There isn’t one set of rules when it comes to organized pillow fighting. The World Pillow Fighting Championship has been around for more than 50 years and still takes place to this day in — of all places — northern California wine country; specifically, the town of Kenwood in Sonoma County. It was an idea put together by a pair of community organizations that thought it would be a fun charity fundraiser. Their version of pillow fighting involves placing a long metal pole across a mud-filled creek. Two pillow pugilists balance on the pole while trying to knock their opponent off the pole and into the muddy drink. Today, the event draws people from around the world.

In 2013, across the Pacific Ocean, high school students in Ito, Japan started a new version of pillow fighting. The All-Japan Pillow Fighting Championship is a team sport, where two teams of five belt each other with pillows. However, according to How Stuff Works, there’s more to it. Players in this version of the game start by pretending to be asleep, then upon hearing a whistle they hop to their feet and dash to grab a pillow in the center of the playing era. This starting procedure is somewhat similar to that seen in dodgeball. Also, like dodgeball, in this version of the game, players throw the specially-made pillows at each other instead of swinging them.

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