Played on horseback, polo is hardly the talk of 15 to 18-year-olds across the world. In fact, they could be forgiven for never having heard of it.

And yet this week it was added as a showcase sport for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires along with squash. Yes, really.

Although it has a strong heritage in Argentina – the country won the gold medal the last time it featured at the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936 – it is not exactly going to attract hordes of crowds to the capital city come next October.

The decision is also not in line with the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) almost incessant pandering to the youth, demonstrated particularly by the addition of skateboarding to the full programme for Tokyo 2020.

In every speech and seemingly at every possible moment, IOC President Thomas Bach mentions the youth and the need to get more people interested in the Games.

An urban-style venue at the Olympics in the Japanese capital is, on the surface at least, an intriguing idea which may tick all of Bach’s youth-orientated boxes.

Polo being showcased at an event which is designed specifically for the youth does not. After all, the sport garners little widespread media attention and is not (in Britain at least) shown regularly on television, often a key way to engage with the stereotypically couch-ridden young generation.

Media coverage is, of course, not a definitive parameter in a sport’s global appeal. But it certainly helps.

Following the fourth visit of the IOC Coordination Commission to Buenos Aires, Organising Committee head Gerardo Werthein, the IOC member who is currently President of the country’s National Olympic Committee, claimed they were adopting a “modern and innovative” approach.

This is certainly true in some areas of their plans for the Games. Opening up the four Youth Olympic Games Parks to everyone for free will surely spark an increase in attendance figures, while the fact that over 1,000 youth engagement projects have been held so far deserves to be applauded.

But is polo really "modern and innovative", as Werthein suggests?

Aside from the Argentinian connection – the nation remains one of the sport’s most dominant – it is hard to find a compelling case for polo to be part of Buenos Aires 2018. Is its popularity in Argentina enough? On that logic, sumo would have been granted a place at Tokyo 2020.

After all, there is a reason why it has not been a full Olympic sport since 1936. Polo did apply for Tokyo 2020 but failed to make the eight-sport shortlist, before karate, skateboarding, sport climbing, baseball/softball and surfing were given the green light.

Polo also struggles to compete with its water-based big brother, an Olympic sport since 1900 which is a key part of the International Swimming Federation World Championships, for popularity and stature.

The equipment needed is another issue, particularly compared to other sports among the 31 set to feature at Buenos Aires 2018.

Practically every youngster can pick up a football or basketball; the former’s prominence in South America is attributed to the street-based version which was the starting point for some of the game’s legendary figures. It goes without saying that is not true of polo. You need a horse for a start.

At the risk of sounding too critical, as organisers of the event, Argentina feel they have every right to showcase a sport which has thrived in South America for decades. According to British-based publication Polo Times Magazine, it is played in 49 other countries worldwide and is especially popular in the United States and in Britain, “each of which has a thriving polo scene and industry”.

Polo is adaptable, too, as it can be played on snow as well as traditional grass. The worldwide governing body, the Federation of International Polo, is also recognised by the IOC.

Reading between the lines, it seems even the IOC are uncertain, however. In a media release after the Coordination Commission meetings earlier this week, there was only a brief reference to the addition of polo and squash as showcase sports.

None of the officials quoted – Werthein, Coordination Commission chairperson Li Lingwei and Buenos Aires 2018 chief executive Leandro Larrosa – directly mentioned the two sports’ inclusion.

This was in stark contrast to the IOC’s statement after the Executive Board meeting last December, where break dancing, karate and sport climbing were officially added to the Buenos Aires 2018 programme as medal sports.

“The three new sports reflect the IOC’s and Buenos Aires 2018’s shared goal of building youth engagement, and thus represent a mix of emerging, universal and urban sports with a significant youth appeal,” it read.

Yes, the three sports becoming part of the Games programme for the Youth Olympics was the main focus of the statement after the Executive Board meeting, while squash and polo were not at the forefront of the Coordination Commission’s discussions.

But can polo claim to be an “emerging, universal and urban sport with a significant youth appeal”? I’d be surprised if even the sport’s staunchest of advocates would harbour that view.

Squash, on the other hand, makes far greater sense. You need only look at the innovative and stunning way tournaments are held – such as this year’s Tournament of Champions, staged at the iconic Grand Central Terminal in New York City – to see how it fits in with the Buenos Aires 2018 “parks concept”.

Its adaptable location and way in which it can be displayed, both for the public and for television, are big plus points for Buenos Aires 2018, an event that may shape the future of the Youth Olympic Games.

Last year, the IOC established a working group to look into the current state of the youth event and put forward five recommendations to August's Session in Rio de Janeiro.

The Youth Olympics, first held in Singapore in 2010, have long divided opinion within the IOC’s membership-at-large. Some have complained about draining resources – take Nanjing 2014, for example – while others have called for a move towards a more regional event to cut costs.

Another suggestion which has been mooted is the event becoming more festival-based, an element which will be incorporated in Buenos Aires. With the carnival-style South American vibe, it is likely to be quite a party, irrespective of the strange choice of polo as a showcase sport.

Only time will tell if its inclusion is enough to subvert the stereotype and ensure it features more prominently among the young generation. At this juncture, the signs are not exactly positive and it will take a lot more for polo to become engrained with the youth of today.