Lego Sports (stylized as LEGO Sports) was a Lego theme that was launched in 2000 and discontinued in 2007. The theme focused on a variety of sports-themed toy sets, including football, basketball and hockey.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, The Lego Group made the decision to diversify its product range with sports-themed toy sets. The company initially focused on football, due to the popularity of table football sets and the football game Subbuteo during this period. Lego Sports was launched in 2000 and discontinued in 2007.[1] As a result of several licensing contracts with major sports organisations, the product range displayed the official logos of these organisations.[2]
Soccer / Football (2000–2007)edit
The football product range differed from other Lego toy sets by focusing on football action instead of construction, so they contained fewer pieces. The branding of the sets was also different to other Lego product ranges. In 2000, the toy sets were illustrated with an image of French footballer Zinedine Zidane, who was represented in Lego minifigure form in set 3401. Some toy sets, such as Championship Challenge incorporated a kicking device that enabled minifigures to kick a ball. In 2001, the theme released the Women's Team set, which included six female minifigure players. This was the largest number of female minifigures included in a set at that time. A range of promotional sets was also released to coincide with the 2002 World Cup. From 2003 to 2005, the Lego Sports theme focused on NBA basketball and NHL hockey, but Lego football toys reappeared in 2006 with the release of three sets that launched around the time of the 2006 World Cup in Germany.[1]
The toy sets for the Soccer sub-theme included:
3401 Shoot N' Score
3402 Small Grandstand with Lights
3403 Fans Grandstand with Scoreboard
3404 Black Bus
3405 Blue Bus
3406 Americas Bus
3407 Red Bus
3408 Super Sport Coverage
3409 Championship Challenge
3410 Field Expandera
3411 Blue Team Bus With Ball
3412 Point Shooting
3413 Goal Keeper
3414 Precision Shooting
3416 Women's Soccer Team
3420 Championship Challenge II
3421 3 v 3 Shootout
3422 Shoot 'N Save
3423 Freekick Frenzy
3424 Target Practice
3425 Grand Championship Cup
3426 Team Transport
3427 to 3567 Coca-Cola Minifigs and Items
3568 Football Shoot Out
3569 Football Tabletop
3570 Football Mini Field
3573 Superstar Figure
Gravity Games (2003–2004)edit
The Gravity Games sub-theme introduced the extreme sports of snowboarding and skateboarding to Lego sets. The theme was released in 2003 and discontinued in 2004. The theme focused on the Gravity Games, a multi-sport competition that included summer and winter activities. The set boxes were sometimes illustrated with photographs of sports professionals next to their signatures.[1]
The toy sets for the Gravity Games sub-theme included:
3535 Skateboard Street Park
Minifigures: 1
3536 Snowboard Big Air Comp
Minifigures: 1
3537 Skateboard Vert Park Challenge
Minifigures: 2
3538 Snowboard Boarder Cross Race
Minifigures: 2
3585 Snowboard Super Pipe
Minifigures: 2
Basketball (2003–2004)edit
The Basketball sub-theme was launched in 2003. In the first year it was licensed by the National Basketball Association. The minifigures featured spring-loaded legs and hand designs that enabled players to use the minifigure to perform actions, such as shooting and passing.[2] Like the earlier football sub-theme, the set boxes featured images of real NBA players and the toys were decorated with logos of Spalding and NBA. The largest set was Ultimate NBA Arena. Various players were recreated in minifigure form, including Shaquille O'Neal, Jason Kidd, Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash. The minifigures were designed to look like the real players and was the first time that non-yellow minifigures appeared in Lego sets. These realistic skin tones appeared in later themes, such as Lego Harry Potter and Lego Indiana Jones.[1]
The toy sets for the Basketball sub-theme included:
The Hockey sub-theme was released from 2003 to 2004. It differed from other Lego Sports product ranges because the first hockey sets included special figures constructed from Technic and Bionicle pieces rather than minifigures. The theme was endorsed by the National Hockey League and NHL Players' Association. In 2004, the sets named NHL Championship Challenge and NHL Street Hockey included minifigures that were placed on discs with poles that allowed the puck to move around.[1]
The toy sets for the Hockey sub-theme included:
3540 Puck Passer
3541 Slap Shot
3542 Flip Shot
3543 Slammer Goalie
3544 Game Set
3545 Puck Feeder
3557 Blue Player and Goal
3558 Red Player and Goal
3559 Red and Blue Player
3578 NHL Championship Challenge
3579 NHL Street Hockey
7919 White Hockey Player
7920 Blue Hockey Player
10127 NHL Action Set with Stickers
65182 Slammer Stadium
Referencesedit
^ abcdeHerman, Sarah (2012-07-09). Building a History: The Lego Group. Grub Street Publishers. pp. 230–233. ISBN978-1-78340-804-7.
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Lego Sports stylized as LEGO Sports was a Lego theme that was launched in 2000 and discontinued in 2007 The theme focused on a variety of sports themed toy sets including football basketball and hockey Lego SportsSub themesSoccer FootballGravity GamesBasketballHockeySubjectSportLicensed fromThe Lego GroupAvailability2000 2007Total sets119 Contents 1 Overview 2 Soccer Football 2000 2007 3 Gravity Games 2003 2004 4 Basketball 2003 2004 5 Hockey 2003 2004 6 References 7 External linksOverview editIn the late 1990s and early 2000s The Lego Group made the decision to diversify its product range with sports themed toy sets The company initially focused on football due to the popularity of table football sets and the football game Subbuteo during this period Lego Sports was launched in 2000 and discontinued in 2007 1 As a result of several licensing contracts with major sports organisations the product range displayed the official logos of these organisations 2 Soccer Football 2000 2007 editThe football product range differed from other Lego toy sets by focusing on football action instead of construction so they contained fewer pieces The branding of the sets was also different to other Lego product ranges In 2000 the toy sets were illustrated with an image of French footballer Zinedine Zidane who was represented in Lego minifigure form in set 3401 Some toy sets such as Championship Challenge incorporated a kicking device that enabled minifigures to kick a ball In 2001 the theme released the Women s Team set which included six female minifigure players This was the largest number of female minifigures included in a set at that time A range of promotional sets was also released to coincide with the 2002 World Cup From 2003 to 2005 the Lego Sports theme focused on NBA basketball and NHL hockey but Lego football toys reappeared in 2006 with the release of three sets that launched around the time of the 2006 World Cup in Germany 1 The toy sets for the Soccer sub theme included 3401 Shoot N Score 3402 Small Grandstand with Lights 3403 Fans Grandstand with Scoreboard 3404 Black Bus 3405 Blue Bus 3406 Americas Bus 3407 Red Bus 3408 Super Sport Coverage 3409 Championship Challenge 3410 Field Expandera 3411 Blue Team Bus With Ball 3412 Point Shooting 3413 Goal Keeper 3414 Precision Shooting 3416 Women s Soccer Team 3420 Championship Challenge II 3421 3 v 3 Shootout 3422 Shoot N Save 3423 Freekick Frenzy 3424 Target Practice 3425 Grand Championship Cup 3426 Team Transport 3427 to 3567 Coca Cola Minifigs and Items 3568 Football Shoot Out 3569 Football Tabletop 3570 Football Mini Field 3573 Superstar FigureGravity Games 2003 2004 editThe Gravity Games sub theme introduced the extreme sports of snowboarding and skateboarding to Lego sets The theme was released in 2003 and discontinued in 2004 The theme focused on the Gravity Games a multi sport competition that included summer and winter activities The set boxes were sometimes illustrated with photographs of sports professionals next to their signatures 1 The toy sets for the Gravity Games sub theme included 3535 Skateboard Street Park Minifigures 1 3536 Snowboard Big Air Comp Minifigures 1 3537 Skateboard Vert Park Challenge Minifigures 2 3538 Snowboard Boarder Cross Race Minifigures 2 3585 Snowboard Super Pipe Minifigures 2Basketball 2003 2004 editThe Basketball sub theme was launched in 2003 In the first year it was licensed by the National Basketball Association The minifigures featured spring loaded legs and hand designs that enabled players to use the minifigure to perform actions such as shooting and passing 2 Like the earlier football sub theme the set boxes featured images of real NBA players and the toys were decorated with logos of Spalding and NBA The largest set was Ultimate NBA Arena Various players were recreated in minifigure form including Shaquille O Neal Jason Kidd Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash The minifigures were designed to look like the real players and was the first time that non yellow minifigures appeared in Lego sets These realistic skin tones appeared in later themes such as Lego Harry Potter and Lego Indiana Jones 1 The toy sets for the Basketball sub theme included 3427 NBA Slam Dunk Minifigures 1 3428 One vs One Action Minifigures 2 3429 Ultimate Defense Minifigures 2 3430 NBA Spin and Shoot Minifigures 2 3431 Street Ball 2 vs 2 Minifigures 4 3432 NBA Challenge Minifigures 10 3433 Ultimate NBA Arena Minifigures 10 3440 NBA Jam Session Minifigures 2 3548 Slam Dunk Trainer Minifigures 1 3549 Practice Shooting Minifigures 1 3550 Jump and Shoot Minifigures 1 3560 NBA Collectors 1 Minifigures Ray Allen Tim Duncan Pau Gasol 3561 NBA Collectors 2 Minifigures Antoine Walker Shaquille O Neal Tony Parker 3562 NBA Collectors 3 Minifigures Gary Payton Dirk Nowitzki Vince Carter 3563 NBA Collectors 4 Minifigures Kobe Bryant Jason Kidd Toni Kukoc 3564 NBA Collectors 5 Minifigures Allen Iverson Steve Francis Karl Malone 3565 NBA Collectors 6 Minifigures Steve Nash Jerry Stackhouse Paul Pierce 3566 NBA Collectors 7 Minifigures Jalen Rose Peja Stojakovic Kevin Garnett 3567 NBA Collectors 8 Minifigures Tracy McGrady Allan Houston Chris Webber 3584 Rapid Return Minifigures 1 5013 Free Throw Minifigures 1 10121 NBA Basketball Teams Minifigures 5Hockey 2003 2004 editThe Hockey sub theme was released from 2003 to 2004 It differed from other Lego Sports product ranges because the first hockey sets included special figures constructed from Technic and Bionicle pieces rather than minifigures The theme was endorsed by the National Hockey League and NHL Players Association In 2004 the sets named NHL Championship Challenge and NHL Street Hockey included minifigures that were placed on discs with poles that allowed the puck to move around 1 The toy sets for the Hockey sub theme included 3540 Puck Passer 3541 Slap Shot 3542 Flip Shot 3543 Slammer Goalie 3544 Game Set 3545 Puck Feeder 3557 Blue Player and Goal 3558 Red Player and Goal 3559 Red and Blue Player 3578 NHL Championship Challenge 3579 NHL Street Hockey 7919 White Hockey Player 7920 Blue Hockey Player 10127 NHL Action Set with Stickers 65182 Slammer StadiumReferences edit a b c d e Herman Sarah 2012 07 09 Building a History The Lego Group Grub Street Publishers pp 230 233 ISBN 978 1 78340 804 7 a b Sports Basketball LEGO Sets BrickEconomy Retrieved 2021 08 07 External links editOfficial Site Archived 2007 03 06 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Lego Sports amp oldid 1180242615, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
