Who governs polo.

How the system fits together

The Federation of International Polo (FIP) says it recognises and endorses the playing rules of the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA), the Asociación Argentina de Polo (AAP) and the United States Polo Association (USPA) as the basis of international polo. In FIP's view the differences between the three are mainly administrative, not in the core rules of play. FIP publishes its own bylaws and procedures for its championships rather than a separate playing rulebook.

The HPA's 2026 rulebook describes its Part 1 as the "International Rules", closely aligned with the AAP and USPA rules, with the HPA's own supplementary rules in Part 2 taking precedence where they conflict. When reading any rule, it matters which body's book it comes from, so the rest of this site always names the rulebook and year it is quoting.

Federation of International Polo (FIP)

• Founded: FIP gives 1982. Olympedia says it was founded in Buenos Aires on 25 November 1982 with 11 founding members, while Wikipedia says it was formally in place by April 1982. The Australian Polo Federation's history page gives 1984 instead.
• Base: headquarters in Montevideo, Uruguay.
• Recognition: FIP says it is recognised by the International Olympic Committee and sanctions tournaments on five continents.
• Championships: the FIP World Polo Championship, European Championship, Ladies European Championship, Women's World Polo Championship and Arena World Polo Championship.
• Leadership: FIP's report on its 2025 General Assembly in Buenos Aires (posted 6 December 2025) names Piero Dillier as President and Alex Taylor as CEO. FIP's authorities page lists Dillier, of Switzerland, with a term to December 2026.

FIP membership

FIP's members page states that it has 86 national association members. The list on that page, as read in October 2026, is grouped like this:

Those entries add up to more than the stated 86 (one country, Romania, appears twice), so the exact count could not be confirmed. The HPA, for its part, describes polo as played in over 70 countries; a membership count and a count of countries playing are different measures.

Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA)

The HPA dates itself to 1875. According to Wikipedia, the Hurlingham Polo Committee was formed that year at the Hurlingham Club in London and drew up the first English polo rules. The HPA says the committee was expanded in 1903 and renamed the Hurlingham Polo Association in 1925, and that it helped spread polo abroad, including to Argentina, the United States and Australia.

• What it governs: the HPA's 2026 rulebook describes the HPA as an affiliation of clubs governing polo in the UK and Ireland. Its own site describes it as the governing body for the UK, Ireland and many other countries, setting the rules, handicapping players in the UK and Ireland and keeping the fixtures list. Wikipedia adds the UAE among the countries it governs.
• Clubs: the HPA's Find a Club page gives over 70 outdoor clubs and 30 arena clubs, over 25 affiliated overseas associations and over 60 HPA coaches. Its Arena Polo Hub gives 33 registered arena clubs, so the arena figure differs between the HPA's own pages.
• The rulebook: the 2026 Rules and Regulations (the Blue Book) has five parts: the game rules, supplementary rules and regulations (membership, handicaps, substitution, tournament conditions, pony welfare), disciplinary procedures, and the HPA's Memorandum and Articles of Association. The copy read for this site is hosted by Polo South Africa.
• Leadership: no 2025 or 2026 HPA source naming the current chair or chief executive was found, so none is given here.

Asociación Argentina de Polo (AAP)

According to Wikipedia, the AAP was founded on 14 September 1922 in Buenos Aires as a non-profit body, merging the Polo Association of the River Plate and the Argentine Polo Federation. Wikipedia says the AAP organises the Argentine Open and other Argentine tournaments, sets and interprets Argentina's rules, handles discipline and sets handicaps for players active in Argentina, and is affiliated with FIP and the Argentine Olympic Committee.

• Home ground: the Campo Argentino de Polo in Palermo, Buenos Aires, which La Nacion's guide says opened on 27 October 1928.
• Leadership: La Nacion reported on 28 and 29 May 2025 that Benjamin Araya, a three-time Palermo champion and television commentator, was elected AAP president by 58 votes to 56 over Marcos Di Paola. English Wikipedia still named an earlier president when checked, which appears out of date.
• Rulebook: the AAP's general rulebook was not available for this site; its 2026 women's tournament regulations were read and are covered on the women's polo page.

United States Polo Association (USPA)

According to Wikipedia, the USPA was founded on 21 March 1890 as the Polo Association, with H. L. Herbert as its first chairman, and later took its current name. Wikipedia says its headquarters moved from New York to Oak Brook, Illinois (1967), Lexington, Kentucky (mid-1980s) and Lake Worth, Florida (2015), and that in June 2022 it acquired the International Polo Club grounds in Wellington, Florida, renamed the USPA National Polo Center.

• What it governs: Wikipedia describes the USPA as governing US polo, including handicaps, rules, conditions and safety and welfare standards. A September 2026 U.S. Polo Assn. release calls it the largest association of polo clubs and players in the United States.
• Authority: under the USPA's 2024 Outdoor Rules (Rules 7 and 11), USPA rules are enforced in all USPA events, and the USPA Board of Governors is the final authority over Host Tournament Committees. Clubs may adopt variances for club events, but never from the helmet rule.
• Leadership: a U.S. Polo Assn. release dated 17 September 2026 quotes Tim Kelly as Chairman of the United States Polo Association.
• Rulebook: the USPA revises its rules each year. This site quotes the 2024 Outdoor Rules, because the 2026 rulebook could not be read; check the current book before relying on any USPA rule.

Other national bodies

The Australian Polo Federation describes itself as the national governing body for all forms of polo in Australia (field, arena and beach), with five state associations as members: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia. It is affiliated with FIP and with the HPA, supervises handicapping through a Benchmark Committee and revises Australian rules through a Rules Committee. Its history page estimates its founding at about 1924, says it was known as the Australian Polo Council until 2012, and says it was incorporated in 2008, the year the Australian Sports Commission recognised it as the national governing body.

The rules and office-holders of the other national associations in FIP were not reviewed for this site.