Association football Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==History== {{Main|History of association football}} {{For timeline|Timeline of association football}} {{multiple image | direction = horizontal | total_width = 320 | header = | image1 = Ancient Greek Football Player.jpg | caption1 = | image2 = One Hundred Children in the Long Spring.jpg | caption2 = | footer = On the left, an {{Transliteration|el|[[episkyros]]}} player on an ancient [[stone carving]], {{Circa|375–400 BCE}}, exhibited at the [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens]];<ref name="NAMA">Item [http://www.namuseum.gr/collections/sculpture/classical/classic12-en.html (NAMA) 873] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160722061112/http://www.namuseum.gr/collections/sculpture/classical/classic12-en.html |date=22 July 2016 }} displayed at the [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens]]</ref> on the right, children playing {{Transliteration|zh|[[cuju]]}} in [[Song dynasty]] China, 12th century }} Kicking ball games arose independently multiple times across multiple cultures.{{efn|See [[Football#Early history]] for more information.}} The Chinese competitive game ''{{Transliteration|zh|[[cuju]]}}'' ({{lang|zh|蹴鞠}}, literally "kick ball"; also known as ''tsu chu'') resembles modern association football.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sports|url=https://www.britannica.com/sports/sports|access-date=20 April 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417001059/https://www.britannica.com/sports/sports|url-status=live}}</ref> This is the earliest form of the game for which there is scientific evidence, a military manual from the [[Han dynasty]].<ref name="fifa.com"/> ''{{Transliteration|zh|Cuju}}'' players could use any part of the body apart from hands and the intent was to kick a ball through an opening into a net. During the [[Han dynasty]] (206 BCE – 220 CE), ''{{Transliteration|zh|cuju}}'' games were standardised and rules were established.<ref name="abd">{{cite book|last=Murray|first=Scott|title=Football For Dummies|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7DPCNO4qIz4C&pg=PT33|year=2010|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-0-470-66440-7|pages=33–|access-date=20 April 2021|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420121408/https://books.google.com/books?id=7DPCNO4qIz4C&pg=PT33|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Silk Road]] facilitated the transmission of ''cuju'', especially the game popular in the [[Tang dynasty]], the period when the [[inflatable]] ball was invented and replaced the stuffed ball.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Yang |first1=Lin |title=Chinese Ju and World Football |journal=Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research |date=2018 |volume=120|pages=276–281}}</ref> Other East Asian games included ''{{Transliteration|ja|hepburn|[[kemari]]}}'' in Japan and ''{{Transliteration|ko|chuk-guk}}'' in Korea, both influenced by ''cuju''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/about-fifa/who-we-are/the-game/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150803040639/http://www.fifa.com/about-fifa/who-we-are/the-game/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 August 2015 |title=History of Football – The Origins |publisher=FIFA |access-date=15 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Chadwick |editor1-first=Simon |editor2-last=Hamil |editor2-first=Sean |title=Managing Football: An International Perspective |publisher=Routledge |year=2010 |location=London |page=458 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aTYtBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA458 |isbn=978-1-136-43763-2 |access-date=30 May 2018 |archive-date=20 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181120044852/https://books.google.com/books?id=aTYtBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA458 |url-status=live }}</ref> ''{{Transliteration|ja|hepburn|Kemari}}'' originated after the year 600 during the [[Asuka period]]. It was a ceremonial rather than a competitive game, and involved the kicking of a ''mari'', a ball made of animal skin.<ref name="histbleacher">{{cite web |title=History of Football, Part 2: The Aztec and The Oriental Version of the Game |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/117189-history-of-football-part-2-the-aztec-and-the-oriental-version-of-the-game |date=29 Jan 2009 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230219230403/https://bleacherreport.com/articles/117189-history-of-football-part-2-the-aztec-and-the-oriental-version-of-the-game |archive-date=19 Feb 2023 |work=[[Bleacher Report]] |last= |first=}}</ref> In North America, {{Lang|alg|[[pasuckuakohowog]]}} was a ball game played by the [[Algonquian peoples|Algonquians]]; it was described as "almost identical to the kind of folk football being played in Europe at the same time, in which the ball was kicked through goals".<ref name="roberts">{{Cite book |first=Mike |last=Roberts |title=The same old game: the true story of the ancient origins of football |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1022073321 |isbn=978-1-4610-9319-0 |location=Barcelona |chapter=Little Brothers of War Ball games in Pre-Colombian North America |date=13 April 2011 |oclc=1022073321 |access-date=6 January 2021 |archive-date=12 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212044127/https://www.worldcat.org/title/same-old-game-the-true-story-of-the-ancient-origins-of-football/oclc/1022073321 |url-status=live }}</ref> ''{{Transliteration|el|Phaininda}}'' and ''{{Transliteration|el|[[episkyros]]}}'' were [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] ball games.<ref name="fifa.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/the-game/origins.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121225025856/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/the-game/origins.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=25 December 2012 |title=Classic Football History of the Game |publisher=FIFA |access-date=17 September 2013}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=A gripping Greek derby|url=https://www.fifa.com/news/gripping-greek-derby-2026693-x1038 |date=8 Mar 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102061040/https://www.fifa.com/news/gripping-greek-derby-2026693-x1038|url-status=dead|archive-date=2 November 2020|access-date=30 October 2020|website=FIFA}}</ref> An image of an ''{{Transliteration|el|episkyros}}'' player depicted in low [[relief]] on a [[stele]] of {{Circa|375–400 BCE}} in the [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens|National Archaeological Museum of Athens]]<ref name="NAMA" /> appears on the [[UEFA European Championship]] trophy.<ref name="bangkokpost">{{cite news|url=http://www.bangkokpost.com/print/413747/|title=Fury as FIFA finds a field of dreams in China|date=5 June 2014|newspaper=Bangkok Post|access-date=19 June 2014|archive-date=18 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318182156/https://www.bangkokpost.com/ajax/_getLikeUnlike.php|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Athenaeus]], writing in 228 CE, mentions the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] ball game ''{{Lang|la|[[harpastum]]}}''. ''{{Transliteration|el|Phaininda, episkyros}}'' and ''{{Lang|la|harpastum}}'' were played involving hands and violence. They all appear to have resembled [[rugby football]], [[wrestling]], and [[volleyball]] more than what is recognisable as modern football.<ref name="abd" /><ref name=":3">Nigel Wilson, ''Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece'', Routledge, 2005, p. 310</ref><ref name=":4">Nigel M. Kennell, ''The Gymnasium of Virtue: Education and Culture in Ancient Sparta (Studies in the History of Greece and Rome)'', The University of North Carolina Press, 1995, on [https://books.google.com/books?id=u_eAP7wN5XUC&q=episkuros+rugby&pg=PA61 Google Books] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161205233056/https://books.google.com/books?id=u_eAP7wN5XUC&pg=PA61&cd=16#v=onepage&q=episkuros%20rugby |date=5 December 2016 }}</ref><ref name=":5">Steve Craig, ''Sports and Games of the Ancients: (Sports and Games Through History)'', Greenwood, 2002, on [https://books.google.com/books?id=KKlSSRq-P2QC&q=phaininda+rugby&pg=PA104 Google Books] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161206085821/https://books.google.com/books?id=KKlSSRq-P2QC&pg=PA104&cd=2#v=onepage&q=phaininda%20rugby |date=6 December 2016 }}</ref><ref name=":6">Don Nardo, ''Greek and Roman Sport'', Greenhaven Press, 1999, p. 83</ref><ref name=":7">Sally E. D. Wilkins, ''Sports and games of medieval cultures'', Greenwood, 2002, on [https://books.google.com/books?id=IyFHvy-SCIYC&q=episkuros+rugby&pg=PA214 Google books] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161206054412/https://books.google.com/books?id=IyFHvy-SCIYC&pg=PA214&cd=2#v=onepage&q=episkuros%20rugby |date=6 December 2016 }}</ref> As with pre-codified [[Medieval football|mob football]], the antecedent of all [[football|modern football codes]], these three games involved more handling the ball than kicking it.<ref name=":8">{{cite web |url=http://www.rugbyfootballhistory.com/originsofrugby.htm |title=Rugby Football History |publisher=Rugby Football History |access-date=19 June 2014 |archive-date=25 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525155221/http://www.rugbyfootballhistory.com/originsofrugby.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":9">{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/the-game/Britain-home-of-football.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328222208/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/the-game/Britain-home-of-football.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 March 2013 |title=Classic Football History of the Game |publisher=FIFA |access-date=17 September 2013}}</ref> Association football in itself does not have a classical history.<ref name=bangkokpost/> Notwithstanding any similarities to other ball games played around the world, FIFA has described that no historical connection exists with any game played in antiquity outside Europe.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/the-game/Britain-home-of-football.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328222208/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/the-game/Britain-home-of-football.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 March 2013 |title=Classic Football History of the Game |publisher=FIFA |date=10 June 2014 |access-date=19 June 2014}}</ref> The history of football in England dates back to at least the eighth century.<ref>{{cite web |title=History of Football – Britain, the home of Football |publisher=FIFA |url=https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/game/historygame2.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070701210540/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/history/game/historygame2.html |archive-date=1 July 2007 |url-status=dead |access-date=20 November 2006 }}</ref> The modern rules of association football are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely [[English public school football games|varying forms of football]] played in the [[Public school (United Kingdom)|public schools]] of England. [[File:Cambridge rules 1856.png|thumb|left|upright|The "Laws of the University Foot Ball Club" (''Cambridge Rules'') of 1856]] The [[Cambridge rules]], first drawn up at the [[University of Cambridge]] in 1848, were particularly influential in the development of subsequent codes, including association football. The Cambridge rules were written at [[Trinity College, Cambridge]], at a meeting attended by representatives from [[Eton College|Eton]], [[Harrow School|Harrow]], [[Rugby School|Rugby]], [[Winchester College|Winchester]] and [[Shrewsbury School|Shrewsbury]] schools. They were not universally adopted. During the 1850s, many clubs unconnected to schools or universities were formed throughout the English-speaking world to play various forms of football. Some came up with their own distinct codes of rules, most notably the [[Sheffield F.C.|Sheffield Football Club]], formed by former public school pupils in 1857,<ref>{{cite book |last=Harvey |first=Adrian |title=Football, the first hundred years |publisher=Routledge |page=126 |year=2005 |location=London |isbn=978-0-415-35018-1}}</ref> which led to the formation of a [[Sheffield & Hallamshire Football Association|Sheffield FA]] in 1867. In 1862, [[John Charles Thring]] of [[Uppingham School]] also devised an influential set of rules.<ref>{{cite news |first=David |last=Winner |date=28 March 2005 |title=The hands-off approach to a man's game |newspaper=The Times |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,27-1544006,00.html |access-date=7 October 2007 |location=London |archive-date=28 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528033057/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[File:Original laws of the game 1863.jpg|right|thumb|An early draft of the original hand-written 'Laws of the Game' drawn up on behalf of [[The Football Association]] by [[Ebenezer Cobb Morley]] in 1863 on display at the [[National Football Museum]], Manchester, England]] These ongoing efforts contributed to the formation of [[The Football Association]] (The FA) in 1863, which first met on the morning of 26 October 1863 at the [[Freemasons' Tavern]] in [[Great Queen Street]], London.<ref name="FAhistory">{{cite web |title=History of the FA |publisher=The Football Association |url=http://www.thefa.com/about-football-association/history |access-date=9 October 2007 |archive-date=25 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130125012322/http://www.thefa.com/about-football-association/history |url-status=live }}</ref> The only school to be represented on this occasion was [[Charterhouse School|Charterhouse]]. The Freemasons' Tavern was the setting for five more meetings of The FA between October and December 1863; the English FA eventually issued the first comprehensive set of rules named {{pslink|Laws of the Game}}, forming modern football.<ref name="BLibrary">{{cite news |title=British Library displays The Football Association's 1863 Minute Book |url=https://www.bl.uk/press-releases/2013/august/british-library-displays-the-football-associations-1863-minute-book#:~:text=Handwritten%20and%20compiled%20150%20years,First%20Folio%20and%20Captain%20Scott's |access-date=18 September 2023 |publisher=British Library |archive-date=10 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231010144730/https://www.bl.uk/press-releases/2013/august/british-library-displays-the-football-associations-1863-minute-book#:~:text=Handwritten%20and%20compiled%20150%20years,First%20Folio%20and%20Captain%20Scott's |url-status=dead }}</ref> The laws included bans on running with the ball in hand and [[Hacking (rugby)|hacking]] (kicking an opponent in the shins), tripping and holding.<ref name="nov_24">{{cite news |title=The Football Association |work=Bell's Life in London |date=1863-11-28 |page=6 |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Football_Association_(Bells_Life_in_London)_1863-11-28.png |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=20 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230920175802/https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Football_Association_(Bells_Life_in_London)_1863-11-28.png |url-status=live }}</ref> Eleven clubs, under the charge of FA secretary [[Ebenezer Cobb Morley]], ratified the original thirteen laws of the game.<ref name="FAhistory"/> The sticking point was hacking, which a twelfth club at the meeting, [[Blackheath FC]], had wanted to keep, resulting in them withdrawing from the FA.<ref name="FAhistory"/> Other [[History of rugby union|English rugby clubs followed this lead]] and did not join the FA, and instead in 1871, along with Blackheath, formed the [[Rugby Football Union]]. The FA rules included handling of the ball by "marks" and the lack of a crossbar, rules which made it remarkably similar to [[Australian rules football|Victorian rules football]] being developed at that time in Australia. The Sheffield FA played by its own rules until the 1870s, with the FA absorbing some of its rules until there was little difference between the games.<ref name="Merger">{{cite book|last=Young|first=Percy M.|year=1964|title=Football in Sheffield|pages=28–29|publisher=S. Paul}}</ref> [[File:AstonVilla1896-97.jpg|thumb|The [[Aston Villa F.C.|Aston Villa]] team in 1897, after winning both the [[FA Cup]] and the [[English Football League]]]]The world's oldest football competition is the [[FA Cup]], which was founded by the footballer and cricketer [[Charles W. Alcock]], and has been contested by English teams since 1872. The [[1872 Scotland v England football match|first official international football match]] also took place in 1872, between Scotland and England in [[Glasgow]], again at the instigation of Alcock. England is also home to the world's first [[The Football League|football league]], which was founded in [[Birmingham]] in 1888 by [[Aston Villa F.C.|Aston Villa]] director [[William McGregor (football)|William McGregor]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The History of the Football League |publisher=The Football League |url=http://www.football-league.co.uk/page/History/HistoryDetail/0,,10794~1357277,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501121005/http://www.football-league.co.uk/page/History/HistoryDetail/0%2C%2C10794~1357277%2C00.html |archive-date=1 May 2011 |date=22 September 2010 |access-date=4 March 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The original format contained 12 clubs from the [[English Midlands|Midlands]] and [[Northern England]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Parrish |first1=Charles |last2=Nauright |first2=John |title=Soccer around the World: A Cultural Guide to the World's Favorite Sport |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2014 |location=Santa Barbara, CA |page=78 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N6qSAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA78 |isbn=978-1-61069-302-8 |access-date=8 December 2018 |archive-date=26 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191026170504/https://books.google.com/books?id=N6qSAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA78 |url-status=live }}</ref> Laws of the Game are determined by the [[International Football Association Board]] (IFAB).<ref>{{cite web |title=IFAB|url=https://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/ifab/aboutifab.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008092538/http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/ifab/aboutifab.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=8 October 2011|publisher=FIFA |access-date=10 December 2011}}</ref> The board was formed in 1886<ref>{{cite web|title=The International FA Board |publisher=FIFA |url=http://access.fifa.com/en/history/history/0,3504,3,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070422035010/http://access.fifa.com/en/history/history/0%2C3504%2C3%2C00.html |archive-date=22 April 2007 |access-date=2 September 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> after a meeting in [[Manchester]] of the Football Association, the [[Scottish Football Association]], the [[Football Association of Wales]], and the [[Irish Football Association]]. [[FIFA]], the international football body, was formed in Paris in 1904 and declared that they would adhere to the Laws of the Game of the Football Association.<ref name=Wherebegan/> The growing popularity of the international game led to the admittance of FIFA representatives to the IFAB in 1913. The board consists of four representatives from FIFA and one representative from each of the four British associations.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=The IFAB: How it works|url=https://www.fifa.com/who-we-are/news/the-ifab-how-works-1177401 |date=4 Mar 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210129205955/https://www.fifa.com/who-we-are/news/the-ifab-how-works-1177401|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 January 2021|access-date=30 October 2020|website=FIFA}}</ref> For most of the 20th century, [[Football in Europe|Europe]] and [[Football in South America|South America]] were the dominant regions in association football. The FIFA World Cup, inaugurated in [[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]], became the main stage for players of both continents to show their worth and the strength of their national teams.<ref name=":continental kings">{{Cite web |last=Townsend |first=Jon |date=2015-05-30 |title=The continental kings of Europe and South America |url=https://thesefootballtimes.co/2015/05/30/the-continental-kings-europe-and-south-america/ |access-date=2023-02-24 |website=These Football Times |language=en-GB |archive-date=6 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221006231607/https://thesefootballtimes.co/2015/05/30/the-continental-kings-europe-and-south-america/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In the second half of the century, the [[UEFA Champions League|European Cup]] and the [[Copa Libertadores]] were created, and the champions of these two club competitions would contest the [[Intercontinental Cup (football)|Intercontinental Cup]] to prove which team was the best in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FIFA Council approves key organisational elements of the FIFA World Cup |url=https://www.fifa.com/about-fifa/organisation/fifa-council/media-releases/fifa-council-approves-key-organisational-elements-of-the-fifa-world-cu-2917722 |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=FIFA |date= 27 October 2017 |language=en |archive-date=24 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221224023446/https://www.fifa.com/about-fifa/organisation/fifa-council/media-releases/fifa-council-approves-key-organisational-elements-of-the-fifa-world-cu-2917722 |url-status=live }}</ref> In the 21st century, South America has continued to produce some of the best [[Football player|footballers]] in the world,<ref name=":euro and south">{{Cite web |date=2022-12-08 |title=Why Europe and South America dominate World Cup |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/sports/football/why-europe-and-south-america-dominate-world-cup-101670523150549.html |first1=Dhiman |last1=Sarkar |access-date=2023-02-24 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en |archive-date=28 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221228152150/https://www.hindustantimes.com/sports/football/why-europe-and-south-america-dominate-world-cup-101670523150549.html |url-status=live }}</ref> but its clubs have fallen behind the still dominant European clubs, which often sign the best players from [[Latin America]] and elsewhere.<ref name=":continental kings" /><ref name=":euro and south" /> Meanwhile, football has improved in [[Football in Africa|Africa]], [[Football in Asia|Asia]] and [[Sports in North America#Association football (soccer)|North America]],<ref name=":euro and south" /> and nowadays, these regions are at least on equal grounds with South America in club football,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-02-10 |title=The reasons why South American teams are now struggling at the Club World Cup |url=https://www.marca.com/en/football/2023/02/10/63e637ceca4741f4498b4573.html |first1=Alberto |last1=Rubio |last2=Sam |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=MARCA |language=en |archive-date=12 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230212064824/https://www.marca.com/en/football/2023/02/10/63e637ceca4741f4498b4573.html |url-status=live }}</ref> although countries in the [[Sport in the Caribbean|Caribbean]] and [[Sport in Oceania#Association football|Oceania]] regions (except [[Soccer in Australia|Australia]]) have yet to make a mark in international football.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Robinson |first=Mark |date=2018-08-31 |title=Can Caribbean football make an impact at international level? |url=https://www.caribbean-beat.com/can-caribbean-football-make-an-impact-at-international-level |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=Caribbean Beat Magazine |language=en-GB |archive-date=1 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201034806/https://www.caribbean-beat.com/can-caribbean-football-make-an-impact-at-international-level |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2003-08-16 |title=How Oceania fell off the FIFA map |url=https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/how-oceania-fell-off-the-fifa-map-20030816-gdh9bx.html |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en |archive-date=25 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230225032213/https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/how-oceania-fell-off-the-fifa-map-20030816-gdh9bx.html |url-status=live }}</ref> When it comes to national teams, however, Europeans and South Americans continue to dominate the FIFA World Cup, as no team from any other region has managed to even reach the final.<ref name=":continental kings" /><ref name=":euro and south" /> Football is played at a professional level all over the world. Millions of people regularly go to football stadiums to follow their favourite teams,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2003/oct/09/theknowledge.sport |title=Baseball or Football: which sport gets the higher attendance? |last1=Ingle |first1=Sean |last2=Glendenning |first2=Barry |date=9 October 2003 |location=UK |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=5 June 2006 |archive-date=11 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411002757/http://football.guardian.co.uk/news/theknowledge/0,9204,1059366,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> while billions more watch the game on television or on the internet.<ref name="billions">{{cite web |title=TV Data |publisher=FIFA |url=https://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/marketingtv/factsfigures/tvdata.html |access-date=2 September 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070922225713/http://fifa.com/aboutfifa/marketingtv/factsfigures/tvdata.html |archive-date=22 September 2007 }}</ref><ref name="billions2">{{cite web |title=2014 FIFA World Cup reached 3.2 billion viewers, one billion watched final |publisher=FIFA |url=https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/y=2015/m=12/news=2014-fifa-world-cuptm-reached-3-2-billion-viewers-one-billion-watched--2745519.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151219010501/http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/y=2015/m=12/news=2014-fifa-world-cuptm-reached-3-2-billion-viewers-one-billion-watched--2745519.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 December 2015 |access-date=17 March 2017 |date=16 December 2015 }}</ref> A very large number of people also play football at an amateur level. According to a survey conducted by FIFA published in 2001, over 240 million people from more than 200 countries regularly play football.<ref>{{cite web |title=FIFA Survey: approximately 250 million footballers worldwide |publisher=FIFA |url=http://access.fifa.com/infoplus/IP-199_01E_big-count.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060915133001/http://access.fifa.com/infoplus/IP-199_01E_big-count.pdf |archive-date=15 September 2006 |url-status=dead |access-date=15 September 2006}}</ref> Football has the highest global television audience in sport.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/marketing/news/newsid=111247/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111225008/http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/marketing/news/newsid=111247/|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 January 2012|title=2006 FIFA World Cup broadcast wider, longer and farther than ever before |publisher=FIFA|date=6 February 2007|access-date=11 October 2009}}</ref> In many parts of the world, football evokes great passions and plays an important role in the life of individual [[Fan (aficionado)|fans]], local communities, and even nations. [[Ryszard Kapuściński]] says that Europeans who are polite, modest, or humble fall easily into rage when playing or watching football games.<ref name="soccer war">{{cite book |title=The Soccer War |last=Kapuscinski |first=Ryszard|year=2007}}</ref> The [[Ivory Coast national football team]] helped secure a truce to the nation's [[First Ivorian Civil War|civil war]] in 2006<ref>{{cite web |title=More than a game |work=Common Ground News Service |url=http://www.commongroundnews.org/article.php?sid=1&id=2079 |last=Stormer |first=Neil |date=20 June 2006 |access-date=2 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626030739/http://www.commongroundnews.org/article.php?sid=1&id=2079 |archive-date=26 June 2010 }}</ref> and it helped further reduce tensions between government and rebel forces in 2007 by playing a match in the rebel capital of [[Bouaké]], an occasion that brought both armies together peacefully for the first time.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Best Feet Forward |magazine=Vanity Fair |url=http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/07/ivorycoast200707 |first=Merrill |last=Austin |date=10 July 2007 |access-date=2 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100228162619/http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/07/ivorycoast200707 |archive-date=28 February 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref> By contrast, football is widely considered to have been the final proximate cause for the [[Football War]] in June 1969 between El Salvador and Honduras.<ref>{{cite news|title=Has football ever started a war? |newspaper=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2007/feb/21/theknowledge.sport |last1=Dart |first1=James |last2=Bandini |first2=Paolo |date=21 February 2007 |access-date=24 September 2007 |location=London |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071029181328/http://football.guardian.co.uk/theknowledge/story/0%2C%2C2017161%2C00.html |archive-date=29 October 2007 |url-status=live }}</ref> The sport also exacerbated tensions at the beginning of the [[Croatian War of Independence]] of the 1990s, when a match between [[NK Dinamo Zagreb|Dinamo Zagreb]] and [[Red Star Belgrade]] degenerated into [[Dinamo–Red Star riot|rioting]] in May 1990.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |title=The Soccer Wars |last=Drezner |first=Daniel |author-link=Daniel W. Drezner |date=4 June 2006 |page=B01 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/02/AR2006060201401.html |access-date=21 May 2008 |archive-date=3 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181003150914/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/02/AR2006060201401.html |url-status=live }}</ref> ===Women's association football=== {{update section|date=October 2023}} {{main|Women's association football}} [[Women's association football]] has historically seen opposition, with national associations severely curbing its development and several [[Bans of women's association football|outlawing it]] completely. Women may have been playing football for as long as the game has existed. Evidence shows that a similar ancient game (''cuju'', or [[Tsu Chu|''tsu chu'']]) was played by women during the [[Han dynasty#Eastern Han|Han dynasty]] (25–220 CE), as female figures are depicted in frescoes of the period playing ''tsu chu''.<ref name="globalgame">{{cite web |title=Genesis of 'The Global Game' |url=http://www.theglobalgame.com/aboutus.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060521234151/http://www.theglobalgame.com/aboutus.html |archive-date=21 May 2006 |access-date=22 May 2006 |work=The Global Game}}</ref><ref name="footballnetwork">{{cite web |title=The Chinese and Tsu Chu |work=The Football Network |url=http://www.footballnetwork.org/dev/historyoffootball/history1.asp |access-date=1 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106061612/http://www.footballnetwork.org/dev/historyoffootball/history1.asp |archive-date=6 November 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> There are also reports of annual football matches played by women in [[Midlothian]], Scotland, during the 1790s.<ref name="SFA">{{cite web|title=A Brief History of Women's Football|url=http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish_football.cfm?curpageid=409|publisher=Scottish Football Association|access-date=18 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050308172042/http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish_football.cfm?curpageid=409|archive-date=8 March 2005}}</ref><ref name=":10">{{cite web|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12080678.display/|title=A game of two sexes|work=The Herald|location=Glasgow|date=8 February 1997|access-date=18 June 2017|archive-date=7 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107012935/http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12080678.display/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[File:British_Ladies_Football_Club.jpg|thumb|North team of the [[British Ladies' Football Club|British Ladies']], the first organised women's football team, here pictured in March 1895]] Association football, the modern game, has documented early involvement of women.<ref name=":10" /> In 1863, football governing bodies introduced standardised rules to prohibit violence on the pitch, making it more socially acceptable for women to play.<ref name="FA"/> The first match recorded by the [[Scottish Football Association]] took place in 1892 in [[Glasgow]].<ref name="SFA" /> In England, the first recorded game of football between women took place in 1895.<ref name="FA">{{cite web|url=http://www.thefa.com/Womens/EnglandSenior/History/|title=Women's Football History|publisher=The Football Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325030003/http://www.thefa.com/Womens/EnglandSenior/History/|archive-date=25 March 2009}}</ref> Women's football has traditionally been associated with charity games and physical exercise, particularly in the United Kingdom.<ref name="BBC-Gregory">{{cite news |last=Gregory |first=Patricia |date=3 June 2005 |title=How women's football battled for survival |work=BBC Sport |publisher= |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/women/4607171.stm |url-status=live |access-date=19 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171202110455/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/women/4607171.stm |archive-date=2 December 2017}}</ref> Association football continued to be played by women since the time of the first recorded women's games in the late 19th century.<ref name="BBC-Gregory"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/no-longer-the-game-of-two-halves.19185657 |title=No longer the game of two-halves |work=The Herald |publisher=Herald & Times Group |date=19 October 2012 |access-date=9 March 2014 |first=Alan |last=Campbell |archive-date=29 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140329014321/http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/no-longer-the-game-of-two-halves.19185657 |url-status=live }}</ref> The best-documented early European team was founded by activist [[Nettie Honeyball]] in England in 1894. It was named the [[British Ladies' Football Club]]. Honeyball is quoted as, "I founded the association late last year [1894], with the fixed resolve of proving to the world that women are not the 'ornamental and useless' creatures men have pictured. I must confess, my convictions on all matters where the sexes are so widely divided are all on the side of [[Feminism|emancipation]], and I look forward to the time when ladies may sit in [[Parliament]] and have a voice in the direction of affairs, especially those which concern them most."<ref name="Nettie Honeyball">{{cite web |last=Ladda |first=Shawn |title=Women's involvement with soccer was part of the emancipation process. |url=http://www.soccertimes.com/oped/1999/jul20.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061116204454/http://www.soccertimes.com/oped/1999/jul20.htm |archive-date=16 November 2006 |access-date=4 May 2006 |work=SoccerTimes}}</ref> Honeyball and those like her paved the way for women's football. However, the women's game was frowned upon by the British football associations and continued without their support. It has been suggested that this was motivated by a perceived threat to the "masculinity" of the game.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Mårtensson|first=Stefan|title=Branding women's football in a field of hegemonic masculinity|journal=Entertainment and Sports Law Journal|date=June 2010|volume=8|issue=1|page=5|doi=10.16997/eslj.44|doi-access=free}}</ref> Women's football became popular on a large scale at the time of the [[World War I|First World War]], when female employment in heavy industry spurred the growth of the game, much as it had done for men 50 years earlier. The most successful team of the era was [[Dick, Kerr Ladies F.C.]] of [[Preston, Lancashire|Preston, England]]. The team played in one of the first women's international matches against a French XI team in 1920,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Dick, Kerr Ladies' FC |url=http://www.donmouth.co.uk/womens_football/dick_kerr.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220521192224/http://www.donmouth.co.uk/womens_football/dick_kerr.html |archive-date=21 May 2022 |access-date=2023-02-16 |website=Donmouth}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Radio 4 - Home Front - The Forgotten First International Women's Football Match |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5nsXCQcNm7wggTxvS0y1BnF/the-forgotten-first-international-women-s-football-match |access-date=2023-02-16 |website=BBC |language=en-GB |archive-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812061017/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5nsXCQcNm7wggTxvS0y1BnF/the-forgotten-first-international-women-s-football-match |url-status=live }}</ref> and also made up most of the England team against a [[Women's football in Scotland|Scottish Ladies]] XI in the same year, winning 22–0.<ref name="SFA"/> Despite being more popular than some men's football events, with one match seeing a 53,000 strong crowd in 1920,<ref>{{cite news|last1=Leighton|first1=Tony|title=FA apologies for 1921 ban|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2008/feb/11/newsstory.womensfootball|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=6 August 2014|date=10 February 2008|archive-date=10 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810174231/http://www.theguardian.com/football/2008/feb/11/newsstory.womensfootball|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="BBC-Alexander">{{cite news |last=Alexander |first=Shelley |date=3 June 2005 |title=Trail-blazers who pioneered women's football |work=BBC Sport |publisher= |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/women/4603149.stm |url-status=live |access-date=19 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171202114818/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/women/4603149.stm |archive-date=2 December 2017}}</ref> [[women's football in England]] suffered a blow in 1921 when [[The Football Association]] outlawed the playing of the game on association members' pitches,<ref name=":12">{{cite book |last1=Witzig |first1=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H2T0ZD5S86QC&pg=PA65 |title=The Global Art of Soccer |publisher=CusiBoy Publishing |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-9776688-0-9 |page=65 |access-date=6 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601233310/https://books.google.com/books?id=H2T0ZD5S86QC&q=1921+fa+ban&pg=PA65 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> stating that "the game of football is quite unsuitable for females and should not be encouraged."<ref name="BBC-Wrack">{{Cite news |last=Wrack |first=Suzanne |date=2022-06-13 |title=How the FA banned women's football in 1921 and tried to justify it |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/jun/13/how-the-fa-banned-womens-football-in-1921-and-tried-to-justify-it |access-date=2023-02-16 |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=14 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214145355/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/jun/13/how-the-fa-banned-womens-football-in-1921-and-tried-to-justify-it |url-status=live }}</ref> Players and football writers have argued that this ban was, in fact, due to envy of the large crowds that women's matches attracted,<ref name="BBC-Alexander" /> and because the FA had no control over the money made from the women's game.<ref name="BBC-Wrack" /> The FA ban led to the formation of the short-lived [[English Ladies Football Association]] and play moved to [[rugby football|rugby]] grounds.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Newsham|first1=Gail|title=In a League of Their Own. The Dick, Kerr Ladies 1917–1965|year=2014|publisher=Paragon Publishing}}</ref> Women's football also faced bans in [[Bans of women's association football|several other countries]], notably in [[Women's football in Brazil|Brazil]] from 1941 to 1979,<ref>{{Cite news |date=2018-02-28 |title=Women footballers: Born with talent, held back by prejudice |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-43198651 |access-date=2023-02-16 |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107174048/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-43198651 |url-status=live }}</ref> in [[Women's football in France|France]] from 1941 to 1970,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lasserre |first=Victoria |date=July 7, 2022 |title=5 dates clefs sur l'histoire du football féminin |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.fr/histoire-du-football-feminin,2057854.asp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926162514/https://www.cosmopolitan.fr/histoire-du-football-feminin,2057854.asp |archive-date=26 September 2022 |access-date=2023-02-16 |website=Cosmopolitan.fr |language=fr}}</ref> and in [[Women's football in Germany|Germany]] from 1955 to 1970.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wünsch |first=Silke |date=June 20, 2011 |title=Female footballers |url=https://www.dw.com/en/the-elusive-popularity-of-womens-football/a-15172167 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220724105057/https://www.dw.com/en/the-elusive-popularity-of-womens-football/a-15172167 |archive-date=24 July 2022 |access-date=2023-02-16 |publisher=[[Deutsche Welle]] |language=en}}</ref> [[File:Tytöt-04 Piteåssa.JPG|thumb|right|Young Finnish girls football team of Kolarin Kontio in [[Piteå]], Sweden, in 2014]] Restrictions began to be reduced in the 1960s and 1970s. The [[Serie A (women's football)|Italian women's football league]] was established in 1968.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.nssmag.com/en/sports/16658/calcio-femminile-italia | title=The reinassance of women's football in Italy | first=Giulio | last=Pecci | work=NSS Magazine | date=5 November 2018 | access-date=October 22, 2023 | archive-date=12 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231212062410/https://www.nssmag.com/en/sports/16658/calcio-femminile-italia | url-status=live }}</ref> In December 1969, the [[Women's Football Association]] was formed in England,<ref name="BBC-Gregory" /><ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=History of women's football |url=http://www.thefa.com/womens-girls-football/history |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224043854/http://www.thefa.com/womens-girls-football/history |archive-date=24 February 2020 |access-date=2023-02-16 |website=The Football Association |language=en}}</ref> with the sport eventually becoming the most prominent [[team sport]] for women in the United Kingdom.<ref name="BBC-Gregory"/> Two unofficial women's World Cups were organised by the [[FIEFF]] [[1970 Women's World Cup|in 1970]] and [[1971 Women's World Cup|in 1971]]. Also in 1971, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) members voted to officially recognise women's football,<ref name="BBC-Gregory"/> while The Football Association rescinded the ban that prohibited women from playing on association members' pitches in England.<ref name=":13" /> Women's football still faces many struggles, but its worldwide growth<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kleen |first=Brendon |date=2022-12-21 |title=Women's Football Is Growing in the Middle East and North Africa |url=https://globalsportmatters.com/culture/2022/12/21/beyond-qatar-world-cup-womens-football-growing-middle-east-north-africa/ |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=Global Sport Matters |language=en |archive-date=29 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129023329/https://globalsportmatters.com/culture/2022/12/21/beyond-qatar-world-cup-womens-football-growing-middle-east-north-africa/ |url-status=live }}</ref> has seen major competitions being launched at both the [[Women's football around the world|national]] and [[international competitions in women's football|international]] levels, mirroring the men's competitions. The [[FIFA Women's World Cup]] was inaugurated in 1991: the first tournament [[1991 FIFA Women's World Cup|was held in China]], featuring 12 teams from the respective six confederations. The World Cup has been held every four years since;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/tournaments/archive/tournament=103/awards/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430044344/http://www.fifa.com/tournaments/archive/tournament%3D103/awards/index.html |archive-date=30 April 2011 |title=Tournaments: Women's World Cup |publisher=FIFA |access-date=11 March 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> by the [[2019 FIFA Women's World Cup]] in France, it had expanded to 24 national teams, and 1.12 billion viewers watched the competition.<ref name="forbes_2019wwc">{{cite news |last1=Glass |first1=Alana |date=21 October 2019 |title=FIFA Women's World Cup Breaks Viewership Records |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanaglass/2019/10/21/fifa-womens-world-cup-breaks-viewership-records/ |url-status=live |access-date=24 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424203645/https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanaglass/2019/10/21/fifa-womens-world-cup-breaks-viewership-records/ |archive-date=24 April 2021}}</ref> Women's football has been an Olympic event [[football at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Women's tournament|since 1996]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Moore |first=Kevin |editor-last1=Hassan |editor-first1=David |editor-last2=Mitra |editor-first2=Shakya |chapter=Football and the Olympics and Paralympics |title=The Olympic Games: Meeting New Global Challenges |publisher=Routledge |year=2015 |location=London |page=68 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e6nDCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |isbn=978-0-415-74176-7 |access-date=8 January 2019 |archive-date=26 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191026173434/https://books.google.com/books?id=e6nDCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |url-status=live }}</ref> North America is the dominant region in women's football, with the [[United States women's national soccer team|United States]] winning most FIFA Women's World Cups and Olympic tournaments. Europe and Asia come second and third in terms of international success,<ref>{{Cite web |title=FIFA Women's World Cup History - Past World Cup Winners, Hosts, Most Goals and more |url=https://www.foxsports.com/soccer/2023-fifa-womens-world-cup/history |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=FOX Sports |language=en-US |archive-date=6 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206123613/https://www.foxsports.com/soccer/2023-fifa-womens-world-cup/history |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Ryan |date=Aug 8, 2021 |title=Which country has won the most Olympic gold medals in football? |url=https://www.goal.com/en/news/which-country-has-won-most-olympic-gold-medals-football/1o1jkyn3l7wlm1vxfqzy09h6e0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221110224304/https://www.goal.com/en/news/which-country-has-won-most-olympic-gold-medals-football/1o1jkyn3l7wlm1vxfqzy09h6e0 |archive-date=10 November 2022 |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=Goal.com}}</ref> and the women's game has been improving in South America.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rey |first=Debora |date=2022-07-07 |title=South American women's soccer improving but some way to go |url=https://apnews.com/article/womens-soccer-sports-south-america-chile-bb6e9ae71b8ec5d05dfb5b246855d88d |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221128065120/https://apnews.com/article/womens-soccer-sports-south-america-chile-bb6e9ae71b8ec5d05dfb5b246855d88d |archive-date=28 November 2022 |access-date=2023-02-25 |website=AP NEWS |language=en}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page