Few sociological/historical studies of early modern sport in Mesoamerica exist, either in Spanish or English. Questions remain as to how and when these activities were introduced and disseminated and what role they played in political and social structures of the region. This research highlights the strong relationships that existed between gender/race/social class and sport participation/spectatorship in Mexico and Central America in the late 1800s-early 1900s. Information presented is drawn mainly from period newspapers, magazines, government documents, and other primary sources found in libraries and archives in the region. Modern sport began developing in Mexico and Central America during the late 19th century. Most activities were importations from Europe and the United States. They were concentrated in sport/social clubs for young white men of relatively high social class. In addition to the recently imported activities (soccer, baseball, basketball, cycling, tennis, golf, track and field, etc.), there were traditional sports such as bullfighting, jai alai, horse racing, and charrería. Bullfighting and jai alai were largely professional activities and the athletes, mainly Spaniards. These professional athletes were mostly men but could represent any social class. By the early 20th century there were a few female bullfighters. Charrería also allowed female participation but in events much less demanding and dangerous than men’s events. The first international Olympic-type sport festivals in the region involved only men, most representing exclusive social clubs. The most popular early sports for women were basketball and tennis. Female participants were usually upper class, especially in Central America. Mexican women of a wider class range also participated in basketball. Although most athletes in the early sports were mestizos or creole whites, there was also minor participation by indigenous people and blacks. Several long distance runners in the first Central American Games in Mexico City in 1926 were Tarahumara Indians. There were black baseball clubs, and occasionally black members of dominantly white baseball clubs, in Nicaragua and Panama. Spectators at some sporting events were largely social elites, but more generally, a wide range of social classes and both sexes could be found in the stadiums. Male spectators were always more numerous than women, and in sports such as boxing, few women would be present. Physical education existed almost exclusively in single-sex private schools that catered to the upper classes. Calisthenics and team sports were the main activities. A few schools had sport teams for both boys and girls.Keyword(s): gender issues, multiculturalism/cultural diversity, physical activity