Sports of Belgium
Europe
Originating in Belgium
Sports whose history and codification began here.
Cyclocross
From Belgium
Off-road cycling on a short mixed-terrain lap — jump barriers, run steep hills, ride again.
DVONN
From Belgium
Stacking game from the GIPF project — build towers on top of red 'DVONN' pieces or watch them vanish.
GIPF
From Belgium
The flagship of the GIPF Project — push pieces onto a hexagonal grid and form four-in-a-row to capture.
ZÈRTZ
From Belgium
Give-away game from the GIPF project — force your opponent to hand you the marbles you need.
Widely played in Belgium
7 Wonders
From France
Modern card-drafting civilization game. Designed 2010 Antoine Bauza (French designer). Repos Production. 3-7 players, 30 min. Won 30+ awards including Kennerspiel des Jahres 2011 (first ever). Players build one of the 7 Ancient Wonders civilizations across 3 ages via simultaneous card drafting. Duel 2-player version 2015.
Acrobatic Gymnastics
From Russia
Partner gymnastics — 2 to 4 athletes perform balances, dynamic throws + catches on floor. FIG-recognized 1999 (previously separate federation IFSA since 1973). Not Olympic. Events: mixed pair, women's pair, men's pair, women's group (3), men's group (4). Russia + China + UK + Belgium dominant.
Belote
From France
Popular French trick-taking card game for 4 players (2 partnerships). Standardized 1920s France. Uses 32-card deck (7-A × 4 suits). BIDDING selects trump suit. Considered NATIONAL CARD GAME of FRANCE — 60% of French adults play. Also popular Balkans, Greece, Belgium, Cyprus. Contract Belote (higher-stakes bidding variant) considered pinnacle.
Darts
From United Kingdom
Precision throwing sport in which players hurl small missiles at a segmented circular board, aiming to reduce a starting score (usually 501) to exactly zero, finishing on a double.
Diabolo
From China
Ancient Chinese juggling skill toy — spool-shaped device balanced + spun on string held between 2 hand sticks; tricks include spinning acceleration, tosses to great heights, 'suicide' releases, whip-catches, and choreographed multi-diabolo routines. Popular Chinese cultural performance + modern juggling sport.
Draughts
From Iraq
Ancient two-player strategy board game played on a checkered board (8×8 or 10×10) where pieces move diagonally, capturing by jumping — first to eliminate opponent or trap all pieces wins.
Dressage
From France
Equestrian Olympic sport — precision performance of prescribed movements by horse+rider in 20×60m arena. French word 'dressage' = 'training.' Governed by FEI since 1921. Olympic since 1912. Modern era dominated by Germany + Netherlands + UK. Iconic: Charlotte Dujardin (GB, Valegro), Isabell Werth (Germany, most decorated female Olympian).
EA Sports FC
From Canada
The world's most successful football (soccer) simulation — annual release by EA Sports. Renamed from FIFA to EA Sports FC in 2023 after EA-FIFA partnership ended. Ultimate Team mode dominates gameplay; over 150M lifetime FIFA/FC players; largest sports simulation esport.
Field Hockey
From United Kingdom
Eleven-a-side stick-and-ball team sport played on artificial turf — flick, push and hit a hard ball into a caged goal using a J-shaped stick.
Geocaching
From United States
Global outdoor treasure hunt using GPS coordinates — players find hidden containers ('caches') at specific coordinates worldwide. Started May 2000 (day after GPS Selective Availability turned off); 3+ million active caches; 8+ million users; every continent + underwater + space station.
Heptathlon
From Greece
WOMEN'S COMBINED-EVENTS athletic competition — 7 EVENTS over 2 days. Day 1: 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200m. Day 2: long jump, javelin, 800m. Points via IAAF scoring tables. Winner = highest total. Considered women's decathlon equivalent. Olympic sport since 1984 Los Angeles. JACKIE JOYNER-KERSEE world record 7291 pts (1988).
Jigsaw Puzzle
From United Kingdom
Assembly puzzle where players fit irregular-shaped interlocking pieces to form complete picture. Invented ~1760 by John Spilsbury (British engraver, London) — originally 'dissected maps' for teaching geography. Sizes: 100 pieces (child) to 40,000+ (world's largest). Popular meditative hobby; RAVENSBURGER + BUFFALO GAMES top publishers.
Karting
From United States
Open-wheel motorsport with small four-wheeled vehicles ('karts'). Modern karting invented 1956 by Art Ingels (California). Standard training ground for Formula 1 drivers — Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen all started karting. FIA-sanctioned World Karting Championship + amateur leagues globally.
Kickboxing
From Japan
Stand-up combat sport combining boxing punches with karate/muay-thai-inspired kicks, contested in a ring with various rulesets (K-1, Full-Contact, American, Dutch).
Kitesurfing
From France
Extreme water sport combining surfing + kite flying + wakeboarding — rider stands on small board (kiteboard or surfboard) while being pulled across water by large controllable power kite; jumps 10-30m high, back-rolls, kite-loops. Olympic sport since Paris 2024 (Formula Kite class).
Korfball
From Netherlands
Dutch mixed-gender team sport invented 1902 by Nico Broekhuysen. 8 players per team (4 men + 4 women each) score by shooting ball through 3.5m elevated basket (korf). UNIQUE — only major team sport designed for MANDATORY MIXED-GENDER play. Popular Netherlands, Belgium, Taiwan, small international scene. IWGA World Games sport.
Magic: The Gathering
From United States
The world's first trading card game (TCG) — 2+ players build 60-card 'decks' (Modern/Legacy) or 100-card commander decks from ~25,000+ unique cards, then battle by casting spells + summoning creatures to reduce opponent's life total from 20 to 0.
Motocross
From United Kingdom
Off-road motorcycle racing on closed dirt circuits with jumps, whoops, and berms, contested in short heats over 30-40 minutes plus 2 laps.
Nine Men's Morris
From Italy
Ancient 2-player abstract strategy game — dates to Roman Empire (200 AD Egyptian rooftop carvings). Players place + move 9 pieces on 24-point grid; form 'mills' (3 in a row) to capture opponent pieces. Solved as draw (2003); still played worldwide. Featured in Shakespeare (Midsummer Night's Dream).
Pandemic
From United States
Iconic COOPERATIVE modern board game by Matt Leacock (Z-Man Games, 2008) — 2-4 players work TOGETHER as disease specialists racing to cure 4 diseases before outbreaks destroy the world. Revolutionized cooperative board gaming; Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 (2015) is BoardGameGeek's #1 game of all time. 8M+ copies sold.
Pétanque
From France
French outdoor precision ball game — players throw hollow steel balls (boules) toward a small wooden target ball (cochonnet or jack) from a stationary circle; closest ball scores; first team to 13 wins.
Pokémon Trading Card Game
From Japan
World's #2 collectible card game — 2 players battle using decks of 60 Pokémon + Trainer cards. Launched Japan 1996; global explosion via Pokémon franchise; 43+ billion cards printed by 2023. Pokémon TCG World Championships since 2004; Charizard rare cards sold for $420,000+; annual sales $1B+.
Reversi / Othello
From United Kingdom
Abstract strategy game invented 1883 in England — 2 players place black/white discs on 8×8 board; flanking opponent's discs converts them to your color. Simple rules ('A minute to learn... a lifetime to master'); huge in Japan; WOF World Othello Championship since 1977; computer-solved for perfect draw (2023).
Road Cycling
From France
Bicycle racing on paved roads — from single-day Classics (Paris-Roubaix, Milan-San Remo) to three-week Grand Tours (Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, Vuelta a España).
Rocket League
From United States
'Soccer with rocket-powered cars' — Psyonix's beloved vehicular football; 3-vs-3 teams driving cars with jumps + boost + aerial flips to hit oversized ball into goals. Massive esports scene (RLCS); simple concept + deep skill ceiling; considered greatest hybrid sports game ever.
Rummikub
From Israel
Tile-based rummy game for 2-4 players invented in 1930s Romania by Ephraim Hertzano; players race to be first to lay down all their tiles by forming sets (same number, different colours) and runs (consecutive numbers, same colour).
Show Jumping
From Ireland
Olympic equestrian sport in which a horse-and-rider partnership navigates a course of 12-15 fences within a time limit, incurring penalties for knocked poles, refusals, and time over.
Speed Skating
From Netherlands
Ice-skating race sport on a 400 m double-lane oval; distances from 500 m sprint to 10,000 m endurance with skaters swapping lanes each lap.
Tarot (Card Game)
From Italy
Trick-taking card game family using TAROT DECK (78 cards including 21 TRUMPS + FOOL). Originated 15th-century Italy. FRENCH TAROT (Tarot Français) most popular — 4-player game. Also Italian Tarocchi, German Tarok, Hungarian Tarokk. Different from Tarot DIVINATION (started 18th century). Serious mind sport in France; Tarot Federation organized.
Warhammer Age of Sigmar
From United Kingdom
Games Workshop's high-fantasy tabletop miniature wargame — successor to Warhammer Fantasy Battle after 2015 'End Times' reboot. Stormcast Eternals + Sylvaneth + Skaven + Nighthaunt + Ogor Mawtribes + 20+ factions battle across Mortal Realms. 4th Edition launched 2024. Sister game to Warhammer 40k.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game
From Japan
World's #3 collectible card game — 2 players duel with decks of 40-60 monster/spell/trap cards. Based on manga/anime by Kazuki Takahashi (1996). Launched Japan 1999; global anime boom 2001+. Guinness Record most sold TCG (2011): 25.1+ billion cards sold; Blue-Eyes White Dragon + Dark Magician iconic; Konami owns rights.