| Football is the name given to a number of | | | | teams, who would clash in a heaving mass of |
| different, but related, team sports. The most | | | | people struggling to drag an inflated pig's |
| popular of these world-wide is association | | | | bladder by any means possible to markers at |
| football (also known as soccer). The English | | | | each end of a town (sometimes instead of |
| word "football" is also applied to American | | | | markers, the teams would attempt to kick the |
| football, Australian rules football, Canadian | | | | bladder into the balcony of the opponents' |
| football, Gaelic football, rugby football | | | | church). There is no evidence to support the |
| (rugby union and rugby league), and related | | | | legend that these games in England evolved |
| games. Each of these codes (specific sets of | | | | from a more ancient and bloody ritual of |
| rules) is to a greater or lesser extent | | | | kicking the "Dane's head". Shrovetide games |
| referred to as "football" and sometimes | | | | have survived into the modern era in a number |
| "footy" by its followers. | | | | of English towns (see below). |
| | | | |
| These games involve:a large spherical or | | | | The first detailed description of football in |
| prolate spheroid ball, which is itself called | | | | England was given by William FitzStephen in |
| a football.a team scoring goals and/or | | | | about 1174-1183. He described the activities |
| points, by moving the ball to an opposing | | | | of London youths during the annual festival |
| team's end of the field and either into a | | | | of Shrove Tuesday: |
| goal area, or over a line.the goal and/or | | | | |
| line being defended by the opposing | | | | After lunch all the youth of the city go out |
| team.players being required to move the ball | | | | into the fields to take part in a ball game. |
| mostly by kicking and - in some codes - | | | | The students of each school have their own |
| carrying and/or passing the ball by | | | | ball; the workers from each city craft are |
| hand.goals and/or points resulting from | | | | also carrying their balls. Older citizens, |
| players putting the ball between two | | | | fathers, and wealthy citizens come on |
| goalposts.offside rules, in most codes, | | | | horseback to watch their juniors competing, |
| restricting the movement of players.in some | | | | and to relive their own youth vicariously: |
| codes, points are mostly scored by players | | | | you can see their inner passions aroused as |
| carrying the ball across the goal line.in | | | | they watch the action and get caught up in |
| most codes players scoring a goal must put | | | | the fun being had by the carefree |
| the ball either under or over a crossbar | | | | adolescents.[3] |
| between the goalposts.players in some codes | | | | |
| receiving a free kick after they take a mark | | | | Most of the very early references to the game |
| make a fair catch. | | | | speak simply of "ball play" or "playing at |
| | | | ball". This reinforces the idea that the |
| Many of the modern games have their origins | | | | games played at the time did not necessarily |
| in England, but many peoples around the world | | | | involve a ball being kicked. |
| have played games which involved kicking and | | | | |
| or carrying a ball since ancient timesWhile | | | | In 1314 , Nicholas de Farndone, Lord Mayor of |
| it is widely believed that the word | | | | London issued a decree banning football (in |
| "football" (or "foot ball") originated in | | | | the French used by the English upper classes |
| reference to the action of a foot kicking a | | | | at the time. A translation reads: |
| ball, there is a rival explanation, which has | | | | "[f]orasmuch as there is great noise in the |
| it that football originally referred to a | | | | city caused by hustling over large foot balls |
| variety of games in medieval Europe, which | | | | [rageries de grosses pelotes de pee] in the |
| were played on foot.[1] These games were | | | | fields of the public from which many evils |
| usually played by peasants, as opposed to the | | | | might arise which God forbid: we command and |
| horse-riding sports often played by | | | | forbid on behalf of the king, on pain of |
| aristocrats. While there is no conclusive | | | | imprisonment, such game to be used in the |
| evidence for this explanation, the word | | | | city in the future." This is the earliest |
| football has always implied a variety of | | | | reference to football. |
| games played on foot, not just those that | | | | |
| involved kicking a ball. In some cases, the | | | | The earliest mention of a ball game that |
| word football has even been applied to games | | | | involves kicking was in 1321, in Shouldham, |
| which have specifically outlawed kicking the | | | | Norfolk: "[d]uring the game at ball as he |
| ball | | | | kicked the ball, a lay friend of his... ran |
| | | | against him and wounded himself".[4]. |
| Throughout the history of mankind, the urge | | | | |
| to kick at stones and other such objects is | | | | In 1363, King Edward III of England issued a |
| thought to have led to many early activities | | | | proclamation banning "...handball, football, |
| involving kicking and/or running with a ball. | | | | or hockey; coursing and cock-fighting, or |
| Football-like games predate recorded history | | | | other such idle games", showing that |
| in all parts of the world, and thus the | | | | "football" - whatever its exact form in this |
| earliest forms of football are not | | | | case - was being differentiated from games |
| knownDocumented evidence of what is possibly | | | | involving other parts of the body, such as |
| the oldest activity resembling football can | | | | handball. |
| be found in a Chinese military manual written | | | | |
| during the Warring States Period in about the | | | | King Henry IV of England gives the earliest |
| 476 BC-221 BC. It describes a practice known | | | | documented use of the English word |
| as cuju, which involved kicking a leather | | | | "football", in 1409, when he issued a |
| ball through a hole in a piece of silk cloth | | | | proclamation forbidding the levying of money |
| strung between two 30 foot poles. | | | | for "foteball".[5] |
| | | | |
| Kemari being played at the Tanzan Shrine, | | | | There is also an account in Latin from the |
| Sakurai, Japan.Another Asian ball-kicking | | | | end of the 15th century of football being |
| game, which was influenced by cuju, is | | | | played at Cawston, Nottinghamshire. This is |
| kemari. This is known to have been played | | | | the first description of a "kicking game" and |
| within the Japanese imperial court in Kyoto | | | | the first description of dribbling: "[t]he |
| from about 600 AD. In kemari several people | | | | game at which they had met for common |
| stand in a circle and kick a ball to each | | | | recreation is called by some the foot-ball |
| other, trying not to let the ball drop to the | | | | game. It is one in which young men, in |
| ground (much like keepie uppie). The game | | | | country sport, propel a huge ball not by |
| appears to have died out sometime before the | | | | throwing it into the air but by striking it |
| mid-19th century. (It was revived in 1903, | | | | and rolling it along the ground, and that not |
| and it can now be seen played for the benefit | | | | with their hands but with their feet... |
| of tourists at a number of festivals.) | | | | kicking in opposite directions" The |
| | | | chronicler gives the earliest reference to a |
| Mesoamerican ballgames played with rubber | | | | football field, stating that: "[t]he |
| balls are also well-documented as existing | | | | boundaries have been marked and the game had |
| since before this time, but these had more | | | | started.[6] |
| similarities to basketball or volleyball, and | | | | |
| since their influence on modern football | | | | Other firsts in the mediæval and early |
| games is minimal, most do not class them as | | | | modern eras: |
| football. | | | | |
| | | | "a football", in the sense of a ball rather |
| The Ancient Greeks and Romans are known to | | | | than a game, was first mentioned in 1486.[7] |
| have played many ball games some of which | | | | This reference is in Dame Juliana Berners' |
| involved the use of the feet. The Roman | | | | Book of St Albans. It states: "a certain |
| writer Cicero describes the case of a man who | | | | rounde instrument to play with ...it is an |
| was killed whilst having a shave when a ball | | | | instrument for the foote and then it is calde |
| was kicked into a barber's shop. The Roman | | | | in Latyn 'pila pedalis', a fotebal." [8]a |
| game harpastum is believed to have been | | | | pair of football boots was ordered by King |
| adapted from a team game known as | | | | Henry VIII of England in 1526. [9]women |
| "επισκÏ...Ïος" | | | | playing a form of football was in 1580, when |
| (episkyros) or pheninda that is mentioned by | | | | Sir Philip Sidney described it in one of his |
| Greek playwright, Antiphanes (388-311BC) and | | | | poems: "[a] tyme there is for all, my mother |
| later referred to by Clement of Alexandria. | | | | often sayes, When she, with skirts tuckt very |
| These games appears to have resembled rugby. | | | | hy, with girles at football playes."[10]the |
| | | | first references to goals are in the late |
| There are a number of references to | | | | 16th and early 17th centuries. In 1584 and |
| traditional, ancient, and/or prehistoric ball | | | | 1602 respectively, John Norden and Richard |
| games, played by indigenous peoples in many | | | | Carew referred to "goals" in Cornish hurling. |
| different parts of the world. For example, in | | | | Carew described how goals were made: "they |
| 1586, men from a ship commanded by an English | | | | pitch two bushes in the ground, some eight or |
| explorer named John Davis, went ashore to | | | | ten foote asunder; and directly against them, |
| play a form of football with Inuit (Eskimo) | | | | ten or twelue [twelve] score off, other |
| people in Greenland.[2] There are later | | | | twayne in like distance, which they terme |
| accounts of an Inuit game played on ice, | | | | their Goales".[11] He is also the first to |
| called Aqsaqtuk. Each match began with two | | | | describe goalkeepers and passing of the ball |
| teams facing each other in parallel lines, | | | | between players.the first direct reference to |
| before attempting to kick the ball through | | | | scoring a goal is in John Day's play The |
| each other team's line and then at a goal. In | | | | Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green (performed |
| 1610, William Strachey of the Jamestown | | | | circa 1600; published 1659): "I'll play a |
| settlement, Virginia recorded a game played | | | | gole at camp-ball" (an extremely violent |
| by Native Americans, called Pahsaheman. In | | | | variety of football, which was popular in |
| Victoria, Australia, indigenous people played | | | | East Anglia). Similarly in a poem in 1613, |
| a game called Marn Grook ("ball game"). An | | | | Michael Drayton refers to "when the Ball to |
| 1878 book by Robert Brough-Smyth, The | | | | throw, And drive it to the Gole, in squadrons |
| Aborigines of Victoria, quotes a man called | | | | forth they goe". The word "football", when |
| Richard Thomas as saying, in about 1841, that | | | | used in reference to a specific game can mean |
| he had witnessed Aboriginal people playing | | | | any one of those described above. Because of |
| the game: "Mr Thomas describes how the | | | | this, much friendly controversy has occurred |
| foremost player will drop kick a ball made | | | | over the term football, primarily because it |
| from the skin of a possum and how other | | | | is used in different ways in different parts |
| players leap into the air in order to catch | | | | of the English-speaking world. Most often, |
| it." It is widely believed that Marn Grook | | | | the word "football" is used to refer to the |
| had an influence on the development of | | | | code of football that is considered dominant |
| Australian rules football (see below). | | | | within a particular region. |
| | | | |
| These games and others may well go far back | | | | Globally, and not necessarily in native |
| into antiquity and may have influenced later | | | | English speaking countries, the word |
| football games. However, the main sources of | | | | "football" usually refers to association |
| modern football codes appear to lie in | | | | football as this is the most widely played |
| western Europe, especially England. | | | | code of football. The name "soccer" (or |
| | | | "soccer football") was originally a slang |
| The Middle Ages saw a huge rise in popularity | | | | abbreviation of association football and is |
| of annual Shrovetide football matches | | | | now the prevailing term in the United States, |
| throughout Europe, particularly in England. | | | | Canada, Australia and New Zealand where other |
| The game played in England at this time may | | | | codes of football are dominant. |
| have arrived with the Roman occupation, but | | | | |
| there is little evidence to indicate this. | | | | Of the 45 national FIFA affiliates in which |
| Reports of a game played in Brittany, | | | | English is an official or primary language, |
| Normandy, and Picardy, known as La Soule or | | | | only three (Canada, Samoa and the United |
| Choule, suggest that some of these football | | | | States) actually use "soccer" in their |
| games could have arrived in England as a | | | | organizations' official names, while the rest |
| result of the Norman Conquest. | | | | use football (although the Samoan Federation |
| | | | actually uses both). However, in some |
| An illustration of mob football.These archaic | | | | countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, |
| forms of football, typically classified as | | | | use of the word "football" by soccer bodies |
| "mob football", would be played between | | | | is a recent change and has been |
| neighbouring towns and villages, involving an | | | | controversial. |
| unlimited number of players on opposing | | | | |