Teqball (pronounced “tek-ball”) is a sport that has been skyrocketing in popularity since its creation in Hungary in 2012. The sport is something like a cross between soccer and ping pong.
Competitors play on what looks like a curved ping pong table using a Teqball (very similar to a soccer ball, only lighter). The sport can be played between two players — or Teqers — as a singles game or between four players as a doubles game.
Back and forth, players hit a soccer ball with any part of the body except arms and hands.
The sport has already found some famous fans, from Justin Bieber to David Beckham. Soccer superstars Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. use the sport for training purposes.
Teqball is becoming so popular that Fort Worth wanted to get ahead of the curve. Fort Worth recently became one of the first cities to install two public Teqballl tables, one at Trinity Park and one at Marine Park.
“We think Fort Worth very well could become the Teqball capital of the United States,” Fort Worth Chief of Strategy and Innovation Carlo Capua told WFAA.
Capua said Fort Worth having Teqball tables allows the area’s substantial soccer-playing population, who often cannot find a large field where they can play, to play a similar game in a far smaller space.
The tables were donated to Fort Worth by Teqball USA, which plans to donate hundreds of tables to communities across the country in the next two years.
The next cities will be Miami, New York, and Dallas, reported Sports Travel magazine in April.
Dallas already experienced Teqball in its backyard when the city hosted the Dallas Challenger Cup last year, which had Teqball tournaments for both men and women.
Teqball also got its first TV programming deal in the U.S. with ESPN in January and has partnerships with some 18 Major League Soccer (MLS) and eight National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) clubs.
Teqball has become the fastest-growing global soccer-based sport in about a decade, the company said.
“On a global level, Teqball’s ethos, vision, and mission statement has always been to use the sport as a vehicle to bridge the gap between communities, and this permanent Teqball installation in Fort Worth is no different,” Teqball USA CEO Ajay Nwosu told Dallas Innovates.
“It’s my vision that the table will be seen as a symbol of opportunity, relationship building, and inspiration to the greater community of Fort Worth and beyond.”
Nwosu credits Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, Deputy Chief of Staff Capua, and District 2 Councilmember Carlos Flores for helping bring Teqball to the city.
Teqball USA hopes the sport’s popularity continues growing and that by 2028, it will be included in the Summer Olympic games in Los Angeles.
“The hardest part for us is getting people to try it,” Nwosu told Sports Travel. But he added that once people try it and have a few successful moments, they become addicted.
