Traditional German Sports/Games Here you find a description of traditional German Sports/Games. Dodgeball and Brennball are very popular among children. There is no sports lesson without these games. Faustball and Korbball are ball games which are widespread in Franconia.

Dodgeball - Völkerball

Preparations for Dodgeball You need two teams, which have the same number of players (4-20 players in a team) Each team needs a „King/Queen“ who is in „Heaven“ right from the start All the other players are in the field.

The aim of the game Be the team with players in the in-field.

Dodgeball – the rules Right at the beginning you have to throw the ball three times from the „in- field“ to your king to make it hot. It is not allowed to hit s.o.‘s head with the ball. When your head is hit, you don‘t have to leave the in-field. - Then throw the ball at your opponents. –If a player from the other team catches the ball, it‘s his team‘s turn and they can try to throw at your team –If the player of the other team doesn‘t catch the ball, he has to leave the in-field and has to go out to heaven. -When you are out in heaven and manage to throw at your opponent, you can go back to the in-field and the opponent has to go to his team‘s heaven. -When your king manages to hit an opponent, one of your players can go back to the in-field. -When there‘s no player left on the in-field, the king comes onto the in-field. The king gets the ball. As soon as the king‘s team hits an opponent, an in-field player comes back into the game and the king goes back to heaven. If the king is hit three times, the game is over.

Dodgeball – varieties Play with more than one ball to make the game a bit faster and more exciting. Put obstacles on the in-field to make it a bit more difficult for the players. Dodgeball with numbers: Give numbers to your players; your opponents have to hit your players one after the other – starting with N. 1, then N2 … Choose a „secret king“ for the in-field. If the secret king is hit, the game is over. Make up your own ideas!

Brennball- a variety of baseball suitable for kids

Preparations for Brennball You need a ball Two teams with the same number of players 4/5 hoops/ small gym mats

The aim of the game Try to do as many runs as possible

Brennball – the rules The defending team (Team A) is in the in-field, the team captains stands next to the „burn hoop“. The offensive team (Team B) stand in a queue at the first base. A player of team B throws the ball as far as possible. Afterwards he runs as fast and far as he can. Team A tries to catch/fetch the ball and to get it to the captain as fast as possible. The captain throws the ball into the hoop and screams „burnt“. If a player of team B manages to run around the in-field completely and get back to Base 1, he gets 4 points for a homerun. If he doesn‘t manage to run around the in-field but stops on one of the hoops, he is safe and can continue running when the next player of his team throws the ball.  For reaching the homebase with breaks, the player gets one point. If he is in between two hoops, he‘s burnt and has to go back to base 1 without getting any points for his team. The offense and defense team change roles after a certain time (10 minutes) or after each offensive player had thrown the ball once.

Brennball – varieties of the game Put in more or less hoops to make it easier or more difficult for the players. Play without a captain, so that every player of the defense team can „burn“. Vary the number of points for a homerun, a run with one, two three breaks. …

Faustball – fist ball Fistball is similar to volleyball and very popular in the area around Schweinfurt. There are different leagues for fistball in Germany and it is played even internationally. It is a discipline in the World Games, which are a kind of championship for non- olympic sports.

Preparations for the game You need a field like the one below, a net, a ball and two teams with 5 players

Faustball – the rules Each team consists of 5 players, the players keep their position throughout the match The serving team serves the ball into the other team‘s field. The ball can touch the ground once, then you have to hit it with your fist or fore-arm and play/throw/hit it to a player of your team or back to the other side. After three contacts in your team the ball has to be thrown back into your opponent‘s field. If not, your opponents get a point.

Faustball – the winner is… your team, when you are the first team to get 11 points or at least two in advance (12:10; 13:11)

Korbball – a variety of basketball Korbball was invented in the 1860s in Germany. It is a mixture of basketball and handball. It is popular in some regions of Germany, e. g. the area around Schweinfurt.

Preparations for Korbball You need a field, two baskets, and half a circle of 3m around the basket.

Korbball – the aim of the game is very easy: throw more baskets than your opponents.

Korbball – the rules Korbball rules differ from region to region. In Bavaria and Germany in general it is very similar to handball. There are two teams with 5 players each. One player is the „basketkeeper“. That‘s the only player who is allowed to enter the circle around the basket, but mustn‘t leave with the ball in his/her hands. The players throw, pass and bounce (only once) the ball close to the circle and try to throw into the basket. If they are successful they get a point. Players are allowed to go three steps with the ball in the hands. Penalties (for playing the ball with your feet, entering the circle, fouls..) score 1 point. The match consists of the first and second half, which take 10 to 20 minutes each according to the age of the players.