The match, which took place in August of 2001, featured two teams of Sajama villagers and assorted mountains guides, who climbed every one of the volcano’s 21,463 feet and still had enough energy to play two twenty minutes halves. Though it sounds like a whimsical idea, there was actually a bit more at stake: La Paz, where Bolivia’s international soccer matches are held, has always faced the threat of losing its hosting privileges due to the high altitude and the difficulty of acclimatizing for foreign teams.

When, in 2007, that threat was realized with FIFA’s decision to discontinue international play in Bolivia’s de facto capital, a second, much shorter game was played on Mount Sajama in protest, this time by President Evo Morales and a bunch of dedicated soccer fans. On the subject of the potential difficulties altitude poses for athletes, Morales is said to have responded: “Wherever you can make love, you can play sports.”