The Mayan Ballgame had many interesting aspects. The outcome of each game affected the lives of everyone playing and watching. The winning team was showered with praise, gratitude, and riches from the crowd. The ballgame was rigged because home team was trained well and would mostly win. The “away” team was made up of captured warriors that would lose because of the way the game was set up. The players attempted to hit the ball through a stone ring to score points. The ballgame was like an earlier, riskier version of volleyball because the ball was bounced off between the teams. The team who lost the game would get tortured. The ball could be banked or hit against walls to keep it in play. The Manopla (handstone) was worn on the hand, of course, and was used to help hit the ball. The Yuguito was meant to be a knee protector but some players wore it on their shins or wrists. A helmet was always worn to protect the head from the ball which weighs about 8 pounds. The uniform had to be light so players could move easily in it. The playing alley area of the court had a floor of stone or plaster. The end zone is at the ends of the playing alley to make the “I” shape of the court.
The Ballgame was not only for entertainment but also had some religious aspects to it. The competition was based on religious beliefs. The losing team’s captain was painted with red stripes to be sacrificed. Parts of the uniform were only used for special ceremonies. The losing team (other than the captain) were kept as war captives. The balls were made from rubber strips that were wrapped around skulls. Some of the balls were sacrificed to gods. The skulls might have been skulls of defeated captains. The yoke, shoes, headdress, and other parts of the uniform were only worn for ceremonies. The Palma is a symbol of the wearer’s athletic ability. The Yoke was worn around the waist and made of stone. The Hacha was a symbol of power. In the city plan, the court was built closer to the less important buildings. The rings used for point-scoring were decorated with pictures of gods. The bench (flat area at the base of the court walls) was decorated with pictures of human sacrifice. Those were some of the interesting aspects of the Mayan Ballgame.
