any matches that are subject to pausing and resuming will not be eligible for consideration for local, state, or national records.
4. In the event that a match proceeds to a point where a) all remaining competitors' form has degraded to a point at which they are no longer able to maintain proper form, and b) no single competitor's form is clearly/demonstrably/significantly better than the others', the following will occur. One of the competition judges will indicate that the competition has entered "elimination extra time" and the clock will be stopped, with all remaining competitors credited for the time of the stoppage. Each match must have a single winner, so the competitors will be allowed to continue until participants give up, spill, or exhibit a further degradation of form that allows the judges to identify a clear, significant difference in the quality of the remaining competitors' form, eliminating competitors until a winner is chosen.

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Jim Banko is the founder of the U.S. Steinholding Association. He is the 2015 Hofbrau Masskrugstemmen National Champion and previous United States record holder for Steinholding with an official time of 17 minutes and 11 seconds.

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