30 questions · true or false · Updated October 28, 2026

True or False Sports Questions

Tip: read the statement out loud, let people buzz, then open the answer.

1. 01A rugby union match is played in two 40-minute halves.Show the answer ↓

   True

   Rugby union lasts 2 × 40 minutes, or 80 minutes in total, compared with 2 × 45 minutes in football (soccer).

2. 02In football (soccer), the goalkeeper may handle the ball anywhere on the pitch.Show the answer ↓

   False

   Goalkeepers can only use their hands inside their own penalty area. Outside it, they play like everyone else, with their feet, head or body.

3. 03In tennis, after 15 and 30, the next point is called 45.Show the answer ↓

   False

   It’s called 40, not 45: a game goes 15, 30, 40, then “game”. At 40 all, the score is called “deuce”.

4. 04The first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896.Show the answer ↓

   True

   Revived at the initiative of Pierre de Coubertin, they were held in Athens in 1896 as a tribute to the Games of ancient Greece.

5. 05In volleyball, a team may touch the ball up to three times before sending it back.Show the answer ↓

   True

   Three touches at most, not counting the block. And the same player can’t touch the ball twice in a row, except after a block.

6. 06Basketball was invented in Canada.Show the answer ↓

   False

   It was invented in 1891 in Springfield, Massachusetts, in the United States, by James Naismith, a physical education teacher… who was born in Canada.

7. 07The decathlon is made up of ten track and field events.Show the answer ↓

   True

   As the name suggests (“deka” means ten in Greek), it combines ten running, jumping and throwing events held over two days.

8. 08In table tennis, a game is played to 21 points.Show the answer ↓

   False

   Since 2001, a game is won at 11 points, with a lead of at least two. The old 21-point format was dropped.

9. 09In rugby, you’re allowed to throw a pass forward with your hands.Show the answer ↓

   False

   Hand passes must go backward or flat. To gain ground, you have to run with the ball or kick it.

10. 10The first Winter Olympics were held in Chamonix, France, in 1924.Show the answer ↓

    True

    Held in 1924 as “International Winter Sports Week”, the Chamonix event was later recognized as the first Winter Olympic Games.

11. 11In football (soccer), a player sent off with a red card cannot be replaced.Show the answer ↓

    True

    The team must finish the match one player short. A red card can be shown directly or come from two yellow cards in the same match.

12. 12A football (soccer) pitch must be exactly 100 meters long.Show the answer ↓

    False

    The rules allow a length of 90 to 120 meters (about 100 to 130 yards), and 100 to 110 meters for international matches.

13. 13In basketball, a successful free throw is worth 2 points.Show the answer ↓

    False

    A free throw is worth 1 point. A basket scored during play is worth 2 points, or 3 if it’s shot from beyond the three-point line.

14. 14In sumo, a wrestler loses if any part of his body other than the soles of his feet touches the ground.Show the answer ↓

    True

    He also loses if he steps out of the ring, called the dohyo. Bouts are often very short, sometimes just a few seconds.

15. 15A regulation Major League Baseball game lasts nine innings.Show the answer ↓

    True

    Each team bats once per inning, so a regulation game has nine innings. If the score is tied after nine, extra innings are played until there’s a winner.

16. 16In the Tour de France, the yellow jersey goes to the best climber.Show the answer ↓

    False

    The yellow jersey is worn by the overall leader, the rider with the lowest total time. The best climber wears the polka-dot jersey.

17. 17In tennis, a set can end with a score of 7-6.Show the answer ↓

    True

    At 6 games all, a tiebreak is usually played, and whoever wins it takes the set 7-6.

18. 18In judo, the black belt is the highest belt there is.Show the answer ↓

    False

    Beyond several grades (dan) of black belt, the highest-ranked judoka can wear a red-and-white belt, and then a red belt.

19. 19The Olympic marathon has always been 42.195 km long.Show the answer ↓

    False

    At the 1896 Games, the course was about 40 km. The 42.195 km (26.2-mile) distance comes from the 1908 London Games and only became official in 1921.

20. 20The Olympic flame is lit at Olympia using the sun’s rays.Show the answer ↓

    True

    It is lit in front of the Temple of Hera with a mirror that focuses the sun’s rays, then carried by relay to the host city.

21. 21In basketball, the hoop is set 3.05 meters (10 feet) above the floor.Show the answer ↓

    True

    That height was chosen in basketball’s earliest days, and it’s the same for all adult players, however tall they are.

22. 22An ice hockey game is played in two halves.Show the answer ↓

    False

    It’s played in three 20-minute periods of actual playing time, with breaks in between that also allow the ice to be resurfaced.

23. 23In football (soccer), a player can’t be offside when receiving the ball directly from a throw-in.Show the answer ↓

    True

    The rules say so: there’s no offside when the ball is received directly from a throw-in, a goal kick or a corner kick.

24. 24In tennis, the ball must always bounce once before you hit it back.Show the answer ↓

    False

    You can hit the ball before it bounces: that’s a volley. Only the serve must bounce before it is returned.

25. 25In badminton, you can only score a point when you’re serving.Show the answer ↓

    False

    That was the old rule. Since 2006, every rally wins a point, whoever is serving, and a game is played to 21 points.

26. 26In golf, an “eagle” means finishing a hole two strokes under par.Show the answer ↓

    True

    One stroke under par is a “birdie”, two under is an “eagle” and three under is an “albatross”.

27. 27The Olympic Games planned for 1916 never took place.Show the answer ↓

    True

    They were due to be held in Berlin but were canceled because of World War I. The 1940 and 1944 Games were also canceled, during World War II.

28. 28The Winter Olympics have always been held in the same year as the Summer Games.Show the answer ↓

    False

    That was the case until 1992. Since the 1994 Lillehammer Games, the Winter and Summer Olympics have alternated every two years.

29. 29Volleyball was invented in the United States.Show the answer ↓

    True

    It was invented in 1895 in Massachusetts by William G. Morgan, a physical education teacher, who first called it “mintonette”.

30. 30Rugby is named after a town in England.Show the answer ↓

    True

    It takes its name from the town of Rugby and its school, where this ball game developed in the 19th century.