Home › Find a Club › Pétanque in the United States › Louisiana
Pétanque in Louisiana
Two clubs about a hundred miles apart by road in Cajun country, two annual tournaments between them and a national championship at Thibodaux in October. New Orleans itself has none.
Louisiana has two federated pétanque clubs, one in Lafayette and one in Thibodaux, about a hundred miles apart by road. New Orleans has none.
Between them they carry four tournaments in 2026, including a national championship.
Pétanque, once a month
Club spotlights, new court listings, equipment notes and events across the US, Canada and Mexico.
Free. One click to leave.
Two clubs
The two clubs
Both sit in the FPUSA Central Region, and both grew out of south Louisiana’s French heritage rather than out of the federation.
| Club | Where | Founded | Venue | When they play |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Boule Cadienne de Lafayette | Lafayette | 2007 | Three courts, north end of Girard Park | 1st and 3rd Sundays. Times shift with the season, so check before going. President Mike LeBlanc |
| Thibodaux Pétanque Club | Thibodaux | Pre-2020 | Peltier Park | Several times a week, with times that vary through the year. Formerly Swamp Pétanque, run by Guy Diebold and Al Guarisco |
On the Lafayette schedule. La Boule Cadienne publishes both 6pm summer hours and 2pm to 4pm in spring.
The 1st and 3rd Sunday pattern holds all year, but the time does not, so contact the club before driving any distance.
2026
The 2026 calendar
Four tournaments, running February, March and October.
| Date | Event | Where | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 14 to 15 | Boules on the Bayou, Mardi Gras Open | Thibodaux | Club. First held 2024 |
| March 14 | International Acadiana Pétanque Tournament | Girard Park, Lafayette | Club, 8am to 5:30pm |
| October 24 | FPUSA National Men’s Triples | Peltier Park, Thibodaux | National championship |
| October 25 | Fall Open, triples | Peltier Park, Thibodaux | Club, open to everyone |
The National Men’s Triples in October is the significant one. It is a rotating national championship, and 2026 is Thibodaux’s turn.
The full national calendar sits on our events page.
Since 2009
The Acadiana tournament
What it is
La Boule Cadienne runs the International Acadiana Pétanque Tournament at Girard Park in Lafayette each March. The 2026 edition ran on Saturday March 14, 8am to 5:30pm.
It has been running since 2009, with gaps in 2020 and 2022, and local television has covered it.
A claim to drop
It is often described as the South’s longest-running dedicated pétanque event. That is hard to defend, since it started the same year as the Amelia Island Open and has missed years since.
One of the longest-running in the South is accurate and still worth saying.
Seven clubs
The wider Central Region
Louisiana’s two clubs sit in a region stretching from the Colorado Rockies to the Gulf.
| Club | Where | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mile High Pétanque Club | Denver, CO | The Denver club |
| Roaring Fork Pétanque Club | Glenwood Springs, CO | Plays Veltus Park, affiliated around 2025 |
| Dallas Pétanque Club | Farmers Branch, TX | The north Texas club |
| Nelson Ranch Pétanque Club | Cedar Park, TX | The Austin-area FPUSA club, founded 2015 |
| San Antonio Pétanque Club | San Antonio, TX | South Texas |
| La Boule Cadienne de Lafayette | Lafayette, LA | Girard Park |
| Thibodaux Pétanque Club | Thibodaux, LA | Peltier Park |
Austin is worth a note. Nelson Ranch Pétanque Club in Cedar Park is the federation member, while Legation Boules Club in Austin has more than forty members and says plainly that it is not affiliated with any pétanque association.
Heart of Texas Pétanque Club, founded in 2008 and once called the oldest club in Texas, has not posted since 2019 and is off the roster.
Background
Pétanque and Cajun identity
The game is not part of the older Cajun repertoire. It fits here for a different reason.
What the name says
La Boule Cadienne translates as the Cajun ball, combining the French for the boules with Cadien, the heritage adjective for Acadian south Louisiana.
Acadian French heritage here traces to the eighteenth-century migration from Nova Scotia, after the British expulsion of the Acadians.
Why it took
Pétanque arrived as part of a broader French-language revival rather than as an inherited tradition. A club built around Acadian identity was a natural home for it.
The same Acadian thread connects Louisiana to Nova Scotia, where La Boule Acadienne is the only federated club in Atlantic Canada.
Common questions
Questions about pétanque in Louisiana
Where can I play pétanque in Lafayette?
La Boule Cadienne de Lafayette plays on three courts at the north end of Girard Park, on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month.
Start times move with the season. The club has published both 6pm summer hours and 2pm to 4pm in spring, so check before you go.
Where can I play near New Orleans?
Thibodaux Pétanque Club at Peltier Park in Lafourche Parish, playing several times a week. Times vary through the year, so check the club calendar. It is the closest club to the city.
New Orleans itself has no FPUSA club. The federation’s Central Region roster lists exactly two Louisiana clubs, and neither is in the city.
What is the International Acadiana Pétanque Tournament?
An annual tournament run by La Boule Cadienne at Girard Park in Lafayette, held in March. The 2026 edition ran on Saturday March 14 from 8am to 5:30pm.
It has been running since 2009, with gaps in 2020 and 2022. KATC covered the 2019 edition.
Is it the South's oldest pétanque tournament?
That claim does not hold up. It began in 2009, the same year as the Amelia Island Open in Florida, and it has missed at least two years since.
Long-running, yes. Oldest in the South, not demonstrably.
What is Boules on the Bayou?
Thibodaux’s Mardi Gras tournament, held in February. The 2026 edition ran February 14 and 15.
It is newer than it sounds. The first one was held in February 2024 with twenty teams.
What does La Boule Cadienne mean?
The Cajun ball. It combines the French word for the boules with Cadien, the adjective for Acadian and Cajun heritage in south Louisiana.
Acadian French heritage here traces to the eighteenth-century migration from Nova Scotia after the British expulsion of the Acadians.
Is pétanque a traditional Cajun activity?
No. It is not part of the older Cajun repertoire the way the music, the dances and the cooking are.
What it does have here is a natural fit with the French-language revival, which is why a club built around Acadian identity took to it.
What tournaments run in Louisiana in 2026?
Four. Boules on the Bayou in Thibodaux in February, the Acadiana tournament in Lafayette in March, the FPUSA National Men’s Triples at Peltier Park in Thibodaux on October 24 and the club’s Fall Open there on October 25.
Hosting a national championship is a significant step for a club of this size.
Which FPUSA region is Louisiana in?
The Central Region, which runs from Colorado through Texas to Louisiana and holds seven clubs.
The Austin-area member is Nelson Ranch Pétanque Club in Cedar Park. Legation Boules Club in Austin is a separate and larger group that states plainly that it is not affiliated with any pétanque association.
Elsewhere in the US
Other American regions
Twelve regional pages cover the United States.
Playing in Louisiana and not listed?
New Orleans in particular has no club on any roster. Send the details.
Pétanque, once a month
Club spotlights, new court listings, equipment notes and events across the US, Canada and Mexico.
Free. One click to leave.
Overview
- Federated clubs: two
- Lafayette: three courts, Girard Park
- Thibodaux: Peltier Park, several days a week
- New Orleans: no club
- Acadiana tournament: March, since 2009
- Boules on the Bayou: February, since 2024
- National championship: Thibodaux, October 2026
- FPUSA region: Central, seven clubs
Boule selector
Five questions on hand size, throwing style and budget return the specification that suits you.
Free Starter Kit
The rules, a boule sizing chart, court dimensions and the glossary in one printable PDF.