With roots in ancient traditions of games played with the feet, two men from Oregon City, Ore., are credited with inventing the modern version of footbag in 1972.

Mike Marshall was experimenting with a homemade bean bag when a friend who was recovering from knee surgery, John Stalberger, saw what he was kicking around. It seemed a good way to exercise his knee, and the two men soon invented the modern version of the game.

They decided to call the game itself footbag and to market the beanbag as a Hacky-sack. The trademark was later sold to Wham-O, the company which makes Frisbees.

There are several variations of the game, and worldwide competitive organizations. The most common is freestyle, where players form a circle and take turns kicking the bag.
Some courtesy rules suggested by x-village.com are:

• No hands except when serving; shoulders are technically not allowed but are widely accepted in the average group. • No self-service, unless you are alone.
• Don’t hog the bag; pass it before you drop it.
• Do not try to give knee passes, they usually go straight to the ground.
• Don’t play past .09 (blood-alcohol level) because you won’t be very good and you might lose the bag.

Footbags are made out of many different materials. The exterior is called the cover and can be made of materials from hemp to leather.

A general rule is the harder the outside material, the more bounce; the softer it is, the “stickier” it is, which is ideal for stalling.

What’s inside can vary, too. Some are filled with plastic pellets or sand. A tightly packed bag is going to be bouncier while sand is easier to delay or stall.

Footbags come in a variety of styles. Paneled bags are more popular for footbag net and footbag golf because it is said they are easier to control with precision.

Footbags cost between $3 and $35, with collector’s items selling for more.

Footbag net is similar to tennis or volleyball, except players attempt to pass a footbag, using only their feet, over a five foot high net. Rules of play may vary based on the number of participants.