12 team games day activities that work, with materials and duration

Search for a team games day (zeskamp) or a 6 kamp and you mostly get lists of game names. What isn't included is what you need for them, how long an activity takes and how to stop the three fittest colleagues winning all afternoon. Below are twelve activities we run ourselves, with for each the equipment, the time, the group size and the rule that keeps it fair. How to divide the teams, plan the rotation and add up the points is covered in the article on organising a team games day, so we'll leave that out here.

What makes an activity suitable

Before the list starts, here are four requirements we test every activity against. They look small, but they decide whether an activity holds up on a field with fifty people.

• Explainable in one minute: if a host needs two minutes for the rules, some people won't hear them and there'll be arguments about the score later.
• The whole team is busy: either everyone takes part at the same time, or the waiting half has a role such as coaching, counting or signalling. Eleven people watching one person is an activity that doesn't work.
• Done within twenty minutes: including the explanation, two attempts and writing down the score. Otherwise the rotation gets stuck on this one activity.
• Winnable without fitness: at least half of your activities should be winnable by playing smart. Otherwise the final ranking is already settled after the third block.

The twelve below are grouped by what they demand: strength, agility, precision and teamwork. Pick six to eight and take at least one from each group.

Activities that demand strength

1. Tug of war in a round-robin format

The best-known activity and still the one that gets the loudest shouting. The difference between a good and a bad tug of war lies in the set-up: one match per team is over within a minute, while a round-robin in which every team pulls three times fills an entire block.

• What you need: a rope of twenty-five to thirty metres with a ribbon in the middle, two lines on the ground two metres apart, a flat grass surface. Work gloves for anyone who wants them.
• Duration: twenty minutes for a round-robin of four teams, with matches of two minutes at most.
• Group size: six to ten people per side, from four teams.
• Keeping it fair: an equal number of pullers per side and a line-up rule instead of a weight handicap. We require at least four of the eight pullers to change between matches. That way you can't leave your heaviest four standing for the whole round-robin.

A match that lasts longer than two minutes leads to injuries and arguments about who stepped over the line. Blow the whistle and give both teams half the score. On the tug of war page you'll find how we run this as a stand-alone activity.

2. Log toss or weight throw

The Scottish caber toss, which goes down surprisingly well on a team games day because nobody has ever done it before. Technique counts for more than muscle here, and you can see it in the results.

• What you need: a light log of about two metres or a weight of fifteen to twenty-five kilos with a handle, a soft surface, barrier tape around the throwing zone, a tape measure and someone to mark the distance.
• Duration: fifteen to twenty minutes, one throw per participant.
• Group size: six to twelve per team. With more than twelve it turns into waiting.
• Keeping it fair: the team score is the average distance of all throws, not the best throw. That way one strong thrower isn't enough and the rest of the team matters. Put out two weights and apply a conversion factor to throws with the lighter one, so everyone picks what they dare to throw.

Always set this activity up at the edge of the site with the throwing direction away from everyone else, and let the host be the only person who signals when throwing can take place. You'll find more in this style at highland games.

3. Obstacle course relay

The inflatable course does the same thing in every group: as soon as the first person has been over it, everyone wants a go. As a relay it works better than as free play, because there's a time attached.

• What you need: an obstacle course with a blower, a 230 volt power point on its own circuit, a flat area of about fifteen by five metres, ground sheet and a stopwatch. Shoes off, so somewhere for them to stay dry.
• Duration: twenty minutes per team, with everyone doing one round.
• Group size: eight to twelve per team.
• Keeping it fair: divide the total time by the number of participants, so a large team isn't at a disadvantage. Anyone who doesn't want to or can't go on the course walks around it and gets a fixed time just above the average. That way taking part stays the most attractive option without anyone being forced to.

A course needs an hour to set up, including inflating and securing it. Allow that time outside the programme, because a half-inflated course isn't safe. What we have in stock is on the obstacle course page.

Activities that demand agility

4. Giant skis

Four people on two long planks who only move forward if they step at the same time. The activity that gets the most laughs, because it looks simple and doesn't work for the first twenty metres.

• What you need: two planks of about two and a half metres with four pairs of straps or loops, a flat stretch of grass or asphalt, a course of twenty metres with a turning point, cones.
• Duration: fifteen minutes, two attempts per team.
• Group size: four walkers at a time, so a team of eight to twelve swaps halfway.
• Keeping it fair: require two different foursomes per team and let the second attempt count. Everyone falls apart on the first attempt, and the team that learns to coordinate fastest wins. Differences in height are more likely to hurt you than help you here, so the sporty core of the team has no head start.

5. Ladder carrying

Two or four people carry a team member on a ladder or stretcher through a course. Simple, physical but not heavy, and it forces people to look out for each other.

• What you need: a sturdy wooden ladder or a stretcher, a blanket on top, cones for a course of about thirty metres with two bends, a stopwatch.
• Duration: fifteen minutes.
• Group size: six to ten per team.
• Keeping it fair: compulsory change of carriers halfway round the course, and the person being carried can't be the same one twice. Score on time plus penalty seconds for a cone or a foot on the ground, not on disqualification. Because the weight of the person being carried counts, it pays to rotate rather than choose the lightest person.

6. Carrying water in a leaky cup

A classic that works at every age, because speed matters far less than keeping the holes covered. Within five minutes everyone can see who has understood it.

• What you need: two buckets per team, cups with three pricked holes, fifteen metres distance, a measuring jug, somewhere the water can run away and a water tap nearby.
• Duration: ten to fifteen minutes per team.
• Group size: six to fourteen, all in the line at once.
• Keeping it fair: make it a conveyor belt rather than a relay. Everyone stands in a fixed spot and passes the cup on, so nobody runs more than three metres. The score is what's in the bucket after five minutes. This is the activity where a group with children or older participants can beat a sporty group.

Never schedule wet activities as the first block. People who get wet at ten o'clock won't feel like it at two. Put them at the back of the rotation, with dry clothes in the car.

Activities that demand precision

7. Target archery

The calmest activity of the day and often the most popular. Nobody has any experience, so the differences are small and the result feels fair.

• What you need: two bows with a light draw weight, six arrows, a target with a catch net or straw bale, at least ten metres of clear space behind the target and barriers on the sides. One host who does nothing but this activity.
• Duration: twenty minutes, three arrows per participant.
• Group size: six to twelve per team.
• Keeping it fair: everyone shoots the same number of arrows and the team score is the sum of all rings. One distance for the whole group, usually eight metres, and no separate categories. Strength barely plays a role with a light bow, so there's nothing to correct here.

This is the only activity where you can't have the host double up with something else. Even a bow with a light draw weight is not a toy.

8. Klootschieten (traditional Dutch road bowling)

A game from this region that goes down well on a team games day because it's off the beaten track and because tactics count as much as a hard throw. For groups visiting Twente, it's usually the activity people talk about afterwards.

• What you need: four klootschieten balls or soft balls, a marked route of three to four hundred metres along a path and across a stretch of field, a score sheet, and permission from the landowner.
• Duration: twenty to twenty-five minutes, so this is the longest of the twelve activities.
• Group size: six to twelve per team.
• Keeping it fair: a fixed order of turns, everyone throws in turn. The score is the number of throws to the end of the route, so one long throw changes little if the rest throw the ball into the ditch. The team that talks about direction beats the team that only throws hard.

9. Precision throwing at scoring zones

The activity you set up when you have little space and still want something where skilful guessing doesn't help. Sandbags thrown at zones of different values, where the furthest zone gives the most points.

• What you need: eight to twelve sandbags or rings, three targets or zones with the values one, three and five, tape or chalk for the throwing line, a score sheet.
• Duration: ten to fifteen minutes.
• Group size: works from six to sixteen without adjustment.
• Keeping it fair: the team chooses who throws from which distance, and sitting down is allowed too. That turns it into a question of allocation rather than a test of strength: do you put your two best throwers on the furthest zone or play it safe. That discussion is half the activity.

Activities that demand teamwork

10. Blindfold course

One team member blindfolded through a course, the rest may only talk and not touch. The activity with the most shouting over each other, and where a team that picks one spokesperson visibly does better.

• What you need: two blindfolds, cones and soft obstacles, tape to mark off the area, a space of fifteen by fifteen metres, a stopwatch.
• Duration: fifteen minutes for two rounds.
• Group size: six to twelve, one walker and the rest instructors.
• Keeping it fair: two different walkers are compulsory and the times are added up. Fitness does nothing here, because nobody runs blindfolded. What does help is staying calm, and that's distributed differently at every age.

11. Tower building against the clock

The tallest freestanding tower of crates or blocks within a set time. Looks calm and always gets out of hand in the last thirty seconds.

• What you need: thirty crates or sturdy blocks, a flat surface, a measuring stick, a timer, and a maximum height you agree beforehand.
• Duration: ten to twelve minutes, two rounds of four minutes.
• Group size: six to twelve, more than six pairs of hands on the same tower works against you.
• Keeping it fair: agree a maximum height everyone can reach standing, usually two metres, then score on time plus the requirement that the tower stays up for ten seconds without anyone holding it. Without that height limit it becomes an activity for tall people with a crate to stand on, and that's exactly what you don't want.

12. Puzzle relay with a final task

Each team member fetches part of the information, and the final task can only be solved with all the parts. The activity you use to close the afternoon, because the team has to bring everything together one last time.

• What you need: five or six envelopes with tasks, a box with a combination lock or a card with a code word, pens and paper, a table or blanket to work on.
• Duration: twenty minutes.
• Group size: six to sixteen, and with more than twelve you split the team into two half-teams who get the same puzzle.
• Keeping it fair: keep the running part short, twenty metres per envelope at most, so speed gains little. The points are in the solving. This is the activity that lets a team that won nothing physically still finish in the top three.

How to keep the activities fair against each other

There's already a rule for each activity above. On top of that, there are four measures across the whole team games day that make the most difference in practice, and that cost nothing.

• Sum instead of best performance: for each activity, use the total or the average of all participants. As soon as you let the best attempt count, the rest of the team becomes an audience.
• Compulsory rotation: set per activity that the same people can't step up every time. Four of the twelve activities above have this built in, and that's no coincidence.
• At most two strength activities: of the six you choose, two may be about strength or fitness. The other four are about technique, precision or discussion.
• Roles for those not taking part: give everyone who skips an activity a role that affects the points, such as counting, signalling the time or coaching. A role works better than persuading, and often someone joins in at the next activity after all.

What doesn't work is handicaps per person. An extra second for someone older or a shorter distance for someone less sporty feels worse for that person than losing. Adjust the rule, not the participant.

Three sets of six that work well in practice

From the twelve above you can make hundreds of combinations. These three are the ones we run most often, because they're already balanced for a certain type of group.

• Mixed staff group, big age range: water carrying, precision throwing, blindfold course, tower building, giant skis and tug of war. One strength activity, and it's at the back. This is the set we use most often for company outings in Twente .
• Sporty group who want to feel something: obstacle course relay, log toss, tug of war, ladder carrying, giant skis and archery. Four physical activities, with archery as a breather in the middle of the rotation.
• Family day with children and grandparents: water carrying, precision throwing, archery, blindfold course, puzzle relay and tower building. No strength, and every activity can be done by an eight-year-old and a seventy-year-old grandad side by side. That's how we approach family days .

In all three sets, don't put the longest activity, usually klootschieten or the puzzle relay, in the rotation. Run it as a separate block before or after the break. An activity that lasts twenty-five minutes between activities of fifteen minutes throws the whole schedule off.

Activities that disappoint more often than you'd think

Not every activity that looks fun on paper keeps a group busy. Four patterns we see again and again.

Activities where one person is up while eleven others watch. On paper that's exciting, in practice half of them reach for their phone after two minutes. If you still want an activity like that, give the waiting team a task that counts towards the score.

Activities with a long explanation. Anything that needs more than four rules should go on an A4 sheet at the activity and still be demonstrated. Otherwise one half hears something different from the other and you get an argument at the end.

Activities that run purely on strength, back to back. Two heavy activities in a row drain the energy from the group, even among fit people. Always put something calm in between.

Activities that call for a skill part of the group already has. An activity in which the club's footballers win by definition isn't an activity but a result known in advance.

What we build ourselves and what it costs

We're based in Enschede at Piet Heinstraat 12 and bring the equipment to the client's venue, anywhere in the Netherlands. We devise and build the activities ourselves, so an activity can also be tailored to your company or brand. Groups of roughly six to sixty people fit the standard set-up; above that we'll discuss the number of hosts with you.

A compact concept starts at €195. A more extensive bespoke team games day, with six to eight activities, equipment, scoring and hosting, starts at €550. Large projects we price on request. Set-up takes about an hour and falls outside the programme duration, so the time you agree is also the time you play.

What mainly determines the price is the number of activities that have to run at the same time, not the number of participants. Every extra activity needs equipment and someone to run it. If you want to know what your set of six costs, request a proposal or ask your question via the contact form. We'll reply within one working day.

What you get from this

Choose six activities from the twelve above, take at least one from each category, and keep strength to two at most. Write down for each activity what you need and who's stationed there, and put the wet activities at the back. Allow fifteen to twenty minutes per activity and set one rule per activity that prevents the same three people doing everything.

Further reading: set-up, teams and scoring are covered in organising a team games day. If you're looking for formats that need less space, take a look at group games for a large group. What we offer as fixed programmes you'll find on the team games day page, under team outings in Twente and in the overview of all activities.