The list of popular sports in Brazil may start with football, but it surely doesn’t end there. Read on to know them all.

It's no secret that football is Brazil's national pastime, and some even go so far as to call it a religion among the country's citizens. Yet, the country has seen the rise of many other fields as well. Here are some of the all-time favorite sports played and recognized by people.

Football

The answer is yes; it must be done first. The Brazilians have such a deep love for the sport that they sometimes refer to their nation as "o Pas do Futebol" (literally "the country of football"). There is no other activity in the nation that has a larger audience or more participants. The Canarinhos have won the FIFA World Cup five times (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002), making them the much more successful national football team in history.

Volleyball

Included within the realm of team sports is volleyball, where Brazilians have made remarkable strides. Three gold medals in the Olympics have been won by the men's national team, and they are presently rated first in the world by FIFA. Millions of Brazilians play (and watch) volleyball (also known as beach volleyball). The national squad of Brazil played a preseason game on July 26, 1983, in the iconic Maracan in Rio de Janeiro, to the delight of 95,000 people. This is widely regarded as the date on which the country fell in love with volleyball. The 3-1 victory by Brazil sparked a national obsession with the sport.

MMA and Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Several studies show that the popularity of martial arts in Brazil has been on the rise in recent years. One of the arts that originated in Brazil is ju-jitsu. The Brazilian brothers Alberto, Oswaldo, Gasto Jr., George, & Hélio Gracie developed it as a self-defense method in about 1920. The practice became a well-liked form of fighting recreation, and it is now widely credited as a driving force behind the rise of mixed martial arts among the most watched sports in the United States.

Basketball

As a team sport, basketball enjoys a large fan base in the United States. Indeed, Brazilian national men's teams have achieved some international success. In 1959 and 1963, the Brazilian national basketball team won the FIBA World Championship. They come in second twice, in 1954 also 1970, and third twice, in 1967 & 1978. As a group, they have had a lot of success, including 3 Olympic bronze medals.

Motorsport

Brazil has produced 32 drivers in Formula One, with three drivers—Emerson Fittipaldi, Nelson Piquet (1981, 1983, and 1987), and Ayrton Senna (1994)—winning the world championship (1988, 1990, and 1991). The Autódromo José Carlos Pace with Interlagos neighborhood of Cidade Dutra, So Paulo, hosts the annual So Paulo Grand Prix, formerly known as the Brazilian Grand Prix.