Sports Facts for Kids

Tennis was originally played by hitting the ball with your bare hand — rackets weren't used until the 1500s.

Brazilian soccer legend Pelé scored over 1,200 career goals, including unofficial matches.

Babe Ruth used to keep a cold cabbage leaf under his baseball cap to stay cool during games.

An Olympic gold medal must contain at least 6 grams of gold — the rest is sterling silver.

Lacrosse is one of the oldest team sports in North America, originally played by Indigenous peoples for centuries.

Despite being called "pigskins," NFL footballs are actually made of cowhide leather.

Table tennis was originally called "whiff-whaff" in England in the 1880s.

The fastest goal in professional soccer history was scored in just 2.1 seconds after kickoff.

The five Olympic rings represent the five continents of the world that participate in the Games.

Horse racing is called the "Sport of Kings" because royalty have bred and raced horses for thousands of years.