Fictional Sports in Real Life

Have you watched Star Wars, Harry Potter or Tron, and thought to yourself, “Damn, I want to do that”? In our latest infographic, fans have gone to extremes to recreate various fictional sports as featured in these popular movies.

No flying brooms? No problem! Taken from JK Rowling’s novel which has been turned into a huge franchise made up of a series of books and films, Quidditch has taken the muggle world by storm . In the 1997 book/film Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the sport features wizards and witches flying around on broomsticks trying to throw balls through goal hoops. The match ends when a golden ball called the Snitch is caught. In real life, the rules are similar to the fictional game, but instead of flying, players carry their broomsticks, and the ‘magical’ Snitch is attached to the shorts of an impartial official. Check out the infographic for a fun fact on the wizardly sport.

Remember that anthropomorphic yellow bear from your childhood? Poohstick is a new game taken from the 1928 book, Winnie the Pooh: The House at Pooh Corner wherein players stand on a bridge over water and throw sticks down on one side. The game plays in the same way in real life, and the winner is the player whose stick flows through to the other side first. Should you wish to compete, there are World Championships currently played over the river Windrush in Langel Common in Witney, Oxfordshire, England.

The hit TV show Star Trek has acquired quite a following over the years, so much so that the Tridimensional chessboard from the 1966 show has become a thing. Essentially, it’s a game of chess which takes place on several boards in a vertical alignment. Boardgame companies have produced identical pieces to the fictional version. The game first appeared in the original series but has since featured throughout the rest of the franchise. Find out more about three-dimensional chess in the infographic.

While on the subject of science fiction, the Star Wars franchise has become an intergalactic sensation! Fans have taken quite a few games from the films and brought them to life. After the 1999 film Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace was released, fans fantasised about pod racing. In the movie, players race in homemade “pods” with jet engines at the front. While there are few documented attempts to replicate pod racing itself, “drone racing” has become a favourite sport (you should take a look at the infographic for a fun fact on drone racing). Star Wars is also responsible for the creation of other boardgames like Sabacc and Holochess. Pazaak is a card game similar to Blackjack which has also been recreated in real life. The idea was taken from the 2003 video game, Star Wars (Knights of the Old Republic). The aim is to reach a card score of 20 instead of 21 as in Blackjack. It plays just like in the game but with more of a Blackjack feel, and side-cards may also be used to adjust the score.

The science fiction category is not complete without the 1978/2004 American franchise Battlestar Galactica in the mix of things. The game is called Pyramid/Triad (it was called Triad in the original series, while Pyramid was a card game – the names swapped in the later series due to a writer error!) and was played on a pyramid-shaped court. The aim of the game is to get the ball into a goal at the top of the pyramid. With its limited steps and designated safe zones, the game is similar to netball and basketball.

Wouldn’t it be cool to run around in a Light Cycle similar to the ones in Tron? That’s a thing of the past, as it’s already been done! In the 1982 film/game, players in Light Cycles ride around leaving coloured walls behind them. The objective is to try and trap your opponent with your wall. As well as the video games that featured the sport, a real life replica has been made of the Light Cycles which appeared in the 2010 Disney reboot. Other games which have appeared both in Tron and in the video game include I/O Tower, a shooter, MCP Cone, a sort of brick breaker, Battle Tanks and a maze shooter. Nowadays, there are even eSports tournaments happening around the world which you can easily join in on the action from the comfort of your home.

For more fictional sports taken from various video games, TV shows and movies like New Girl, Rollerball and the good old Pong game, be sure to look at the infographic below.

About the author

Eric Roberts

Sports Journalist

Eric has been a sports journalist for over 20 years and has travelled the world covering top sporting events for a number of publications. He also has a passion for betting and uses his in-depth knowledge of the sports world to pinpoint outstanding odds and value betting opportunities.