Limoges muggles gear up for magical sporting event

Harry Potter fans should head to Limoges this weekend - as the city is hosting the finals of France's Quidditch Cup.

The balls-and-broomsticks game - which famously first appeared in the novels by JK Rowling - was transformed into a real life competition in America 10 years ago, and is now played all over the world.

A total 17 teams are lined up to take part in the fourth annual French Cup competition, which will feature 65 games over the weekend. The top four teams will qualify for the 2018 European Quidditch Cup tournament in Florence.

Sadly, flying is not an option, but players do the best they can to recreate the high-speed excitement of the popular wizarding world sport while being firmly stuck at ground level. The muggle game is probably best described as a mix of rugby, handball and dodgeball with broomsticks.

The fourth Quidditch Coupe de France takes place at parc Beaublanc on November 18 and 19. The first matches begin at 9am on Saturday. The winners will be crowned at 4pm on Sunday.