No, this is not a joke. In the 18th century, in Germany and some other European countries, this strange sport was really popular, which will seem barbaric to a modern viewer. 
It was called "Fox Throwing". Its detailed description is available in a German hunting book dating back to 1720. Its participants were nobles and other aristocrats. 
"Fox Throwing"
Rules of the game
The players went out into a wide fenced area and became pairs. As a rule, they were a man and a woman. They stood at a distance of 7-8 meters from each other and picked up pieces of fabric that looked like a dense badminton net. 
As soon as all the participants in the game were ready, foxes and other wild animals, such as badgers, were released onto the site. They all began to run around the site (special people also urged them on), and men and women, waiting for the helpless animals to step on the fabric, threw them into the air with joyful exclamations.
The winner was the pair of participants who threw the fox the highest (this was determined by special judges). Today such a game looks extremely cruel, but for that time it was a common form of leisure. 
The saddest thing is the fate of the foxes, because the game ended when all the animals were either dead or unable to move (eventually they were killed anyway).
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