source: www.youthwork-practice.com | 2000 Games, Devotions, Themes, Ideas and more for Youth Work
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Matches from one or two boxes of matches are used to make a tower within a certain time on top of a bottle top.

Games With Matches and Matchboxes

Wooden matches are inexpensive, small and fit in every game box. A multitude of games can be played with matches and matchboxes. Together with candles, you’ll have enough ideas to last 2 game afternoons.

Matchbox Football

A string with a small wooden ball attached at one end is attached by the other end to the pants waistband. Swing the ball and hit a matchbox through a course and into the goal.
Passing a Lit Match

A burning match is passed player to player. Each player says: “I have a light, I see a light, I pass it on” as he passes it to the next player. When the match goes out, that player is out.

Match-Candle-Relay

The first player lights a candle with a match and gives it to the next layer. This player blows out the candle and relights it with a match and gives the candle and the matchbox to the next player. The winner is the team that is the fastest.
Wooden Match-Matchbox-Relay

Each group gets a matchbox while in a dark room. The first player lights a match, blows it out and places it back in the matchbox. The next player takes the matchbox, takes a match out of it, lights it, places it back into the matchbox and passes the matchbox to the next player. Which group is the fastest to get through the row once/twice? Because the room is dark and no one can see so well and can’t see if he has taken a burnt match out of the matchbox, makes this an exciting game.
Light A Candle Relay

Players must light as many tea lights as possible within 30 seconds. Only one match is allowed per tee light.
Spare The Match

As many candle are to be lit using only one match. To make the odds even, all candle are new or at least were lit one time. You can not use a burning candle to light the other candles.
Turning Matches

All of the matches in a matchbox are turned around in the box by the first player. The second player must turn the matches around the other way. The winner is the fastest team.
Matchbox On Your Nose

A matchbox is placed on the nose of the first player who passes it to the nose of the second player, and so on without the matchbox falling off.
Matchbox Puff

An empty matchbox is placed at the edge of a table and is blown so far as possible without falling off with one strong breath. The distance is measured. With a group contest, all the distances are added together.

Astronaut Training

Each player must wear a thick mitten and put all the matches back into an empty matchbox.
Chopstick Training

Each player must put all the matches back into the empty matchbox using two of the matches. The Chinese shouldn’t have a problem with this one.
Matchbox Tower

A tower is built using matchboxes. Then another tower is built using the same matchboxes. The towers must be built one matchbox at a time.
Wooden Match Tower

Matches from one or two boxes of matches are used to make a tower within a certain time on top of a bottle top. Who has the highest tower?
Burnt Finger?

How long can you hold a burning match? Time is stopped when the player gets burned, the match goes out or the match is thrown down. By group contests, the times are added together.
Match Trick

2 players take turns drawing 1 to 6 matches out of a pile of 30 matches. The winner is the player who takes the last match. There is a trick so that one can win – hopefully the opponent doesn’t know it too.
The match bottle tower

Each player receives 10 matches. A bottle is placed in the middle of the circle. Each player takes turn to place a match on the bottle. The player who knocks the tower over receives all of the matches. The winner is the first to get rid of all of his matches.