Bizarre sports from around the world: Bossaball

by Lucy Moore | 23 May 2022

Now all the clothes have been extreme ironed, the pillow fights have been and gone, the wives have been carried, the cheese has rolled away, the oil wrestling has come to a close, the ferrets have legged it and the underwater hockey pool has dried over- it’s time for a new sport in the form of… Bossaball!

Bossaball Jaap Arriens / Alamy Stock Photo

Why play one sport when you can play a mixture of not one, not two- but three different ones?! That’s right, for the greedy or indecisive sports persons among us- there is Bossaball which combines- wait for it- volleyball, football AND gymnastics! Talk about having your cake and eating it too!

via GIPHY

Plus, this all happens to a background of music- as if there wasn’t enough going on to excite the senses. Each game has a ‘samba referee’ who is the DJ for the sport, using music to encourage players to do their best with some positive vibes.

Bossaball is played on an inflatable court, which has trampolines at either side (actually this does sound pretty fun) so players can bounce up high to score direct points.

Originating in Spain, it is now played throughout the world- and why not? It’s like a soft play for adults! Where can I sign up?!

The game has two teams of four players and their aim is to get the ball to touch the ground on the opponent's side. You are not allowed to touch the net in between which incidentally can be moved depending on the level of the players.

The players on the opposite team must hit the ball back (they are allowed a maximum of five attempts) using any part of their body. The attacker has the fun job as he/she gets to go on the trampoline while the other players are on the inflatables around them. Imagine your local trampoline park where the parents have kicked off all the kids and thrown on some tunes then you’re pretty much there in picturing the scene.

While I have never played this sport before, I can only imagine that if you are a lady- you will need the creme de la creme of sports bras for this activity… and a good pelvic floor too. So if you have neither, it might be wise to set your Bossaball dreams to one side and try something that won't make you wet yourself mid game.