Match de Sepak takraw © Shahjehan -shutterstock.com.jpg
Randonnée dans la forêt © FredFroese - iStockphoto.com.jpg

Soccer... English above all!

We don't know much about it, but the Thais are football fanatics. All matches in the English Premier League are broadcast in Thailand and even the national championship (albeit at some level) attracts large numbers of fans to the country's stadiums. And Thais don't just watch the games. Fans bet a lot of money on online betting platforms before every English match, but the country's wealthy people are also betting on the money. Sometimes even at the highest level of government. In 2007, for example, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra became the owner of Manchester City after attempting to buy the Liverpool club some time earlier. He sold it a year later to Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, but he gave ideas to Chinese-born Thai billionaire Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, founder of King Power (the Thai duty free ), who bought the Leicester club in 2010, which was then languishing in the second division. He was the founder of King Power, who bought the Leicester club in 2010 from the then second division and, contrary to all predictions, moved up to the Premier League and won the English league title in 2016 Before seeing his team play in the prestigious Champions League the following season. Srivaddhanaprabha then became a legend in the East Midlands and... in Thailand of course! Victim of a helicopter accident due to the wind just after taking off from the pitch of his British

stadium, he died on 27 October 2018. It is since his son Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabh who presides over the destiny of the Foxes, the nickname of Leicester. Thai investments in British football also include the 2015 acquisition of historic championship club Sheffield Wednesday by Dejphon Chansiri of the family of giant Thai Union, a multinational fishing and seafood company, from the Sheffield Wednesday family. Or Oxford United, which has fallen into the clutches of Sumrith "Tiger" Thanakarnjanasut and the famous local beer brand Chang, which has been the jersey sponsor of the Everton club for many years. Aware of this buoyant market, Europe's biggest clubs no longer hesitate to bring their bags of balls to this part of the globe every summer for highly profitable pre-season tours.

High level badminton and petanque

Badminton. Today, badminton is on its way to dethrone the most popular sports in Thailand. The fame of Ratchanok Intanon, the youngest world champion of all time at the age of 18 (in 2013), is such that it now rivals that of the great Thai muay boxers. Badminton is an explosive, fast game, the wheel can reach dizzying speeds, beyond 300 km/h. In Thailand, it is played everywhere, and there is a fabulous pool of players of very high level. Several champions are among the top 100 in the world, both girls and boys.

Petanque. Yes, you read that right! Petanque is very popular in the land of smiles. It was the Queen Mother herself who brought it to the country after a stay on the Côte d'Azur in the 1950s. Today, the kingdom counts more than two million amateurs and thousands of professionals! Proof of the national craze, the 2015 Junior and Women's Petanque World Championships were held in Bangkok. And the tournaments still have their place in sports broadcasts and sometimes even in the news. It must be said that Thai men and women players have had very good results in international competitions in recent years. In short, Thailand is really the other country of petanque!

Traditional disciplines

Sepak Takraw. A mixture of volleyball and football, the takraw (pronounced "sèpake takro") is played with a 12 cm diameter wicker or rigid plastic ball. The basic rule is to keep the ball in the air without ever using your hands. The game is usually pleasant and always spectacular. There are several variations. The most commonly played version, which is also played at international matches in Southeast Asia, is played in teams of three with a volleyball net set slightly lower

Kite fighting. They traditionally take place from March to May, at the end of the dry season when the winds become stronger. Male" and "female" kites compete under the impassive eyes of a referee. The game consists in making the opponent fall in his camp. The female, oval-shaped, smaller than the male, has a ring; the male, star-shaped, has bamboo hooks.

Canoe races. Canoe races can be seen in all suitable towns. The spectacle is lively and colourful, and the pirogue boats can sometimes be very impressive with up to 100 rowers.

A "diving destination" of choice

Thailand presents, to the west and east of its territory, two privileged diving areas. The Andaman Sea, which runs down 870 km of coastline from the Burmese border and the famous Burma Banks to the shores of Penang in Malaysia. Then the Gulf of Siam which, from the Cambodian border to the south of Narathiwat, unrolls its 1,800 km of coastline and a few hundred islands and islets, not all inhabited. As these two places have different monsoons (south-west for the Andaman Sea, north-west for the Gulf of Siam), it is generally possible to dive in good conditions all year round! The best season for visibility is from December to March on the Phuket side and between March and May around Koh Samui.

With an average temperature above 26°C and an impressive tropical clarity, Thai waters offer everywhere a very rich marine fauna and flora. A spectacle and a variety of colours that never leave one indifferent. Thailand can also be, for the beginner, a superb learning ground thanks to the quality of the infrastructures, the friendliness of the instructors and the diversity of the diving sites. For introductory to advanced courses (Advanced Diver), the environment is ideal. The schools deliver one or the other of the American diplomas: PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructor) or NAUI (National Association of Underwater Instructors). You are advised to make your choice according to what your future diving destinations will be, even if there is not necessarily a very marked geographical sectorization.

Around Phuket, the most famous beaches are Shark Point, Koh Racha, Koh Phi Phi and Koh Doh Mai. Offshore, the Similan Islands will allow you a visibility of more than 35 m. Koh Surin and Burma Banks, further away, are also known for the spectacle of manta rays, sharks and sometimes even the famous whale shark.

In the Gulf of Siam, Pattaya, due to its proximity to Bangkok is a popular diving base, as well as the starting point for excursions to the Koh Chang National Park. Further south, the Chumphon region also has several renowned sites: Hin Lak Ngam, Koh Ngam Noi, Koh Ngam Yai and Hin Pae. Finally, further offshore and around Koh Samui, you can go for a walk in the Ang Thong National Park in the superb spots of Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Tao.

Jet-ski, flyboard or deep-sea fishing?

If Thailand is therefore a choice spot underwater, there is also a way to have fun on the surface. Those who want to tease the fish usually head for Pattaya and Phuket. If you can afford a "quiet" fishing, just to spend a dream day with friends on a boat, some agencies offer deep-sea fishing sessions. Tuna, swordfish, marlin or sailfish just have to behave themselves. Notice to the amateurs!

But Pattaya and Phuket are also well known for hosting many small water sports agencies, motorized or not. And in these two paradises of idleness and tourism, the range of possibilities is declined on all tones: dinghy, jet-ski (be careful, be careful with swimmers and also think about coral reefs, which this practice often directly affects), parasailing, windsurfing, sea kayaking... Last fashionable activity, the flyboard is also very popular. In short, on the beaches of Thailand, between a massage and a tanning session, no time to get bored!

Inland, too, you can spend your energy

Trekking in the forest and discovering animal parks. Thailand offers a beautiful playground for trekking enthusiasts and does not present any particular difficulties. Nice walks in short, requiring absolutely no exceptional physical condition. Walks in the forest, visits of mountain villages (more or less authentic), river descent on a bamboo raft, elephant rides... Because it will also be the occasion to meet exceptional animals. You can visit a crocodile farm in Bangkok, stroke tigers in Chiang Mai, admire manta rays and leatherback turtles on the Khao Lak side, etc... The possibilities are numerous and often unique. Be careful, always be very careful to select the most serious parks and the most concerned about the respect of the animal.

Golf. With more than 500,000 players, thousands of casual visitors and more than 150 courses, Thai golf is doing well, very well indeed. Like a few other Southeast Asian countries, Thailand has become a quality destination for the practice of golf. Moreover here the prices are affordable. Most of the courses are located close to major tourist areas. If you are travelling with your family, you will easily find a course close to the beaches.