For a lot of sci-fi lovers, it's fair to say that sports aren't necessarily as high on the agenda as they are for others, mainly because of how deep the passion for sci-fi runs. However, what if there were sci-fi sports out there? It's surely the perfect combination. And we've seen them appear in movies over the years.
Jugger
Jugger is a sport that was brought to life in the 1989 movie The Blood of Heroes, also known as The Salute of the Jugger. So, you can see from the latter that the sport jugger is of significant importance. The game entails someone running with a dog’s skull in their hand towards the opposing goal while players from either side battle it out with a range of weapons. You can see why this game will never make it as a sport to be covered by any of the mainstream established bookmakers online or otherwise. However. it was actually recreated but not in a post-apocalyptic world and without the weapons, so may be there is still some hope left.
Motorball
If you want to see Motorball play out, you’ll have to tune in and watch Alita Battle Angel, a 2019 manga series. The setting goes a long way toward making the sport a huge draw for viewers. The action unfolds in a futuristic city that gives off cyberpunk vibes in what appears to be a post-apocalyptic era, similar to what we see where Jugger is concerned. The characters who compete in Motorball are doing so because they want the money, the status and all the good stuff that goes with it. The best way to describe the game is that it’s similar to Rollerball, so competitors will race around the track, metal ball in hand, while others attempt to knock them off course.
Jump Ball
Jump Ball came to pass in Starship Troopers, a satirical war movie, and we include it on this list for a good reason. During the film, it's suggested that giant space bugs have been on the rampage in the past and that there was a need to learn how to defend against them moving forwards. In the previous battle with said space bugs, the soldiers who came out on top were trained jump ball players, and this is where the sport comes to play in Starship Troopers. Jump ball is effectively a team sport where players get padded up, but gymnastic qualities are required, as well as the traditional physical traits, which is why jumping is involved.
Rollerball
We mentioned it earlier, and it's the perfect way to end this list. Rollerball is a movie that was initially released in 1975 and remade years later in 2002, and it's based on the sport itself, which is great. Each team enters the velodrome with five players apiece, and that can comprise of both rollerskaters and motorcyclists. As the players race around the arena, they are tasked with getting the steel ball across the line and into the opposing goal while avoiding the players trying to stop them from doing so. When you see it in action, you start to get Rocket League vibes, a video game.
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The future of Alien
The Alien franchise is taking a dramatic turn at 20th Century Studios, now owned by Disney. Currently there are two major Alien projects in development - a new Alien TV series by Noah Hawley and a new, stand-alone Alien movie being directed by Fede Alvarez. Both of which will be taking the franchise in a new direction - moving away from the Alien prequel direction Ridley Scott set out to pursue back in 2012.
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