Like most Africans, Kenyans are soccer mad. Kids improvise balls out of plastic bags tied up with string. Any piece of dirt can serve as a pitch.

A new video shot at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust elephant orphanage, in Tsavo National Park, shows that World Cup fever is not confined to two-legged creatures.

As elephant caretakers in Wellington boots practice keepie-uppie, the baby elephants move the ball about with their trunks, pass it with their front feet, and tackle each other. One even performs a step-over, dribbling the ball between its legs, a la Cristiano Ronaldo.

So what does this tell us about elephant behavior? Is this intentional play? Or just the random booting of a passing ball?

"Elephants naturally