news blog

A Rhode Island organization is growing interest in a fresh four-a-side format of water polo – Water Polo 4x4 (WP4) – with the help of portable goals and fields that allow the game to be played in non-traditional locations, including beaches, rivers and lakes.

Sport non-profit RIOW, also known as Beavertail Open Water, ran its inaugural Rhody Water Polo Tournament on the Narrow River near North Kingston in July and has big plans to take the fast-paced version of the sport to more locations across the East Coast of America.

The WP4 format is also gaining momentum internationally, highlighted by the recent World Aquatics’ inaugural Water Polo 4x4 Open Championships from 31 August to 6 September in Croatia – featuring 24 teams from 18 countries.

Portable Packaworld courts provided world-class playing conditions for the Special Olympics Canada Games Medicine Hat 2026 bocce competition, with the Games standing out as the biggest multi-sport event in the Alberta city of Medicine Hat’s history.

Around 1,700 athletes competed in bocce and other summer sports from 11 to 15 August, representing their provinces as they were cheered on by 3,500 spectators, including The Governor General of Canada Her Excellency the Right Honourable Louise Arbour.

High-quality Packabocce courts set the scene for bocce competition at the Big Marble Go Centre, with athletes vying not just for glory, but for a shot at representing Canada at the 2027 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Chile.

Young athletes with visual impairments from across New England were treated to a range of adaptive sports at a brand-new summer camp, including goalball played using innovative portable goals from Packaworld.

The Wildcat Blind Sports Education Camp was run from 28 June to 2 July at the University of New Hampshire's Durham campus, organized by the Maine Organization for Blind Athletic and Leadership Education (MOBALE) in partnership with the university.

The inclusive event brought together more than a dozen people with vision impairments aged 9-17 from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts.

The allure of national competition and arrival of a high-quality portable court has sparked a mini renaissance for the sport of bocce ball in New York’s Hudson Valley.

The growth in participation and rising skill level in Hudson Valley’s Special Olympics program saw two of the valley’s bocce athletes and their unified partners selected to represent New York State at the Special Olympics USA Games in Minnesota, alongside four bocce athletes from Long Island.

Certified Hudson Valley bocce coach Paige Peloso said training on the same portable courts used at the Games had made a “world of difference”, leading to top four finishes in the unified teams, male singles, unified doubles and unified mixed doubles bocce categories.

Portable courts from Packaworld set the scene for one of the United States’ best attended and highest profile bocce competitions last week when they were used to host the bocce event at the Special Olympics USA National Games.

More than 3,000 athletes, 11,500 coaches and volunteers and 75,000 fans descended on Minneapolis for the national games, which featured 16 different sports for individuals with intellectual disabilities, as well as unified partners.

The bocce event, hosted at the University of Minnesota’s Larson Performance Centre, saw more than 200 athletes vie for glory across singles, doubles, teams and unified categories.

Bocce ball is on the rise across Southern California as new inflatable courts help the state's Special Olympics athletes enjoy the sport they love in more locations.

There are now dozens of Packabocce courts in use from San Luis Obispo to Los Angeles, in Special Olympics Southern California community and school programs – making it easier than ever for athletes to hone their bocce skills in professional playing conditions.

The recent Ventura County Bocce Competition at Rancho Campana High School provided more than 250 athletes from 40 teams the chance to compete on 11 portable courts, featuring both traditional and unified bocce formats.

New portable courts are supporting an explosion in bocce ball popularity in Puerto Rico, with scores of athletes taking part in the latest round of the island’s national Special Olympics tournament and a new unified bocce carnival for students.

Between them, the Special Olympics National Bocce Tournament event in Cataño and Adapted Sport Carnival in Caguas engaged hundreds of Special Olympics athletes, unified partners, families, volunteers and supporters.

Both events took place on new portable bocce ball courts from Packaworld, allowing for easy court transportation to venues and providing an eye-catching and wheelchair-accessible stage for participants.

Most people are happy playing sport at their local park, gym, or pool, but for some that's just not exciting enough. 

From coral reefs to cruise ships and from Germany's beaches to Central Europe's largest lake, sport has a habit of popping up in the most unexpected places – aided by portable equipment that makes it all possible.

Packaworld’s inflatable courts and goals have supported some seriously unique places to play sport around the world. That's why we've put our heads together to come up with this selection of five of our favourites. 

Read on, and perhaps gain some inspiration for the next indoor or outdoor location you plan to transform using our portable sports equipment.