Twenty-five questions across the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, soccer, golf and the Olympics. We stick to rules and history, so the answers won't change after the next big game.
How many players does each team have on the field in soccer?
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11
Ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. A team that falls below seven players can't continue the match.
Question 2
How many points is a touchdown worth in American football?
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6
A touchdown is 6. The extra-point kick adds 1 and a two-point conversion adds 2, which is why 7 is the usual total.
Question 3
Which team won the first Super Bowl, played in January 1967?
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Green Bay Packers
Vince Lombardi's Packers beat the Chiefs 35–10. The trophy has been named after Lombardi since 1970.
Question 4
How long is a marathon?
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26.2 miles
The distance was fixed at 42.195 km (26.2 miles) in 1921, based on the route of the 1908 London Olympics.
Question 5
Which sport uses a shuttlecock?
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Badminton
A shuttlecock, or birdie, is traditionally made of feathers in a cork base. Smashes can exceed 400 km/h.
Question 6
How many holes are played in a standard round of golf?
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18
The Old Course at St Andrews settled on 18 holes in 1764, and other courses followed.
Question 7
In basketball, how many points is a shot made from beyond the arc?
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3
The NBA adopted the three-point line in the 1979–80 season. A free throw is worth 1 and other field goals 2.
Question 8
Which country hosted and won the first FIFA World Cup in 1930?
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Uruguay
Uruguay beat Argentina 4–2 in the final in Montevideo.
Question 9
Who has won the most Olympic medals of any athlete, as of the 2024 Games?
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Michael Phelps
Swimmer Michael Phelps won 28 medals, 23 of them gold, between 2004 and 2016. Gymnast Larisa Latynina is second, with 18.
Question 10
In tennis, what is a score of zero called?
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Love
Game scores run love, 15, 30, 40, game. The origin of "love" for zero is uncertain.
Question 11
Which player broke Major League Baseball's color line in 1947?
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Jackie Robinson
Robinson debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. Every MLB player wears his number, 42, on that date each year.
Question 12
How many periods are in a regulation NHL hockey game?
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3
Three 20-minute periods. Regular-season ties go to overtime and then a shootout.
Question 13
In bowling, what is it called when you roll three strikes in a row?
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A turkey
Three straight strikes is a turkey. The perfect game is twelve strikes in a row for a score of 300.
Question 14
How many laps make up the Indianapolis 500?
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200
The "500" is miles: 200 laps of the 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Question 15
What is the name of the NHL's championship trophy?
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The Stanley Cup
The Cup was donated in 1892 by Lord Stanley of Preston, then Canada's governor general. Lombardi is football's and O'Brien is basketball's.
Question 16
How many players from each team are on the court in basketball?
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5
Each side plays five at a time, traditionally two guards, two forwards and a center.
Question 17
How many interlocking rings are on the Olympic flag?
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Five
Pierre de Coubertin designed the flag in 1913. The blue, yellow, black, green and red rings on white were chosen because every nation's flag used at least one of those colors.
Question 18
Which boxer called himself "The Greatest"?
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Muhammad Ali
Ali won Olympic gold in 1960 as Cassius Clay and was heavyweight champion three times.
Question 19
In soccer or hockey, how many goals does a player score in a hat trick?
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Three
The term comes from 19th-century cricket, where a bowler who took three wickets with three balls might be given a hat.
Question 20
Where was basketball invented, in 1891?
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Springfield, Massachusetts
Canadian-born teacher James Naismith invented it at a YMCA training school, using peach baskets as hoops.
Question 21
Which horse race is known as "the most exciting two minutes in sports"?
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The Kentucky Derby
Run at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May since 1875, it's the first leg of the Triple Crown.
Question 22
What is the highest possible score in a game of ten-pin bowling?
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300
Twelve strikes in a row: ten frames, with two bonus balls in the tenth.
Question 23
How many bases, counting home plate, are on a baseball diamond?
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Four
First, second, third and home, each 90 feet apart in the major leagues.
Question 24
In golf, what is a score of one under par on a hole called?
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Birdie
A birdie is one under, an eagle two under and an albatross (double eagle) three under. A bogey is one over.
Question 25
How often are the Summer Olympic Games normally held?
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Every four years
The modern Summer Games began in Athens in 1896. Since 1994 the Winter Games have been held two years apart from them.
Key numbers
Questions
25
Format
Multiple choice, 4 options
Explanations
Every question
Answers
Hidden until you open them
Why there are no "current champion" questions
Sports trivia goes out of date faster than any other kind. Who won last season, who holds a scoring record, who's the active leader: all of it can change in a week. So this set asks about rules (how many points a touchdown is worth), history (the first Super Bowl, Jackie Robinson's debut) and records that are settled. Where a record could still move, like the most Olympic medals, the question says "as of" a date.
A mix of fans and non-fans
A sports round can lose half the room if every question needs a fan's memory. Questions such as what a score of zero is called in tennis or how many holes a round of golf has give everyone a chance, while the Stanley Cup's history and the first World Cup reward the people who follow sports closely.
Tiebreakers from this set
The number-based questions make good tiebreakers if you read them without the options: the length of a marathon, the laps in the Indianapolis 500, or the year basketball was invented. Closest answer wins.
Do these sports trivia questions include NFL and NBA questions?
Yes: the first Super Bowl, touchdown scoring, the three-point shot and the number of players on a basketball court, plus baseball, hockey, soccer, golf and Olympic questions.
Why don't you ask who won last season?
Because the answer changes every year, and an out-of-date answer is worse than none. We ask about rules, history and settled records instead.
What sports question makes the best tiebreaker?
How many laps make up the Indianapolis 500. Many people say 500; the answer is 200 laps of a 2.5-mile track. Ask it open-ended and take the closest guess.