It’s probably your first time hearing of teqball.
Maybe you’ve heard of it online because of professionals like Neymar or Messi.
Either way, you’re asking yourself, “What is teqball?”
The short answer is that it combines other sports to become its sport.
Please keep reading to find out how this works, its rules, and the sport’s plans for the future.
What Is Teqball?
Teqball (say “tek-ball”) originated in Hungary in 2012 by three soccer fans: Gábor Borsányi, a former professional player; Gyorgy Gattyán, a businessman; and Viktor Huszár, a computer scientist.
The game takes parts from soccer, tennis, and table tennis, but it is its own.
That magic has spread worldwide in more than 120 countries.
You need a unique Teqball table. It resembles a regular but curved ping-pong table to play.
The curve that sends the ball to each player is the main difference.
Instead of a net, a piece of plexiglass goes across the middle of the table.
The game is played with a regular Size 5 soccer ball, which makes it easy to learn as long as you have a table.
The setup is in the middle of a 16-by-12-meter court, and two meters behind the table is a service line.
Official competitions are held either inside or outside.
The ball is a size-five football.
You need two people (a “singles game”), three people (a “Canadian doubles” game), or four people (a “fours game”) (doubles) to play Teqball.
Teqball has already had three world cup tournaments, and by 2028, it wants to be an Olympic sport.
Elite athletes and amateurs who wish to improve their technical skills, concentration, and stamina are drawn to the sport.
The Fédération Internationale de Teqball is in charge of teqball worldwide (FITEQ).
Every year, FITEQ puts on a competition called the Teqball World Cup.
In 2017, the first World Cup was held.
On the teqball table, you can also play teqvolley, teqpong, teqis, and quatch, in addition to teqball.
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Rules
- Points score Teqball; each set lasts until a player or team gets 12 points. The best of three sets is used to decide who wins.
- At least two points must win the last and most important set.
- After each set, players must switch sides, and there can’t be more than a minute between sets.
- In the last and most important set, players or teams switch sides when the team in the lead gets 6, 12, or 18 points.
- Points start with a service, and a player or team has two chances to do a service successfully.
- Once the point is in play, you have three touches to get the ball back to the other team’s side. You cannot use your hands and arms while doing this.
- In doubles, both players must touch the ball before returning it.
- Players can’t touch the ball with the same hand or foot twice in a row.
- A player or team can’t return the ball with the same body part twice in a row.
- For an edge ball, the point has to be made again.
- After every four points, players or teams switch who serves.
- You can touch neither the table nor the other player during the game.
Where To Watch
ESPN is the cable company that makes it much easier for us to enjoy watching the sport.
Teqball is just the latest new sport to find a home as the Worldwide Leader.
ESPN is always looking for the next big thing in sports entertainment.
Events include drone races, chase tag, and Street Fighter vs. Super Mario Bros.
ESPN announced in January that Teqball had signed its first programming deal in the United States.
There are six highlight shows as part of the coverage: four on ESPN2 and two on ESPNU.
Forbes said that the deal between Fédération Internationale de Teqball (FITEQ) and ESPN is worth $850,000.
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Teqball’s Future
ESPN’s investment in the sport will help it grow even more in 2022 and beyond, bringing it to the attention of even more well-known people.
This includes soccer stars Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr., who use the game to improve their signature first touches.
The popularity of Teqball is shown by its official social media channels:
TikTok: 1.7M
Facebook: 3.98M
Instagram: 773k
Twitter: 54.6k
Teqball has gained a lot of new players in the last two years because it is the best “social distance sport.”
The way forward has three crucial steps.
Nwosu wants to grow the game at all levels, including high school, college, and professional levels.
And as he tries to get more people to use it, he sees exciting opportunities where “culture and lifestyle” meet.
The U.S. National Teqball Federation works with 18 MLS teams, including Inter Miami C.F., FC Dallas, and the San Jose Earthquake.
Players use Teqball as a training tool, and the Federation set up tables in the fan zones at home games.
You can also expect to see Teqball tables in public places all over the United States in the near future.
Nwosu said they would spread the sport with the help of “Teq Trucks.”
These are box trucks with Teqball tables in the back.
Professional athletes drive them and talk with people in the community and teach them how to play.
And their end goal is adding Teqball as an Olympic sport at the Los Angeles Summer Games in 2028.
In the meantime, you can practice and then enter one of the televised tournaments to compete for a $30,000 prize.
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Final Thoughts
Teqball is a relatively new sport that aims to become an Olympic sport in the future.
The sport is a combination of other sports to bring out the accuracy and precision seen in soccer athletes.