Variations on the game of handball have been played all over the world for thousands of years. Identified as one of the oldest ball games, handball was played in Egypt over four thousand years ago, in antique Rome, as well as by lots of South American cultures.

The ancient Egyptians played a diversity of ball games. Drawings of Egyptians playing handball have been establish decorating five thousand year old tombs at Saqqara, which portray girls in teams of two playing the game. Balls used in Egyptian handballs be calculated to be both light plus durable - they were made of a leather skin stuffed through hay or other plant fibers such as papyrus.