Jordan, as with many Middle Eastern country has a love affair with football. Football, or soccer, is played everywhere from Khalda to Al Hashimi Al-Janoobial. As a matter of fact, you will not have a hard time to find a very good football player in pretty much every street. The popularity of football can largely be attributed to the improvements in its national football team. In 2004, they took on the 37th spot in FIFA. Football is quite popular even with the young and there are various youth leagues in the country that are managed by their national football league.

There are also other sports that are gaining grounds in the Jordan sports scene such as Rugby. Jordan has participated in international test matches like Lebanon in 2010. Basketball is one of the biggest rising sports and has improved Jordan’s relationship with other countries in the region. 

Handball and volleyball are also quite popular team sports. There are also a lot of individual sports that are getting quite an audience in Jordan such as Tae Kwon Do, boxing, and swimming. Cycling is not that popular yet but is slowly being recognized by the Jordanian population.

Jordan have been a part of the Olympic Summer Games since 1984 but, just like most Middle Eastern countries, they have never competed in the Winter Games.

Below are details of sports, sporting events and sports people related to Jordan. Is there something missing? If you know of something that should be listed here, please let us know.

Popular sports of Jordan

Jordan Sporting Success

  • Jordan won a gold medal at the Rio 2016 Olympics
  • Jordan won two Olympic medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (1 silver and 1 bronze)
  • The Jordan national men's team ("The Chivalrous Ones") qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 2026

Great athletes from Jordan

  • Musa Al-Taamari (Football)
  • Ahmad Abughaush (Taekwondo)
  • Yazan Al-Naimat (Football)
  • Saleh Al-Sharabaty (Taekwondo)

Jordan Sports trivia

  • Jordan won their first official Olympic Games medal in 2016, when taekwondo fighter Ahmad Abu-Ghaush won gold in the men's featherweight category.

Jordan at major events

Past sporting events hosted in Jordan

  • 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup: Jordan hosted this event for the first time in 2018
  • 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup
  • 2024 U-17 World Wrestling Championships

Upcoming sporting events in Jordan

  • 2035 Arab Games
  • Petra Desert Marathon 2026: This event will be held in Gaia, Petra on the 5th of September, 2026
  • Bromine Amman Marathon: This event will be held in Amman on the 2nd of October, 2026

Annual sporting events held in Jordan

  • The Jordan Rally
  • The Jordan International Rally
  • The Jordan Open

Sporting Facilities in Jordan

  • Al Hussein Youth City (Amman)
  • Regional Sport Cities