Blitzball, the unique underwater sport featured in Final Fantasy X, was inspired in part by the podracing sequences from Star Wars: Episode I, according to Yoshinori Kitase, the game's director and producer. Kitase, a veteran at Square Enix, shared this detail while discussing how other media has influenced the Final Fantasy franchise.
Played within a large sphere of water, Blitzball combines elements of soccer and rugby. Players engage in physical maneuvers to score by getting the ball into a high-tech backboard. Unlike many minigames in the Final Fantasy series, Blitzball holds significant narrative importance in Final Fantasy X. It serves as the primary vocation for the protagonist, Tidus, and is crucial for unlocking a special late-game item upon achieving a top rank in the league. The sport is also prominently featured in the game's opening FMV cutscene.
Kitase explained to IGN that his work on Final Fantasy X, specifically the creation of Blitzball, drew inspiration from the concept of using sports within a fantasy setting, a technique he saw employed in Star Wars. "I used an idea from Star Wars Episode I where there’s this [pod]race and the fact of using sport inside a fantasy context, I took this idea directly from Star Wars," he stated. George Lucas himself conceived of podracing as an extension of his passion for car racing and hot rod culture.
Interestingly, Blitzball has previously been acknowledged within the Star Wars universe itself. Author Mike Chen referenced the sport in his Star Wars novel Brotherhood. In 2022, Chen confirmed on Twitter that the mention was a deliberate nod to Final Fantasy X, stating his fondness for the minigame as a former NHL writer and the hours he spent winning its leagues. .