Changes

To the many cultures of Mesoamerica – which includes the Olmecs, Maya, Toltecs, Aztecs, and others – a sport known today as “the ballgame” played an important role in their daily lives. From el Salvador to the American southwest, remnants of ball courts where different versions of the ballgame were played are a visual testament to the ubiquitous nature of the ballgame in Pre-Columbian North America. For more than 2,000 years the ballgame was played and there are a plethora of primary sources that relate many of its details, which include the following: extant stone ball courts in Mexico, Mesoamerican artistic depictions of the game, and Spanish accounts.

===Conclusion===

The Mesoamerican ballgame was a Pre-Columbian sporting event that had an interesting style of play and even more fascinating reasons why it was played. An examination of the sources reveals that although the style of play and some of the reasons why the ballgame was played varied throughout Mesoamerica, it was essentially a religious ritual very different than modern sports. With that said, the Mesoamerican ballgame was also a true athletic event and spectator sport, which connects it to modern sporting traditions.

===References===