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Kabaddi -

Kabaddi is the national sport of Bangladesh and has been popular in South Asia since the 20th century. This contact sport is played by both men and women. In short, teams have their offensive player, known as the raider, invade the other team’s defense and tag as many players as possible before returning safely to their original side.

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Yukigassen - This sport was founded in Japan in 1989 and combines both dodgeball and snowball fighting. Two seven-person teams compete against one another using 90 premade snowballs each. A player is ejected when they are struck with a snowball, and once all snowballs are gone the team with the most remaining players wins.

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Calcio storico - Also known as calcio fiorentino, the sport of calcio storico pits 27 players per side against one another. The field is rectangular and has goal nets on both ends. This high-impact sport allows headbutting, punching, elbowing, and even choking. The sport lost some interest in the post-Renaissance era but made a comeback in the 1930s.

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Buzkashi - Buzkashi is a version of polo originating in central Asia but that has become especially popular in Afghanistan. Four to five horsemen per side on each squad try to carry a goat or calf carcass into the other team's "circle of justice." This game can actually end up lasting days and is known for brutal head injuries.

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Picigin - In 1908, water polo enthusiasts in Croatia were frustrated when they couldn't find water deep enough to play their favorite game. So they decided to come up with a game of their own. Five players stand in a circle on the beach and swat around an unpeeled tennis ball in an effort to keep it from touching the water.

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Senegalese wrestling - Senegalese wrestling is the only version in West Africa where blows to the head are allowed, which makes it more similar to modern mixed martial arts rather than old–school fighting. In Senegal, this is a national sport where champions end up becoming celebrities.

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Fierljeppen - Fierljeppen is where pole vaulting meets the childhood love of jumping over (or into) puddles. This sport originated as a way to navigate the swampy canal of Friesland in the Netherlands. Players pole vault over a canal or stream while attempting to climb atop the pole before jumping as far as possible to the other bank.

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Hurling -

Hurling is an ancient Gaelic sport that originated in Ireland and is considered one of the oldest field games in the world. It involves teams of 15 players who use a wooden stick called a hurley to hit a small ball, or sliotar, between the opponent’s goalposts for points.

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Skijoring - Skijoring was born as a mode of transportation in Norway before the invention of the snowmobile. Soon this transportation method became a sport where skiers are pulled behind a horse, dog, or motorized vehicle down a curvy, snowy course. The fastest time wins.

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Palla - This Tuscan sport pits two players or teams against one another on a rectangular court, similar to a tennis court but without a net. Players will then hit the ball with their hands and volley until the ball bounces more than once a side, earning the player a point. This game counts things like walls, spectators, and more as being in fair play.

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Oină - This Romanian bat and ball sport has been played since approximately 1370. It pits two teams of 11 against each other on a rectangular field. This complicated sport has a pitcher who throws the ball to his or her at bat teammate who then tries to hit the ball away from the opposing team’s fielders. After hitting the ball, the batter runs the lanes until he or she is struck by the ball from an opposing player.

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Shin-kicking - Since the 1600s, shin-kicking has been a popular sport in England. In this one-on-one combat sport, opponents clench the upper body of their competition and then attempt to take them to the ground using nothing but shin kicks. Participants typically wear hardened boots and stuff their pants with straw.

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Cheese rolling -

Cheese rolling is an annual sport held at Cooper's Hill in Gloucestershire, England. Participants chase a round of Double Gloucester cheese down a very steep hill, and the first person to cross the finish line at the bottom is declared the winner.

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Arnis - Arnis is the national martial art of the Philippines and is a weapons-based fighting style. From sticks to blades and swords or even improvised weapons, opponents attack one another.

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Ba' game - Before rugby and American football, there was Ba' game, which began in medieval Scotland. Originally, the sport pitted two towns against one another, where each town or team would move scrum and use their collective mass to move the ball toward the opponent's goal. Before playing fields, the games would often be played in town with scrums moving through parks, alleyways, and even down city streets.

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Basque pelota -

In this sport, players use a racket, stick, basket, or club and bounce a hard and small rubber ball off a wall known as the frontis. Pelota games are played one-on-one or in teams on larger courts. Today, some versions of pelota can be found in Latin America and Western Europe.

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Underwater rugby -

Underwater rugby is a sport that was developed in Germany in the 1960s. The aquatic game is played in a swimming pool with two teams of six players each, who are aiming to score by placing a ball in the opposing team’s underwater basket.

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Wife carrying -

Wife carrying is a sport that originated in Finland and involves male competitors racing while carrying a female teammate, often their wife, through an obstacle course. The winner is the team that completes the course in the fastest time and the prize is traditionally the wife’s weight in beer.

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Bossaball - Spain is to thank for Bossaball, a sport that is a hybrid of volleyball, soccer, and gymnastics played on an inflatable court with a trampoline on each side.

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Bo-taoshi - Similar to capture the flag on steroids, bo-taoshi teams consist of up to 150 players and are divided evenly between defense and offense. Opponents try to topple the pole, which is defended in a vertical position until it reaches a 30-degree angle relative to ground. Played predominantly by military cadets, bo-taoshi is thought to have appeared in the mid-1950s.

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Zorbing - Zorbing is an adventurous sport where participants roll downhill inside a large, transparent, plastic orb. Originating in New Zealand in the 1990s, this activity has grown in popularity worldwide, offering both land and water variations for those seeking a thrill!

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Gillidanda - Gillidanda, often referred to as the precursor to cricket and baseball, is a traditional sport originating in the Indian subcontinent. It involves hitting a small stick (gilli) with a larger stick (danda), and has been played for centuries in rural areas across India, Pakistan, and Nepal.

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Hornussen -

Hornussen is a traditional Swiss sport that combines elements of golf and baseball. Played primarily in rural Switzerland, it involves hitting a puck, called a "Nouss," with a long, flexible rod, aiming to land it as far as possible into the opponent's field.

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Elephant polo - As it sounds, elephant polo is polo that is played while on the back of an elephant! Elephant polo is especially popular in Nepal, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand. Players use a standard polo ball and a six to 10 foot (1.8-3 m) cane stick with a polo mallet at the end.

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Korfball - Similar to netball and basketball, korfball was invented in 1901 by Amsterdam schoolmaster, Nico Broekhuysen. Korfball is played by two teams of eight including four women and four men. It is played indoors on a  court with a goal post and a cylindrical basket (“korf” open at both ends. The object of the game is to throw a ball so it passes through the korf from above and scores a point.

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Sepaktakraw - This volleyball-like game originated in Southeast Asia. It is a competitive sport involving two teams of three players known as the left inside, right inside, and back. Players can’t use their hands and the objective is to hit the ball over the net and make it land on the opponent's side of the court.

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Tchoukball -

Tchoukball is a non-contact team sport invented by a Swiss biologist in the 1970s. The game is played on an indoor court where teams score points by bouncing a ball off a framed net and ensuring it lands in the opposing team's play area without being caught.

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Chess boxing -

Chess boxing is a hybrid sport that challenges both the body and mind. It combines chess and boxing in alternating rounds where competitors face each other in a boxing ring and engage in four-minute rounds of chess followed by three-minute rounds of boxing.

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Bandy -

Bandy is a sport played in the winter that originated in Scandinavia and Russia, resembling ice hockey but played with a ball instead of a puck. The game is played on a large ice rink with 11 players per team who use curved sticks to score goals in a similar manner to soccer.

Sources: (Stacker) (Britannica) (Topend Sports)

See also: The 10 most popular sports in the world, ranked by fan numbers

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