Cockfighting is a combat sport between two specially trained roosters held in a ring called a cockpit.

The combatants, known as gamecocks are not typical farm chickens. The roosters are specially bred and trained for increased stamina and strength.

Usually a cockspur, a small ring, is placed around the leg of the gamecock.

In many places, animal fights have been specifically outlawed, based on opposition to gambling, opposition to cruelty to animals, or both. However, Cockfights are still considered legal and part of a nation’s culture in many countries in the world.

Proponents of cockfighting generally insist that though there are some individuals who mistreat their gamecocks and turn the sport into a cruel one, many others do not. They believe cockfighting, and particularly breeding gamecocks, to be noble and exciting.

In the United States cockfighting is illegal in Washington, D.C. and all states but New Mexico and Louisiana. It is legal in the U.S. Territories of Puerto Rico and Guam. Thirty states and the District of Columbia have made cockfighting a felony and, as such, it is also illegal to possess roosters for fighting in these states.

Cockfighting is illegal in Canada.

Cockfighting is most popular in Belgium, France, Spain, Mexico, Guam, and Peru.