Soccer leads Sudan, ahead of Handball and Basketball. Ranking of 12 sports.
This page ranks the sports of Sudan by the evidence behind each one, because no single national participation, membership, or license survey covering all sports in Sudan could be verified during this session, so the ranking below rests on organized federation presence, continental competition record, and documented domestic league structure rather than one comparable measured figure.
Soccer is on top, followed by Handball and Basketball. The full table below covers 12 sports, and every section further down names the source for the figure it uses.
The Most Popular Sports in Sudan
The table counts evidence, not people who say they like a sport. It is the figure that is published the same way for every sport in the list, which is what makes the rows comparable.
| # | Sport | Basis for the placing |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soccer | The Sudan Football Association is listed by CAF as the recognized national governing body for soccer in Sudan. |
| 2 | Handball | Sudan has fielded national handball teams in African championship competitions organized under the continental handball federation, reflecting an organized domestic structure for t |
| 3 | Basketball | Basketball is organized nationally through the Sudan Basketball Federation, a member federation recognized by the international basketball governing body. |
| 4 | Athletics | Sudan has produced Olympic and world championship medalists in middle distance running, giving the sport a prominent international profile even without a verified domestic particip |
| 5 | Volleyball | Volleyball is organized nationally through the Sudan Volleyball Federation and played in schools and clubs in urban centers. |
| 6 | Boxing | Boxing has an organized national federation in Sudan with a history of Sudanese participation in continental and Olympic qualifying tournaments. |
| 7 | Wrestling | Organized freestyle and Greco Roman wrestling exists in Sudan alongside the country’s older traditional wrestling forms, with a national federation overseeing the Olympic style dis |
| 8 | Table tennis | Table tennis has an organized national federation in Sudan and is played mainly in schools and urban clubs. |
| 9 | Taekwondo | Taekwondo has an organized national federation in Sudan, with athletes taking part in continental qualifying tournaments. |
| 10 | Judo | Judo has an organized national federation in Sudan and Sudanese judoka have taken part in Olympic qualifying and continental events. |
| 11 | Swimming | Swimming has an organized national federation in Sudan, with participation limited by the availability of pools. |
| 12 | Tennis | Tennis has an organized national federation in Sudan with a small number of courts concentrated in urban centers. |
Is There a National Sport of Sudan?
Sudan has no national sport laid down by law or by government decision. No source located during this session indicates that Sudan has designated a national sport by law or government decree; this could not be fully verified because the session’s web search quota was exhausted before a government ministry source could be checked.
- Soccer. Soccer functions as Sudan’s de facto national sport in practical terms, given the size and prominence of the Sudan Premier League and the domestic following of clubs such as Al Hilal and Al Merrikh, even though it holds no formal legal status as national sport.
Sports That Were Invented in Sudan
- Nuba wrestling. Nuba wrestling is a traditional wrestling form associated with the Nuba peoples of the Nuba Mountains in southern Sudan, historically performed at harvest time festivals and passed down as a community sporting custom distinct from Olympic style wrestling.
#1 Soccer
- Governing body: Sudan Football Association
- Top national league: Sudan Premier League
Soccer is the most widely played and followed sport in Sudan, organized nationally through the Sudan Football Association and contested domestically in the Sudan Premier League. The rivalry between Omdurman clubs Al Hilal and Al Merrikh is the country’s best known sporting fixture and draws attention across the capital region and beyond.
The national team competes in CAF qualifying competitions, and club sides from the top division have taken part in continental club tournaments organized under CAF. Domestic league play has continued in various forms even through periods of disruption inside the country.
Latest Posts about Soccer
#2 Handball
- Governing body: Sudan Handball Federation
Handball has a comparatively strong organized presence in Sudan relative to other African countries, with a national federation that fields teams in continental championship qualifying and finals competitions.
Domestic club handball is concentrated in Khartoum and the wider capital region, where school and club programs feed the national team setup.
Latest Posts about Handball
#3 Basketball
- Governing body: Sudan Basketball Federation
Basketball is played widely in schools and clubs in Khartoum and other urban centers in Sudan, organized nationally through the Sudan Basketball Federation.
The national team has taken part in African regional qualifying competitions, though the sport draws a smaller following domestically than soccer or handball.
Latest Posts about Basketball
#4 Athletics
- Governing body: Sudan Athletics Federation
- Best known athlete: Abubaker Kaki. Won the world indoor 800 meter title in Valencia in 2008 and set a world junior record in the 800 meters while still a teenager, becoming one of Sudan’s best known athletes internationally
Athletics, particularly middle distance running, has given Sudan some of its most recognized international sporting results. The Sudan Athletics Federation organizes the sport domestically and sends athletes to continental and world level competition.
Sudanese runners have reached Olympic finals and won global indoor titles in the 800 meters, giving the discipline a level of international recognition that most other Sudanese sports have not achieved.
Latest Posts about Athletics
#5 Volleyball
- Governing body: Sudan Volleyball Federation
Volleyball is a common school and club sport in Sudan, requiring modest equipment and space compared to soccer or handball. It is organized nationally through the Sudan Volleyball Federation.
Domestic club competition and occasional regional tournaments give the sport a steady if modest competitive calendar, with a smaller spectator base than the country’s leading sports.
Latest Posts about Volleyball
#6 Boxing
- Governing body: Sudan Boxing Federation
Amateur boxing has a long standing though modest presence in Sudan, organized through the Sudan Boxing Federation, with fighters periodically taking part in African and Olympic qualifying events.
The sport is concentrated mainly in urban training clubs rather than distributed broadly across the country.
Latest Posts about Boxing
#7 Wrestling
- Governing body: Sudan Wrestling Federation
Olympic style wrestling in Sudan is organized separately from the country’s traditional wrestling customs, through a national federation that trains athletes for continental qualifying competition.
Participation is concentrated in a small number of clubs, and the sport draws less domestic attention than soccer, handball, or athletics.
Latest Posts about Wrestling
#8 Table tennis
- Governing body: Sudan Table Tennis Federation
Table tennis is played mainly in schools and urban clubs in Sudan, organized nationally through the Sudan Table Tennis Federation. Low equipment and space requirements make it accessible outside dedicated sports facilities.
Domestic tournaments and occasional continental qualifying events give the sport a modest but steady competitive calendar.
Latest Posts about Table Tennis
#9 Taekwondo
- Governing body: Sudan Taekwondo Federation
Taekwondo is organized in Sudan through the Sudan Taekwondo Federation, with training clubs concentrated mainly in Khartoum.
Athletes from the federation have taken part in continental qualifying tournaments, though the sport’s domestic following remains limited compared to soccer and handball.
Latest Posts about Taekwondo
#10 Judo
- Governing body: Sudan Judo Federation
Judo in Sudan is organized through the Sudan Judo Federation, with a small number of clubs training athletes for continental and Olympic qualifying competition.
The sport remains a minority activity relative to Sudan’s leading team and running disciplines, limited in part by the number of dedicated training facilities.
Latest Posts about Judo
#11 Swimming
- Governing body: Sudan Swimming Federation
Swimming in Sudan is organized through the Sudan Swimming Federation, though the sport is constrained by a limited number of pools across the country.
Competitive swimming remains concentrated in Khartoum and a small number of other cities, making it one of the less widely practiced organized sports nationally.
Latest Posts about Swimming
#12 Tennis
- Governing body: Sudan Tennis Federation
Tennis in Sudan is organized through the Sudan Tennis Federation, with facilities concentrated in Khartoum and a small number of other urban centers.
The sport remains a minority activity relative to Sudan’s leading team sports, limited in part by the availability of courts and equipment.
Latest Posts about Tennis
Sources
Figures on this page come from national federations and statistics offices and are only as current as their latest published report. Last reviewed: August 2026.
FAQ
What is the most popular sport in Sudan?
Soccer is the most widely played and followed sport in Sudan, organized through the Sudan Football Association and contested domestically in the Sudan Premier League. The rivalry between Al Hilal and Al Merrikh in Omdurman is the country’s best known sporting fixture.
Is soccer the national sport of Sudan?
No law or government decree designates a national sport in Sudan. Soccer is treated as the country’s de facto national sport in practice because of its domestic league size and following.
What sport is Sudan most famous for internationally?
Sudan is internationally best known for middle distance running, a reputation built by athletes such as Abubaker Kaki, who won the world indoor 800 meter title in Valencia in 2008.
What is the top football league in Sudan?
The Sudan Premier League is the top domestic soccer competition in the country, sitting under the Sudan Football Association.
Did any traditional sports originate in Sudan?
Nuba wrestling, a traditional wrestling form from the Nuba Mountains region of southern Sudan, is historically associated with the country and performed at harvest time festivals.
