10 Futuristic sports

n sports we are always looking for the next. The next Jordan, the next champion, even the next sport.

Here are 10 "futuristic" sports that are guaranteed to be banished to the scrap heap of history.

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#1 -- Jai Alai

Jai alai is a game that originated in the Basque region of Spain four centuries ago. Yet despite being around all those years, jai alai players and fans have insisted that their sport is the next one to break through to the big time. Just imagine these people as kind of like lacrosse douchebags who speak Spanish. (But not the lacrosse douchebags who can curse in Spanish to the Mexican nanny their parents hired to raise them.)

In jai alai a ball (“pelota”) is hurled through the air by a sort of long, curved, wicker basket (“cesta”) and you get points if the other team doesn’t catch the pelota. Or something. (“Es muy stupido.”)

But the ball travels at incredibly high speeds, in upwards of 150 mph, which is the main reason jai alai fanatics believe there is such a bright future for the sport. You know, ‘cause modern people love speed! Yep. Jai alai could be as popular as tennis, only if you can’t see the tennis ball. RATINGS GOLD!

And what parent wouldn’t want to sign their kid up for youth jai alai? Ducking a ball flying 150 mph at your head builds character! As does coming out of a coma after suffering a skull fracture.

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#2 -- Space Sports

Remember how we were all going to live in space or at least travel there regularly? Well, that may still happen, just not on the same schedule as bad ‘80s movies had us believe. And while we wait to go, space travel sites like SpaceFuture.com have been imagining what space sports will be like.

We’re talking “zero-G versions of existing terrestrial sports, such as table-tennis, badminton, tennis, and even basketball.” Whoa?

They’ve also thought of entirely new sports: “A zero-gravity ‘water-room’ with some large ‘blobs’ of water which you can throw at each other, or through which you can dive, will provide a lot of unique entertainment.” So, like, a water balloon fight … IN SPACE!

Whatever happens, if we have space sports, let's agree to limit basketball and soccer to Americans only. Imagine how easily Space Ginobilis would dive and flop in zero gravity.