The Mesoamerican ballgame was a ball sport created by the Olmec around 1600 BC, which would later flourish under the Mayans and Aztecs. The game would spread throughout the totality of Mesoamerica, including parts of North and South America and the Caribbean. A version of the sport exists today under the name ulama, played and celebrated by indigenous peoples of Central America. The Mesoamerican ballgame was called Pitz in Ancient Mayan, which evolved to pokolpok as a Yucatec Mayan word. The Aztecs called it ōllamaliztli or tlachtli in their native language of Nahuatl. In modern Spanish, the game was referred to as juego de pelota maya, pelota maya, or juego de pelota mesoamericano.

Strong evidence of the Mesoamerican ballgame being an Olmec invention comes from the Aztecs, who referred to them as the “rubber people.” They were known for their latex production since they had access to the rubber trees of the region. The oldest rubber balls in the world were found at an Olmec sacrificial offering site at El Manatí. Other ballgame equipment, like the ceremonial stone “yoke,” named after the agricultural tool, was commonly found at other Mesoamerican ballcourts. This evidence connects these artifacts to the ballgame as well as serving some type of religious function.

Mesoamerican ballcourts have been found as far north as Arizona and as far south as Nicaragua. The earliest established ballcourt, dating to around 1400 B.C., is located in modern-day Guatemala. Earlier ballcourts probably did not survive since they were made of compacted dirt compared to the more modern stone ballcourts that still survive today.

With over 1,500 ballcourts discovered and still intact, we know that while the courts could be dramatically different in size. However, they all followed a similar shape of an extended narrow playing area with sloped sidewalls that could be used to bounce the ball. Depending on the size of the court, the end zones were either left open or enclosed. They served as the target each team was trying to advance the ball towards. Viewers could watch the game atop buildings alongside the playing area, similar to modern-day viewing stands. The Mayans introduced a new feature to the game, vertical stone rings, which the Aztecs would also use in their ballcourts. Ballcourts had decorations of gods, heroes, and other iconography, as various plants and flowers grew along its eight to eleven-foot-high walls.

There is no recorded official rule set for the Mesoamerican ballgame. Still, the best-recorded eyewitness testimony comes from Diego Durán, a Dominican friar. He observed the Aztecs play in the 16th century. He mentioned that players could only strike the ball with the hips, thighs, and knees. However, art depicts other versions of the game, including rackets or wooden sticks with a smaller ball. Another version allowed strikes with the forearms, similar to volleyball. However, it seemed like the hip-ball version was by far the most popular and was the one that was played in the stone ballcourts. The games were played between two teams, each featuring a “hero,” or leading player that did most of the offensive action, with teammates behind for defense and support.

The game featured two ways to win: getting the ball through the vertical stone hoop or scoring the most points by the end of the game. Getting the ball through the hoop was incredibly rare and difficult to do. Duran said someone could stand next to the hoop, throw the ball, and only make one shot out of a hundred. If the ball did go through the hoop, that was an instant victory regardless of the previous score, and the player who scored it received tons of prizes and glory. Since getting the ball through was rare, most games were settled by points. Points could be earned when the opposition hit the ball with anything other than the hip/knee. If the ball was hit into the opponent’s endzone or the opponent could not get the ball past the midline (“letting the ball die”), those were points too. Interestingly enough, modern-day ulama probably resembles the older version played by the Olmec, which did not include the stone rings but only used the points system.

The Mesoamerican Ballgame served many functions, including religious functions, entertainment, gambling, and conflict resolution between neighboring states. In addition, the ballcourts had a multipurpose use as a gathering place for cultural events, musical performances, religious ceremonies, and festivals. During the actual ballgames, spectators were treated to music featuring whistles, ocarinas, and drums. Coastal ballcourts in West Mexico also utilized a conch shell to mark the play’s beginning and end.

The ritual and religious functions of the game served as a metaphor for the battle between god and man (Mayan) or between the gods (Aztec). The Aztecs “may have seen it as a battle of the Sun, personified by Huitzilopochtli, against the forces of Night, led by the Moon and the Stars, and represented by the goddess Coyolxauhqui and Coatlicue’s sons, the 400 Huitznahuah.” According to the Mayan creation story Popol Vuh, twin brothers took the hero’s journey to avenge their father as they battled the underworld lords. The twins had numerous magic powers, including reviving themselves after death. There was an instance where one of the brother’s heads was cut off and used as the ball for the ballgame, but he later retrieved it and made himself whole. The severed head within the story could be the foreboding origin of the ritual sacrifice seen with the Mesoamerican ballgame, at least for the Mayans. The ballcourt would represent a gateway to Xibalba (the underworld), and the next game would portray the battle from the myth.

The human sacrifice associated with the game cannot be separated from the belief that the sacrifice was needed for cosmic balance and the continuation of reality. The gruesome but necessary sacrifice through decapitation was needed to keep the engine of existence going. At a ballcourt in Chichén Itzá, there is a motif of a decapitated ballplayer with serpents and vegetation sprouting from the neck. This symbolizes the “regenerative, nourishing power of sacrificial blood.” Human sacrifice was associated with the game throughout Mesoamerica, but who was sacrificed, the winners or the losers is still unclear. Logic would suggest the losers should be sacrificed as punishment for losing the game, as was commonly seen with the Aztecs. However, there is evidence that sacrificing the winner would be a more honorable sacrifice to the gods. Even without the sacrifice, the game was brutal enough, with injuries common when a ball hit a player in unprotected areas, including the face and stomach, which could even result in death. Modern ulama players are “perpetually bruised” like their ancient counterparts. Durán had an infamous account of a ballplayer getting their hip bruise lanced because it was so bad.

Despite its brutality and human sacrifice, the Mesoamerican ballgame could be used for conflict resolution instead of actual warfare. This is similar to how Native American tribes of the Great Lakes region would use lacrosse instead of war. Evidence of this use comes from the distribution of locations of the ballcourts themselves. More ballcourts were found in areas without a strong central government presence. It stands to reason that the game could mediate conflicts that an authority figure could not adjudicate. The mighty Aztec empire had relatively few ballcourts compared to other, smaller, neighboring states with a weaker central authority. While the game replaced war, it indeed emulated it, with players arriving at the game in full battle regalia or ceremonial dress before stripping down to a loincloth padded at the hips. Players often had ceremonial war paint, headdresses, and other emblems to give them power. How the game was played resembled the battle tactics used in actual war. They were meant to injure enemies instead of killing them to be later sacrificed. Having two players oppose each other elevated them to hero status, with their supporting players in the background. Heroes battling each other is a feature of many other cultures; Achilles and Hector immediately come to mind.

Matches between influential leaders or celebrities would draw massive crowds and wagering. Even the participants would get in on the action. According to one account, “Axayacatl, the father of Montezuma, wagered a year’s tribute income plus some towns against the city of Xochimilco. He lost to his opponent, the king of Xochimilco, and had him assassinated.” Because of the loss, it was predicted that the mighty empire would fall, which it eventually did, giving the belief that the game contained powers of divination. Supposedly “Montezuma played Netzahualpilli, the king of Texcoco, staking three turkeys against his opponent’s entire realm.” Aztec ball courts were typically located near the major marketplaces. This was the ideal location for wagering that, according to Durán, included “jewels, slaves, precious stones, fine mantles, the trappings of war, and women’s finery.”

The Mesoamerican ballgame still endures with the play of uluma. This is not only a testament to the importance of the game in ancient times but also reflects modern people’s dedication to keeping its tradition alive. If your class studies Mesoamerican cultures, it will behoove you to play this game in your physical education class. It will enrich their experience and connect them to the culture in a way only sport can.

Materials: 

·      A large play area (gym or outside)

o   If played outside, you will need cones or rubber disc dots to mark the boundaries of the playing area and the midline.

·      At least one big yoga ball

o   To make the game more difficult, you can use a bouncy kickball instead

·      Optional

o   Two 55-gallon containers were placed on both sides of the playing area. These will serve as vertical stone hoops.

Minimum Amount of Students: This game could be played with as few as two students! However, the perfect number is closer to eight; many more could work well.

Age: All ages