Football, cricket, the Olympics and sporting records.
About this quiz
This Sports Quiz covers the big events, including the World Cup, the Olympics, Wimbledon and the Euros, along with basketball, baseball, cricket, rugby, boxing and darts. Some questions ask who won; others ask why a rule exists, where a piece of sporting jargon comes from or how a game got its equipment.
Beyond the famous names are sports many fans never get to see, from sumo and buzkashi to Senegalese wrestling and Japan's ekiden relays. Each round is 10 questions with 20 seconds on the clock, and the fact after every answer tells the story behind the result.
Try a few questions
Tap an answer to check it, or open the answer underneath.
The classic black-and-white football (soccer ball) design is based on which geometric shape?
- A pyramid
- A cube
- A cylinder
- A truncated icosahedron
Answer: A truncated icosahedron
Did you know? The traditional ball stitches together 20 white hexagons and 12 black pentagons into a truncated icosahedron — the same shape as a carbon 'buckyball' molecule. The black patches were originally added to help players see spin on TV.
Which US baseball team has won the most World Series titles?
- Boston Red Sox
- Los Angeles Dodgers
- St. Louis Cardinals
- New York Yankees
Answer: New York Yankees
Did you know? The Yankees have won 27 World Series, more than twice as many as the next most successful team, the St. Louis Cardinals with 11; their first title came in 1923, the year Yankee Stadium opened.
When basketball was invented in 1891, what was used as the 'hoop'?
- A wooden barrel
- A peach basket
- A rope loop
- A metal ring
Answer: A peach basket
Did you know? The first games used actual peach baskets nailed to a balcony, and someone had to fetch the ball after every score. It took years before the bottoms were cut out to let the ball fall through.
Which country won Euro 1992 after being called in to replace Yugoslavia only ten days before the tournament?
- Germany
- Netherlands
- Denmark
- Sweden
Answer: Denmark
Did you know? Yugoslavia was excluded because of the wars in the Balkans, and Denmark, runners-up in its qualifying group, took its place. The Danes beat the Netherlands on penalties in the semi-final and Germany 2–0 in the final in Gothenburg.
Which animal is on the logo of the Lacoste brand, associated with tennis?
- Crocodile
- Lizard
- Alligator
- Snake
Answer: Crocodile
Did you know? René Lacoste earned the nickname 'The Crocodile' after a bet with his Davis Cup captain over an alligator-skin suitcase, and the reptile became his brand logo when he launched the clothing line in 1933.
Which sprinter was stripped of his 100 m gold at the 1988 Seoul Olympics after failing a drug test?
- Ben Johnson
- Maurice Greene
- Donovan Bailey
- Calvin Smith
Answer: Ben Johnson
Did you know? Canada's Ben Johnson tested positive for the steroid stanozolol days after winning in a world-record 9.79 seconds. The gold went to Carl Lewis, and Johnson's record was erased.