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Goals Against Average (GAA) Calculator (Water Polo)

LAST UPDATE: September 24th, 2020

GAA Calculator

What are Goals Against Average?

Goals Against Average is the average number of goals allowed per unit of regulation game time. It adjusts for the minutes the goalie plays.

A lower GAA is a sign of a goalie that allows few goals during a game. A higher GAA is a sign of a goalie that allows too many goals during a game.

Sports with a goalie such as ice hockey, field hockey, lacrosse, and soccer (football) use GAA as a statistic.

Formula

GAA = (Goals Against ÷ Minutes Played) x Regulation Game Time in Minutes

Where:

  • Goals Against” are the number of goals recorded while the goalie is in the water. Include all goals against during regulation and overtime play. Do not include goals against during a shootout or when the net is empty. Rules for scoring are in the FINA rule book, Water Polo USA, and Water Polo Canada under “scoring.”
  • “Minutes Played” are the total number of minutes played by the goalie. Include overtime play. Do not include the time the goalie plays during a shootout or when the net is empty.
  • “Game Length” is the regulation game length in the league the goalie is playing. Olympic and FINA level games are 32 minutes of regulation time. NCAA water polo is 28 minutes of regulation time. Recreational and minor leagues may be less.

Example

The goalie is in net for 320 minutes, allows 50 goals in that time, and regulation time for the league is 32 minutes per game:

50 goals against ÷ by 320 minutes = 0.15625.

0.15625 multiplied by 32 minutes per game is 5.

This goalie’s Goals Against Average (GAA) is 5.00.

Sources and more resources