Fourth edition of the “Juego de Pelota Maya” World Cup to take place in Yucatan

From December 2nd to 5th, players from other countries will come to the Yucatan (if sanitary conditions allow it).

MÉRIDA, YUCATAN (March 24, 2021).- Yucatán will host the Fourth Maya Ball Game World Cup, which will take place from December 2 to 5, 2021, if sanitary conditions allow it.

The event will be attended by players from countries such as Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama, as well as from Campeche, Chiapas and Quintana Roo in Mexico 

The Cup is held with the aim of revitalizing the practice of this discipline, also called “Pok ta Pok”, among the autochthonous athletes of the countries that make up the Mayan world. 

Three world cups have already been held with venues in Chichén Itzá in 2015, Guatemala in 2017 and El Salvador in 2019.

This time the tournaments will take place at the facilities of the “Kukulcán” Sports Complex. 

The president of the Association of Native and Traditional Sports and Games of Yucatán, José Manrique Esquivel, announced this competition.

History of the Mayan Ball Game

For centuries, the Mayan Ball Game was a fundamental part of life for those who belonged to the Mayan culture. 

As mute witnesses to that past, today we see vestiges and ruins of the huge ball courts in Mexico and Central America. 

The largest and most well-known is the Chichén Itzá Ball Court. The Mayan Ball Court was quite popular in all pre-Columbian cultures and in different regions, although the rules changed slightly.

To play ball, the best warriors were selected, the most agile and strong, and it was believed that during the game, these Mayan forts represented the divinities on the field.

The platforms that surround the place were used for the rulers and priests to observe the development of the game in detail. 

From what has been investigated, the figures carved on the walls that surround the playing field that speak of a mystical and religious connotation.

The ancient civilization of the Mayans disappeared leaving numerous unknowns that have not yet been resolved by researchers.

That is the case of the Mayan ball, a game whose rules are not exactly known.

Source: TYP