Football

 

The football or soccer (British English football), also known as football is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players each and some referees dealing with that standards are met properly. It is widely considered the most popular sport in the world, as practiced by 270 million people.

The pitch is rectangular of natural or artificial grass, with a goal or arch on each side of the field. It is played by a ball that must be moved across the field with any part of the body other than the arms or hands, and mostly with the feet (hence its name). The objective is to introduce it into the opposite arc, an action called scoring a goal. The team that achieves the most goals at the end of the match, lasting 90 minutes, is the winner of the match.

 

Football Origins

 

The modern history of the most popular sport on the planet covers more than 100 years of existence. It began in 1863, when in England the paths of “rugby-football” (rugby) and “association football” (football) were separated, the oldest association in the world being founded: the “Football Association” ), the first governing body of the sport.

Both types of games have the same root and a very branching family tree. A thorough and thorough investigation has resulted in half a dozen different games in which there are aspects that refer to the origin and historical development of football. Obviously, despite the deductions made, two things are clear: first, that the ball was played with the foot for thousands of years and, second, that there is no reason to consider the game with the foot as a form degenerate secondary of the game “natural” with the hand.

On the contrary: apart from the need to have to fight with the whole body for the ball in a great tumult (also using the legs and feet), generally without rules, it seems that, from its beginnings, this activity was considered as extremely difficult and, therefore, to dominate the ball with the foot generated admiration. The oldest form of the game, of which there is certain science, is a manual of military exercises that goes back to the China of the Han dynasty, in the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC.

It was known as “Ts’uh Kúh”, and consisted of a leather ball filled with feathers and hairs, which had to be thrown with the foot to a small net. This was placed between long bamboo sticks, separated by an opening of 30 to 40 centimeters. Another modality, described in the same manual, was that the players, on their way to the goal, had to circumvent the attacks of an opponent, being able to play the ball with feet, chest, back and shoulders, but not with the hand.

From the Far East, meanwhile, comes a different way: the Japanese Kemari, which is mentioned for the first time about 500 to 600 years later, and which is still played today. It is a ceremonial exercise, which although it requires a certain skill, does not have any competitive character like the Chinese game, since there is no fight for the ball. On a relatively small surface, actors must pass it without dropping it to the ground.

Much more lively were the Greek “Epislcyros”, of which relatively little is known, and the Roman “Harpastum.” The Romans had a smaller ball and two teams played on a rectangular ground, limited with marking lines and divided with a middle line. The objective was to send the ball to the opponent’s field, for which they passed it between them, appealing to the cunning to achieve it. This sport was very popular between the years 700 and 800, and although the Romans introduced it in Britain, the use of the foot was so infrequent that their ancestry in football is relative.

International Competitions The main international football competition is the World Cup, organized by FIFA. This competition takes place every four years. More than 190 national teams compete in qualification tournaments, within the scope of continental confederations, for a place in the finals. In the final tournaments, held every four years, there are currently 32 national teams (increased in 1998 from the 24 that existed in 1994) that compete over a period of four weeks. The 2006 FIFA World Cup took place in Germany. In 2010 it will be held in South Africa.

In all the Summer Olympics held since 1900 there has been a football tournament, except in 1992 at the Los Angeles (United States) games. Before the start of the World Cup, the Olympics (especially during the 20s) had the same prestige status in football. At first, the event was only for amateurs; However, since the Summer Olympics of 1984 the participation of professionals is allowed, although with certain restrictions that prevents countries from presenting their best players. Currently, the men’s Olympic tournament is played with U23 players (below 23 years). In the past, the Olympics have only allowed a restricted number of players per age, but that practice will end in the 2008 Olympics. Generally the Olympic tournament does not have the same international significance and prestige as the World Cup. In 1996 a women’s tournament was added. In contrast to the men’s, the women’s tournament is played without age restrictions, so its international prestige is comparable to that of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

World Cup History In 1928 FIFA made the decision to organize its own international tournament. The 1932 Olympic Games, which took place in Los Angeles, were not intended to include football as part of the program due to its low popularity in the United States. FIFA and the IOC also disagreed about the status of non-professional players, and football was eliminated from the Games. Jules Rimet, president of FIFA, dedicated himself to organizing the inaugural World Cup tournament, naming Uruguayas a hostess National associations of the selected countries were invited to send a team, but Uruguay’s election as the venue for the competition meant a long and expensive trip across the Atlantic Ocean for European teams. In fact, no European country promised to send a team up to two months before the start of the competition. Rimet finally persuaded the teams from France , Belgium, Romania, Hungary and Yugoslavia to make the trip. In total, 13 nations were the participants (seven from South America, four from Europe and two from North America).

The two matches of the first World Cup were held simultaneously and were won by France and the USA ( Mexico 4-1 and Belgium 3-0, respectively). The first goal in the history of the World Cup was scored by Lucien Laurent of the French team. Four days later, the first hat-trick of the World Cups was achieved by Bert Patenaude, from the USA. in the victory of the Americans 3-0 against Paraguay.

In the final, Uruguay beat Argentina 4-2 against a crowd of 93,000 people in Montevideo, and became the first country to win a World Cup.

 

Conclusion

 

Soccer is a sport originated in England, then induced by several countries around the world and becoming the king of all time sport.

Football is a High-Performance sport and at the same time a mass show that attracts thousands of fans.

The incorporation of the massive practice of sport by children, young people and veterans, demands that the professionals of the physical culture study the technique, the evolution and development tactics.

Soccer is the sport of the present and will grow through in the future, it is also an agent of social integration. It is made for everyone regardless of color, culture or age.