Football is the most popular modern sport, while horse racing remains a national pastime.

More than 20 types of Arabian horses are bred on the islands, and races are held weekly on Bahrain islands large racecourse, which seats some 10,000 spectators.

Traditional sports such as falconry and gazelle and hare hunting are still practiced by wealthier Bahrainis, and camel racing is a popular public entertainment.

The country first competed in the Summer Olympic Games in 1984; it has not participated in the Winter Games.

Bahrain has mild winters and very hot, humid summers with temperatures exceeding 90 °F (32 °C).

The most pleasant time of year in Bahrain is during spring or autumn when sunshine is virtually guaranteed, along with warm temperatures tempered by soft breezes.

Summers can be very hot and humid, though the humidity is modified at the end of the season when a dry northwesterly wind blows, known locally as the 'Al Barah'.

Winter is cooler and influenced by low-pressure systems, which bring rainfall. Average rainfall is low, but most of it falls in winter. On average, rain falls only about 10 days a year.

81.2% being Sunni Muslim and Shi'a Muslim, (Christian 9%, other 9.8%)

Bahrain is sometimes described as the "Middle East lite" a country that mixes modern infrastructure with a Gulf identity, but unlike other countries in the region its prosperity is not solely a reflection of the size of its oil wealth, but also related to the creation of an indigenous middle class.