The game (sport) of your game

Today I went to see jousting at Linlithgow Palace.

Not pictured, the thunderstorm that started after the second bout

It’s a new group doing it since I last went, who play up the panto / wrestling style characters more in between tests of skill and the tilts themselves. This inevitably got me thinking about wrestling and other sport RPGs, as well as jousting in Pendragon, A Knight’s Tale, and so on.

I’ve talked about big sports and other events as plot points before, and in passing about games centring on them as well as other kinds of entertainment like bands. Which settings suit them? Can you add a “forced to fight in gladiatoral combat” adventure to your series? What else works?

The event had sideshows and demonstrations as well - crafts, falconry, jesters - which could add variety to such a setup.