At first skating club interest was confined to the northern tier of the United States, including the bordering Canadian cities.

Puck roller hockey's spread in popularity during that period was helped along by the attention of local commercial television, which was getting its start and in desperate need for events to fill air time.

In 1962, at Pershing Auditorium in Lincoln, Nebraska, both ball and puck hockey were part of the North American Championships.

The Arcadia Wildcats from Detroit, Michigan, defeated the Van Wert Chiefs 3–1, becoming the first puck hockey national champions on quad skates.

It was decided that both ball and puck hockey would compete under the same rules and award separate gold medal winners.

Budd Van Roekel, RSROA president, was quoted in the January 1965 issue of Skate Magazine, We believe this move will spark further growth of our roller hockey program.

We see no reason why the two versions of the sport cannot grow side by side.The 1966 North American Championships marked the return of puck hockey after a four-year hiatus.

The final game was a nail biter and the crowd appreciated the fast pace and excitement of puck hockey.

One Canadian team player was quoted in the 1966 Fall issue of Skate Magazine, "We simply had to win the (puck) hockey championships, otherwise our fathers wouldn't allow us to return home."

The 1977 puck championships were staged in Houston, Texas to large crowds and a great amount of publicity, as fourteen newspapers and television stations covered the event.

The first World Inline Hockey Championships for Women occurred under sponsorship of USA Roller Sports in Rochester, New York in 2002.

During the General Assembly of the IWGA, which took place in Madrid on 14 May 2003, the IWGA unanimously agreed that inline roller hockey was the responsibility of FIRS and that this variant form of roller hockey would be included on the program of the 2005 World Games in place of the previous format.

The NRHL will have franchises located throughout the United States and/or Canada in arenas with a minimum stadium seating capacity of 3,000.

It consists of East and West Coast divisions, and the season is played from October to March with finals being held in either Europe or the USA.

Inline hockey is typically played at room temperature on a surface that, rather than being made from (frozen) water, is kept dry to protect the bearings in the skate wheels.

In addition, goaltenders use different gear, (optionally) a neck guard, chest/arm protector, blocker, catch glove, and leg pads.

One of the most fundamental differences between the IIHF and World Skate-sanctioned versions of inline hockey lies within the dimensions of the net.

Teams typically employ alternate sets of forward lines and defensive pairings when shorthanded or on a power play.

The referees and the outsides of the goal are "in play" and do not cause a stoppage of the game when the puck or players are influenced (by either bouncing or colliding) into them.

A two-minute minor penalty is often called for lesser infractions such as tripping, elbowing, roughing, high-sticking, delay of the game, too many players on the rink, boarding, illegal equipment, holding, interference, hooking, slashing, butt-ending (striking an opponent with the knob of the stick—a very rare penalty) Or cross-checking.

This differs with two players from opposing sides getting minor penalties, at the same time or at any intersecting moment, resulting from more common infractions.

The offending player is ejected from the game and must immediately leave the playing surface (he does not sit in the penalty box); meanwhile, if a minor or major is assessed in addition, a designated player must serve out that segment of the penalty in the box (similar to the above-mentioned "two-and-ten").

Amateur hockey leagues use guidelines established by national organizing bodies as a basis for choosing their officiating staffs.

Offensive tactics include improving a team's position on the floor by advancing the puck towards the opponent's goal.

Amateur recreation level players who play strictly inline hockey never consider fisticuffs a legitimate behavior.

While converted roller rinks may use wooden floors, dedicated inline hockey facilities use Sport Court or similar surface, which allows maximum traction to inline hockey wheels whilst providing a smooth, unbroken gliding surface for the puck.

The playing area should be surrounded by full boards similar to ice hockey with glass or fencing to a height of around 2m.

Inline Sledge Hockey is being developed to allow everyone, regardless of whether they have a disability or not, to complete up to World Championship level based solely on talent and ability.

The first game of Inline Sledge Hockey was played at Bisley, England on 19 December 2009 between the Hull Stingrays and the Grimsby Redwings.

Matt Lloyd (Paralympian) is credited with inventing Inline Sledge Hockey and Great Britain is seen as the international leader in the game's development.