But if the World Cup ever allows animals to compete, look out, because China may be the world's biggest cock soccer powerhouse.
China's Zhang Lijun hatched the idea in 2007, when she noticed her young cocks enjoyed playing with balls.
This is no cock and bull story -- because as you can see in this photo, she's now organizing mini-tournaments on the streets of Shenyang, in northeast China's Liaoning province.
And unlike the sport's prima donna stars in other soccer-crazy nations, her athletes work for chickenfeed.
But while the creator of chicken soccer is crowing about her weird sport, it's also ruffling feathers in the animal rights community.
That's because while the sport may look harmless enough to outsiders -- and is certainly an upgrade over the violence of cockfighting -- it could still cause problems between the birds and upset their natural pecking order.
"If roosters are placed together in close proximity with no chance of withdrawing (and the photos we have seen are invariably of two roosters), their natural urge is to fight," Ingrid Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, told AOL News in a statement. "That urge is what is likely being exploited when a ball is placed near them -- they kick while letting off steam and hit the ball after becoming agitated."
PETA says that far from being birdbrains, chickens and roosters are actually intelligent creatures -- and may even be smarter than cats and dogs.
And they know how to have fun -- Newkirk says the birds will play with a melon ball readily enough.
"It is possible to train a chicken or rooster to play ball, but placing roosters together at 'sporting events' in front of crowds is another matter," said Newkirk. "Using animals in public venues, especially when bets are at stake, doesn't usually end well for them and is seldom in their best interests."
