In recent decades, Physical Education (PE) has undergone modifications in its curricular components with the aim of evolving towards a more contemporary model capable of responding to the educational demands of the twenty-first century (1). Teachers must therefore continually adapt in order to meet the increasing demands of this new era, exploring innovative approaches with the purpose of enhancing students' motivation (2, 3). In this regard, one of the most powerful tools available to teachers for achieving pedagogical objectives is educational sport (4, 5).

Along these same lines, Jaquete & Ramírez (6) suggest that educational sport should focus on the transmission of values and equitable participation by all students, regardless of their motor competence, distancing itself from competitive or high-performance sport models (7). This position is supported by a substantial body of literature demonstrating that traditional sports often fail to motivate students due to their promotion of excessive competitiveness (8, 9).

Therefore, the Sport Education Model emerges as an ideal strategy in the context of teaching racket sports and sports initiation, as it allows students to be organized into stable teams, assume diverse roles, structure practice into seasons, and promote authentic participation and contextualized learning (10–14). In this line, the aim of this paper is to provide the educational community with a pedagogical intervention proposal based on a new alternative racket sport. This initiative seeks to introduce this sport into educational settings in a novel and transformative manner, using play as a fundamental educational resource to enhance students' learning and motivation.

In response to these pedagogical demands, so-called Alternative Sports (AS) have emerged with the aim of promoting maximum participation (15), encouraging healthy lifestyle habits (16–20), and being more attractive, novel and motivating for students (5, 21). Furthermore, they seek to promote values and gender equality (22) and to facilitate inclusive participation through flexible rules that make sporting practice more accessible to all learners (23).

Accordingly, an innovative proposal is presented based on the Sport Education Model (SEM) (24, 25), to be implemented in Physical Education lessons. This model aims to replicate the structure of sport (pre-season, season and culminating event) within the school context and to bring students closer to the sporting domain, enhancing values and social responsibility (26), developing sport-specific skills and roles (27), and generating more meaningful learning environments in educational settings (28).

Moreover, racket sports are presented within Physical Education as a pedagogical approach of considerable educational value (29, 30), contributing to the improvement of students' motor skills and decision-making processes, as well as their affective and social skills (31, 52).

Cornerball is defined as a hybrid playful-sporting activity that combines wall sports and net or divided-court games. It is played in mixed pairs on a 90-degree corner court divided by a net, and participation alternates with each stroke, promoting equitable involvement among all players (32). This conceptualisation aligns with the Spanish educational framework, as Royal Decree 217/2022 (51) supports the curricular inclusion of alternative and non-traditional sport practices in Physical Education.

The introduction of Cornerball in the educational context could potentially promote meaningful learning related to sports practice. As a hybrid sport combining elements of wall-based and divided-court sports, it would present a distinctive internal logic that might shape spatial relations, interaction with the playing object, and motor communication. Its game dynamics could foster decision-making, coordination, role assumption, and the management of uncertainty, thereby supporting the development of technical and tactical skills potentially transferable to other sociomotor sports.

When integrated within the Sport Education Model, it could allow for stable teams, diverse roles, and season-based practice, encouraging authentic participation and contextualized learning. This combination might enhance motor, social, and cognitive competencies, promote autonomy, and deepen game understanding. Supplementary Table S4 would illustrate how different parts of the session could be assessed using various assessment instruments and procedures. This evaluative approach would allow for the analysis of both learning outcomes and learning processes, reinforcing the educational, inclusive, and motivational nature of the proposal, and ensuring coherence with the pedagogical principles of Physical Education oriented toward the promotion of active and healthy lifestyles.

This study aimed to provide the educational community with a pedagogical proposal based on a novel racket-based alternative sport, Cornerball, implemented through the Sport Education Model (SEM). SEM has been widely applied in school Physical Education and has demonstrated its effectiveness in promoting meaningful learning, motivation, and social development (18, 40, 53).

In response to contemporary educational demands, Alternative Sports (AS) have emerged as effective pedagogical strategies to foster student engagement, inclusivity, and equitable participation, addressing the limitations of highly competitive traditional sports (21, 22, 41, 42). Previous research indicates that SEM-based and AS interventions are associated with higher levels of enjoyment, motivation, prosocial behaviour, autonomy, and gender equity awareness among adolescents (38, 39, 43–46).

Similarly, racket sports have been shown to support motor, affective, and social development, while contributing to students' well-being through engaging and dynamic learning environments (30, 47–49, 54). Nevertheless, their implementation in school settings is often limited by contextual constraints such as insufficient facilities or teacher training (50).

Within this framework, the integration of Cornerball and SEM offers an innovative pedagogical approach that combines technical-tactical learning with social development and student motivation. Unlike other alternative sports commonly implemented in Physical Education, Cornerball is characterised by a distinctive internal logic that integrates wall-based and divided-court dynamics within a single playing space, generating unique spatial constraints that demand continuous perceptual, tactical, and decision-making adaptation.

A defining characteristic of Cornerball is the compulsory alternation of strokes between partners, which structurally limits individual dominance and promotes equitable participation, regardless of students' level of motor competence. Furthermore, the use of a 90-degree corner introduces unconventional perceptual and cooperative demands, fostering the development of spatial awareness, anticipatory skills, and coordinated action in ways that are rarely addressed in traditional or alternative net and invasion sports.

In addition, this sport promotes a distinct form of spatio-temporal development, arising from the possibility of the ball rebounding off two different walls, which significantly conditions the dynamics of play. The angle of rebound, the angle of striking, and the force applied determine the ball's trajectory, directly influencing variables such as speed, height, or deceleration, and thereby requiring continuous perceptual–motor adaptation from the participants.

This paper presents Cornerball, implemented through the Sport Education Model (SEM), as an innovative pedagogical alternative for school Physical Education. The proposal is theoretically grounded in contemporary educational approaches and is designed to foster student motivation, active participation, motor skill development, social interaction, autonomy, and critical reflection.

One limitation of the proposal is the specific spatial requirement, as the game requires a 90° corner for its implementation. Furthermore, although empirical evidence on its direct educational impact is not yet available, the framework offered in this study provides a basis for future research examining its effects across different educational contexts and age groups.

From a practical perspective, Cornerball constitutes a feasible and pedagogically coherent option for Physical Education teachers, as it can be integrated into existing curricula without the need for extensive material resources or prior student experience. Its adaptable rules and alignment with the Sport Education Model support inclusive teaching practices, enhance student engagement, and offer a practical tool for addressing motivational and social objectives in secondary education.