Summary:A bit of baseball, a bit of football, a bit of artillery practice. It’s not murder as long as they were holding a ball. From the anime/manga Space Adventure Cobra. Very little info online about the sport, I’m inferring…
Teams/Players: Two teams of nine players each
Uniforms/Equipment: Uniforms: Rugball is a violent sport. Teams are padded out in American football style gear with team colors. Equipment: Catcher’s mitts, baseball bats. Cannon used to launch “ball” at batter. The ball is a metal orb with a wide band around its middle, which helps it spin after launch.
Rules/Play: There are no obvious physical fouls in the game. Death is acceptable, and not considered murder as long as the defending player was holding the ball. Punches and wrestling holds are standard. Beyond the violence, play is quite similar to baseball.
History/Culture: In the Space Cobra anime, Rug-Ball seems to be a way for criminals to work out their aggressions and entertain the blood-thirsty fan mob.
