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 A yukigassen tournament final in 2018 | |
| Highestgoverning body | International Alliance Yukigassen |
|---|---|
| First played | 1989,Sōbetsu, Hokkaido,Japan |
| Characteristics | |
| Team members | 7 players per side |
| Type | Team sport,Snowball fight |
| Equipment | Snowball |
| Venue | snow pitch |
| Presence | |
| Country or region | Worldwide (most popular inJapan andFinland) |
Yukigassen (雪合戦;IPA:[jɯkiɡaꜜsseɴ]) is asnowball fighting-competition played between two teams of seven players each on a pitch of snow 10 meters wide and 36 meters long. The pitch is divided into halves, and each half has three defensive "shelters" and the team flag. The goal of the game is to either capture the other team's flags or to eliminate all of the other team's players by hitting them with snowballs, 90 of which are made prior to the start of gameplay.[1] The game has been compared tocapture the flag,dodgeball, andpaintball.
InJapanese,yukigassen is a compound of the wordsyuki (雪; 'snow') andkassen (合戦; 'battle', withrendaku togassen). It is a common term for 'snowball fight' in Japanese.
The sport was founded in 1989 in the town ofSōbetsu on the island ofHokkaido, after local officials sought a way to boost falling tourism in wintertime.[2] The first tournament was held that year at the base of theShōwa-shinzan volcano, featuring 70 teams.[3] In 1991, the first women's yukigassen tournament was held.[4] The Japanese Yukigassen Federation was formed in 1993.[5] An international association was formed in 2013.[6]
The sport rapidly spread to other countries, and was first played in the United States in 2001.[7] The first tournament outside of Japan was held in Australia in 1992, and games were held in Finland that same year. In 1996, the first annual yukigassen event was held in Norway, and competitions were held in Sweden in 2009.[8][9] In 2024, the first national yukigassen championship was held in Austria.[10] By 2025, ten countries had joined Yukigassen International.[11] The game remains the most popular in Japan, where there were 2000 teams by 2011.[3]
The Japanese Yukigassen Federation has been lobbying to include yukigassen as a sport in theWinter Olympics.[12] Today there are annual tournaments inSōbetsu in Japan,Kemijärvi in Finland,Vardø in Norway,Murmansk in Russia,Mount Buller in Australia,Luleå in Sweden,Anchorage in Alaska,Aparan in Armenia,Jasper andSaskatoon in Canada.
Yukigassen tournaments are held in countries across Europe, Asia, and North America. The world championship is held annually inSōbetsu,Hokkaidō, Japan.
| Tournament | Host city | Last Held | Current Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| World Championship |  Sōbetsu,Hokkaidō | 2025[13] | |
| European Championship |  Kemijärvi,Finland | 2025[14] | |
| Swedish Championship |  Luleå,Sweden | 2025[15] | LTU Rockets |
| Nordic Championship |  Vardø,Norway | 2025[16] | Yeti |
| Australian Championship |  Mount Baw Baw | 2025[17] | |
| Russian Championship |  Murmansk, Russia | ||
| Canadian Championship |  Jasper, Canada | 2013 | |
| Armenian Championship |  Aparan, Armenia | 2025[18] | Team Tehran |
| Austrian Yukigassen Championship |  Filzmoos,Austria | 2025[19] | BORG Radstadt |
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