Petanque

A single round of play — from mener, to lead. Every mène has a leader, and the lead changes hands the way power does.

Pétanque is quietly thriving in American cities, and pickleball is exploding across France. Here's where the two games are meeting in the middle.

In 1907, a rheumatic man's friendship invented a sport. A century later, it is played on every continent.

A circle, three boules, one wooden jack, and two verbs: pointer and tirer. First to 13 wins.

From Marseille's dusty squares to world championships: the competitions that crown pétanque's kings.

Pétanque and pickleball were born an ocean apart. Play both for a week and they start to rhyme.

Lose 13–0 and tradition demands a kiss. Two theories of losing, one painted backside.

The little wooden target everything revolves around — and what each country claims to be aiming at.

To place gently or to shoot: every policy debate is a choice between the two.

Two signature shots, two theories of winning: the soft American placement and the decisive French strike.