6 Incredible Sports Invented in Brazil

Nations worldwide know Brazil for its football teams and players. Even though there is a very popular saying in which we refer to our homeland as the “country of football’, it is not among the sports invented in Brazil.

Nonetheless, there are six other sports that have their origins in Brazil and they go beyond the famous Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. So, if you want to learn more about the sports invented in Brazil, keep reading this blog post.

Further reading: The 5 Most Popular Sports in Brazil.

Footvolley

Footvolley is a mix of beach volleyball and football. Octavio de Moraes invented this sport back in the ’60s, in Copacabana Beach. The sport essentially follows the rules of beach volleyball, but players cannot use their hands. You should only touch the ball with your feet, chest, and head. Moreover, each team consists of two players.

Many former football players are now devoted footvolley players, including Romário, Edmundo, and Júnior.

After gaining so much popularity in Brazil, footvolley is now a popular sport around the world, having its own world championship and other major events.

Read more: Beach Volleyball and Footvolley in Brazil.

Peteca

Peteca is a traditional sport in Brazil. We play it with our hands and use a shuttlecock made of feathers from indigenous origins and reputed to be as old as the country itself. Peteca is the name of the sport, as well as the shuttlecock.

Kids love to play Peteca, but you can also encounter some avid adult players as well. The objective of the game is to hit the Peteca with your hand over a high net similar to a volleyball net, causing the object to land inbounded on the opposite court. You can only hit the Peteca once on each side of the net.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Famous worldwide as BJJ, it is a Brazilian martial art sport based on grappling and submission holds. It was mainly developed in Brazil by the Gracie family, after being trained by Japanese judoka, Mitsuyo Maeda. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is probably the most famous sport invented in Brazil.

This self-defense combat sport revolves around the concept that smaller and weaker fighters can successfully use leverage and weight distribution to defend themselves against stronger and heavier opponents.

Today, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art that implements discipline, morals, and respect for others. The martial art community all around the world really respects its techniques and moves. The goal of BJJ is to make the fighter tolerant and confident in his decisions, showing high levels of discipline.

Learn more about it: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu- BJJ: History And Facts.

Capoeira

Capoeira is also among the famous sports invented in Brazil. Besides being a fun sporting activity for young and old, capoeira brings an incredible part of Brazilian history with it. African slaves invented Capoeira around the beginning of the 16th Century, in combination with native Brazilian influences. The slaves would disguise this martial art as dance to fool the slavemasters that did not want to see them fighting.

Today you can find capoeira schools throughout Brazil, and in recent years it has gained in popularity worldwide, spreading across the globe to Europe, Asia, Australia, the USA, and Canada. Capoeira can also offer a safe haven for underprivileged Brazilian children and teenagers who, besides learning a martial art and a range of exciting capoeira acrobatic moves, can learn much more about Brazilian history and development-enhancing characteristics such as respect and discipline.

Futsal

Futsal is a game similar to football but played on an indoor hard court, in which two teams of five players play against each other. The Futsal ball is also smaller and harder than the regular one used in football.

Futsal players are famous for their improvisation, creativity, and control of the ball.

In fact, there is a dispute about whether Futsall originates in Uruguay or Brazil, as both started to play the same sport simultaneously.

Beach Football

Just like Futsal, beach football also follows the principles of association football. It was invented in 1940 in Rio de Janeiro with the first official tournament held in 1950. Each team consists of five players who must play in bare feet. The game lasts three sets of 12 minutes each, and a sand court is the official playing area for this sport. Because of that, beach football is also known as sand football.

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