Sport has been an essential aspect of human history, and since its invention, it has influenced people's lives in all times and eras. Most sports are played by either throwing or hitting balls. Nowadays, sports with balls, such as hockey, cricket, and soccer, are the most famous, with millions of fans worldwide.
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Although some games are played without balls, those that are, are the most known and widely played. Sports play essential roles in society as it helps to bring people together despite their races, nationalities, and cultures.
A list of the top 15 sports with balls
Generally, in games, balls are caught, head-butted, thrown, hit, kicked, bumped, spiked, dunked, driven, served, bowled, broken, punted, volleyed, dribbled, or tossed by the players.
Professional athletes such as soccer players are among the world's wealthiest individuals since they take home millions of dollars in salaries, commercial agreements, and sponsorship deals. Here is a list of 15 sports with balls that are widely played all over the world.
15. Table tennis
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Table tennis is one of the sports played using balls and bats. Although its best players are mainly from China, Sweden, and South Korea, it originated in England as an alternative to lawn tennis in the 19th century.
The game is played by two or four people who throw a ball over the net by hitting it alternatively using bats, and points are scored when one player commits a foul or misses.
14. Lacrosse
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Lacrosse is yet one of those sports in the list played using sticks and balls, where players use the former to carry, catch, pass, and shoot the latter into the goal to score points. The sport originated in North America and is indigenous to Canada.
13. Golf
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This game is common in East Asia, Western Europe, and North America and has over 450 million fans worldwide. It is among sports with balls and sticks in which players must hit them into the holes using particular rods to win the game.
12. Bowling
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Bowling originated from skittles and has risen in popularity over the years. The game aims to knock down pins set at the end of board-less lanes using the lowest possible number of balls launched by hand.
The most common type of bowling in the world is the 10-pin one, played by two teams of 11 players, each trying to hit the pins set in the form of a triangle.
11. Netball
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The sport is one of the sports with balls and nets played primarily by women. It involves two opposing teams of seven members each, aiming to score points by throwing the ball into the opponent's basket.
10. Volleyball
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The sport was invented in 1895 by William J Morgan, an employee of the Christian Young Men's Associations. The sport then spread to Western Europe and North America and has amassed over 900 million fans worldwide.
It is played by two teams of six players, each trying to ground the ball on the opponent's side by kicking it over the net with their hands.
9. Handball
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As its name suggests, the game is played using hands. The sport involves two opposing teams of seven members who try to score points by manoeuvring other players and throwing the ball into the opponent's net.
8. Tennis
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Tennis became popular in France before spreading to other parts of the world. Two teams play made up of either one or two people who use rackets to hit the ball over the net to the opponent's half.
7. Baseball
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The sport is regarded as one of the world's most famous sports, played by two opposing teams of nine members each. Its primary objective is to score points by hitting a ball with a bat and running all the bases to the home plate. After nine innings, teams alternate from offence to defence.
6. Cricket
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Cricket is a game played by two opposing teams of 11 members each and involves using a bat. The game aims to score more points than the opponents during the competitions.
The match is referred to as a test that consists of one or more parts called innings. The game is played when groups from each inning strike out to the opponent's team, thus making them pitch once.
5. Hockey
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There are different types of hockey, such as field and ice hockey, which involve using a stick and a ball during action. It is played by two opposing teams of 11 individuals who attempt to gain points by hitting it with a stick into the opponent's goal.
4. Rugby
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Rugby is a sport that requires skill, speed, and strength since it is a challenging game. It is played by two teams of 15 players who try to score points by either carrying the ball toward the opponent's side or kicking it between the opponent's upright poles.
3. American football
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The sport is played between two opposing teams of 11 members each. The teams try to score points by carrying or passing the ball into the scoring area at the end zone. The team with the most points wins at the end of the game.
2. Basketball
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The game has been one of the Olympic sports with balls since 1936. It is played by two opposing teams of 5 players who try to score points by throwing the ball into the opponent's basket while preventing them from gaining possession.
1. Soccer
Soccer is the world's most popular sport, with over 4 billion fans. Like most types of sports with balls in them, soccer is also played by two opposing teams, each aiming to score a goal using any part of the body except the hands and arms.
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What is the most popular ball game?
Soccer is the most famous game in history, with over 250 million players in over 200 countries. It has risen and become an iconic symbol in the athletic world, and as of 2023, over 4 billion people consider themselves soccer lovers.
What sport uses 22 balls?
Snooker is a game played using 22 balls and a cue. It is played by sinking red and coloured balls attentively using the cue.
Gymnastics sports with balls, hoops and more
Rhtymic and artistic gymnastics perform choreographed routines using each of the following four pieces of apparatus: ball, hoop, clubs and a ribbon. Olympic female artistic gymnasts for South Africa's events have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1896.
What is the oldest known game with a ball?
Dodgeball is thought to be the oldest game in history. It was played over 3,500 years ago in Mesoamerica with a 4-kilogram rubber ball that could break other ones or even kill the participants.
Sports with balls are like a thread that binds people together from all over the globe despite their preferences and opinions. Besides being a source of joy and happiness, sports also maintain a healthy competitive spirit between different opponents, which has positively impacted society.
READ ALSO: Who invented hockey? history of the game, and how to play
SportsBrief has published an article about the history of hockey and how it is played. Hockey, one of the world's most famous sports, has a rich history and culture behind it. Ice hockey is native to North America, especially Canada, where it is considered a national winter sport.
The National Hockey League, NHL, ranks among the best leagues in the world and is today's most famous level of men's hockey. Check out the link above to learn who invented hockey!
