There are a lot of sports themed board games and party games based on just about every athletic competition imaginable. The biggest problem we faced when looking for sports games is that many are geared for kids or they rely on some athlete or pro team’s endorsement and the game itself just isn’t very fun.
This is why we pooled our experiences and sought out some advice. Then we came up with some of some great sports games for parties that are actually fun and appealing to men.
9 Party Games for Men with a Sports Theme
Shaq Sponsor Game – (And Other Sports Celebrities)
Star athletes endorse products. Sometimes a lot of products. Anyone who’s ever watched a lot of sporting event or more than 15 minutes of sports center knows this from all the commercials. In this original game we like to call the shack sponsor game, compete to see who has been paying attention when watching these commercials.
We call it the Shaq Sponsor Game because he seems to endorse everything. Here are the simple rules:
- Name a product and then a famous sports star. Players have to answer true or false if that player has actually promoted that product
- Examples:
- Shaq: Papa johns, The General Car insurances, Copier Ink
- Derek Jeter: Gatorade, Nike, Wagoneer
- Lebron: AT&T, Nike, Beats
The hardest part is to come up with all the products a player has endorsed. For most sports stars you can find this information with a quick Google search.
This is a perfect game to play while waiting for a table at a restaurant or while on a round trip
Baseball Dice Board Games
Grown men like simplicity and nostalgia. Dice board games have a simple game mechanic. Simply role the dice and then follow the directions on the board. Baseball is a sport that has been converted into a number of different dice rolling games.
There is virtually no learning curve because everyone is familiar with the rules of baseball. The games can be played anywhere. On the beach, in the office, at home, etc. Each game is different but they all follow the same basic rules. Different dice roll outcomes correlate to different baseball occurrences, single, double, out, double-play, etc.
These games combine the thrill of competition with the camaraderie of Americas pastime. Experience the highs and lows of baseball without breaking a sweat, making it a perfect way for adults to bond over a shared love for the sport.
Check Out These Different Baseball Dice Games:
Hail Mary
Most of us lack the skill and speed to have ever been a star football player, but in Hail Mary anyone can make a huge play and score a touchdown! This exciting football themed game pits players against one another. When it is your turn you are on offense attempting to score and the other players are the defenders.
The game works like this:
- You will need a set of dice and a deck of cards.
- Draw a standard football field on a piece of paper or use a football field dry-erase board like this one. This will allow you to keep track of where everyone is on the board.
- All players start at the 20-yard line and have to go 80 yards to score a touchdown. You can draw names or use tokens/coins to represent each player.
- You can play with 2 players or more. 2-4 works best, but it can be done with more.
- One player starts on offense. They place their token on the 20-yard line. The other players act as defenders. The player on offense “runs plays” in an attempt to get closer to the end zone.
- To run a play a player will draw a card from the deck. The card drawn indicates how many yards they get to move forward for each defender they can avoid.
- 2 – 10 = 5 yard gain
- Jack – 10-yard gain
- Queen – 15-yard gain
- King – 25-yard gain
- Ace – 50 Yard gain
- To “avoid” defenders the offensive player will draw a card from the deck and so will the defensive player. If the player on offense draws a higher card they get to move forward the number of yards indicated by their dice roll. If the defender draws a higher card, then the offensive player does not move forward. They move on to the next defender and repeat this process for each defender.
- If a player fails to “avoid” any defenders then they lose 5 yards.
- When the player runs out of defenders to challenge, they mark their position on the field and then the next player is on offense. The game continues until someone reaches the end zone. You can also play to a certain number of touchdowns for a longer game.
- Hail Mary: If players want to take a shot for a “Hail Mary”, meaning they score a touchdown, they will forgo drawing a card from the deck. Instead, they state that they want to attempt a “Hail Mary”, and then they must roll the dice. The defenders all get a chance to roll their dice. The offensive player’s roll must be higher than all the defender’s rolls to have a successful “Hail Mary”. If they fail to outroll each defender, it is a turnover and their turn ends.
You can adjust the game to fit your group/needs. There are some variations you can make to the scoring and how you gain yards if you desire.
Golf Mini Games
Golf is so popular among many age groups of men. Many men would play golf every day if they could. Unfortunately, you can’t play golf at a party. Or can you? Due to the popularity of golf, there are so many fun games designed to help you either practice your golf game or just have fun.
Putterball is a blast. It combines beer pong with putting! The game can be set up in any good-sized room or outdoors.
Putting is an easy golf skill to practice, but if you want to test other areas of your golf game, set up a Chipping Showdown. If you want to avoid breaking anything you will need some practice golf balls and a target. A chipping mat set like this works great.
Shuffleboard
Traditionally only available in a bar or someone’s basement, a heavy shuffleboard table is fun but not readily available for everyone. That is a shame because it is a great game that is both challenging and old-fashioned.
Fortunately, you can get some variations of shuffleboard tables that are much easier to move and less expensive. You do have to give up some of the original game feel but the alternatives are still fun on their own.
The miniature version fits on a tabletop and gives you two games in one: classic shuffleboard and a mini version of Curling.
Another super entertaining option is made similar to a cornhole board, but it comes in 4 pieces that fit together. Instead of sliding pucks on the table, you toss bags, but the scoring is the same as “bar room” shuffleboard.
Baseball Trivia
This is not trivia about baseball necessarily, although it could be. But rather a baseball-style trivia game where correct answers to trivia questions will result in a single, double, triple, or homerun, while incorrect answers are outs.
Basic Rules:
- Split into two teams.
- Each team sends one player at a time to “bat”. The batter must answer a trivia question. They get to select the difficulty level of the trivia question by selecting whether they want to attempt a single, double, triple, or homerun. (Questions for singles are easiest and questions for homeruns are hardest.)
- If a player gets a question wrong, that counts as an out, the opposing team can steal an incorrect question, if they do, it is a double play.
- In addition to this, basic baseball rules apply. You keep track of the runners on base on a marker board, or piece of paper, or set up your own mock “diamond” on a table or in a room using whatever you want as the bases.
- Runners move forward one base at a time depending on what “hit” occurred. For example, one runner on first and a batter “hits” a double. The runners would then be on second and third base.
- 3 outs end an inning, and you can play nine innings or however many you choose.
- Trivia questions can be made up, or borrowed from other trivia games you already have. Again, they don’t have to be baseball questions. The theme can be whatever you choose: history, science, geography, etc.
A big advantage is that this can be played with a large group of people. It also is a game to play in a classroom.
96’ Bulls or Guys Naming Lineups
There is a funny thing you can notice when around other sports fans. All you have to do is mention a team and a year they did well and watch what happens. Any super-fans in earshot will begin to name the different players that were in the lineup for that team during that particular season. (We call it 96 Bulls because that seems to be one referenced a lot around here.)
This is easy to make into an actual game. Divide up into teams. Depending on the number of participants you could have 2, 3, or even four teams. With the glory of the internet, you can easily access the historic rosters of just about any major professional and even college sports teams.
Teams take turns challenging their opposing teams to name as many starting players for a sports team of a specific year. This will work best if you set up parameters such as football teams in the 90s or NBA teams from the 70s. The age and sports preferences of your group should be considered.
Teams should be given a time limit to come up with as many names as they can. Points are awarded based on the number of correct answers given for each round.
Cricket – Darts Tournament
Darts is a classic man cave or barroom game. One of the best dart games is Cricket. It is normally a game between two players but you can play in teams to involve more players. For a party, you can set up a tournament. This video shows how to play:
The lack of the necessary skill required to be competitive in darts is something that can scare aware newcomers and novices. One way we have found helps overcome this hurdle is with an oversized board. This makes the game a little easier as the target is much larger. Your tournament will move quickly and more people will be able to competitively compete without feeling intimidated.
Zygomatic Formula D Board Game
Release your inner speed demon with Formula D, an adrenaline-pumping racing board game. This game puts you in the driver’s seat in a Formula One-style race. It takes strategy, luck, and a competitive spirit.
Formula D involves many different aspects of Formula racing including starting, shifting gears, avoiding damage, handling corners, and passing. The basic way players move forward is based on rolling dice. There are many other nuances that you must consider rather than just traveling as fast as you can.
This video provides a great breakdown of how to play:
If you can mix the right strategy of speed, avoiding damage, and handling corners, you might find yourself crossing the finish line first!
