Soccer and tennis are very popular in Chile, but it was rodeo that was made a National sport in Chile on January 10, 1962. In 1949, Rancagua hosted the first National Rodeo Championship, where celebrated figures Juan Carlos Loaiza and Ramón Cardemil have won the title seven times. Although it doesn’t receive much funding, the sport is popular up and down the country, particularly around Chilean Independence Day on September 18th.

Dating back to the 16th century, this historic practice has been a traditional sport of country folk there for centuries.

The sport was created under the rule of Governor Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza, in an effort to prevent herds of cows from constantly going astray. As a result, every July during the commemoration of Saint Jacob – the patron saint of Santiago – the cattle would be rounded up in the Plaza de Armas.

The aim of the Chilean rodeo is to gain high points, which are obtained with strong manoeuvering skills and then by pinning the cow or calf on one of the two quinchas (the cushioned part of the medialuna, effectively the goal). Deductions are made for faults, for example, incorrect manoeuvering or the cow escaping. The Chilean version has no lassoing, bucking broncos or bull-riding.

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