England

== Sport ==
{{Main|Sport in England}}
<!---Caution should be taken to ensure that the sections are not simply a listing of names or mini biographies of individuals accomplishments. Good example Canada#Sports.--->
[[File:The Queen presents the 1966 World Cup to England Captain, Bobby Moore. (7936243534).jpg|thumbnail|Queen [[Elizabeth II]] presenting the [[FIFA World Cup trophy|World Cup trophy]] to 1966 World Cup winning England captain [[Bobby Moore]]]]

England has a strong sporting heritage, and during the 19th century [[Codification (law)|codified]] many sports that are now played around the world. Sports originating in England include [[association football]],<ref name="football">{{cite web |date=24 October 2007 |title=Sheffield FC: 150 years of history |url=https://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=621801.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025033006/http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=621801.html |archive-date=25 October 2007 |access-date=5 September 2009 |publisher=[[FIFA]]}}</ref> [[cricket]], [[rugby union]], [[rugby league]], [[tennis]], [[boxing]], badminton, [[squash (sport)|squash]],<ref>{{cite web |title=History of squash |url=http://www.worldsquash2008.com/the-championships/history-of-squash.aspx |publisher=WorldSquash2008.com |access-date=5 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090831081620/http://www.worldsquash2008.com/the-championships/history-of-squash.aspx |archive-date=31 August 2009 }}</ref> [[rounders]],<ref>{{cite web |title=History of the Game |url=http://www.nra-rounders.co.uk/dyncat.cfm?catid=17177 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060223211035/http://www.nra-rounders.co.uk/dyncat.cfm?catid=17177 |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 February 2006 |publisher=NRA-Rounders.co.uk }}</ref> [[field hockey|hockey]], [[snooker]], [[billiards]], [[darts]], table tennis, [[bowls]], [[netball]], [[thoroughbred]] horseracing, [[greyhound racing]] and [[fox hunting]]. It has helped the development of [[golf]], sailing and [[Formula One]].

Football is the [[Sport in the United Kingdom#Popularity|most popular]] of these sports. The [[England national football team]], whose home venue is [[Wembley Stadium]], played [[Scotland national football team|Scotland]] in the first ever international football match in 1872.<ref>{{cite news |title=The first international football match |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/sportscotland/asportingnation/article/0012/index.shtml |publisher=BBC |author=Paul Mitchell |access-date=15 January 2015|author-link=Paul Mitchell (broadcaster) }}</ref> Referred to as the "home of football" by [[FIFA]], England hosted and won the [[1966 FIFA World Cup]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20131220190138/http://www.fifa.com/tournaments/archive/worldcup/england1966/index.html "Hurst the hero for England in the home of football"]. FIFA.com. Retrieved 15 January 2015</ref> With a British television audience peak of 32.30&nbsp;million viewers, the [[1966 FIFA World Cup Final|final]] is the [[List of most-watched television broadcasts#United Kingdom|most watched television event ever]] in the UK.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16671101 "Tracking 30 years of TV's most watched programmes"]. BBC. Retrieved 25 June 2015</ref> England is recognised by FIFA as the birthplace of club football: [[Sheffield F.C.]], founded in 1857, is the world's oldest club.<ref name="football" /> The [[England women's national football team]] won the [[UEFA Women's Euro 2022|UEFA Euro 2022]], hosted by England.<ref>{{Cite web |last=UEFA.com |date=2022-07-31 |title=England 2-1 Germany (aet): Kelly gives Lionesses Wembley final triumph {{!}} UEFA Women's EURO |url=https://www.uefa.com/womenseuro/news/0277-15c1d9745f40-baafd6e58b36-1000--england-2-1-germany-aet-kelly-gives-lionesses-wembley-fin/ |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=UEFA.com |language=en}}</ref>
[[File:Euro 2022 Final England v Germany (52254519898).jpg|alt=|left|thumb|[[Wembley Stadium]], home of the [[Football in England|England football team]], during the [[UEFA Women's Euro 2022 final]]. At 90,000 capacity, it is the biggest stadium in the UK and [[List of European stadiums by capacity|the second-largest stadium in Europe]].]]
[[Cricket]] is generally thought to have been developed in the early medieval period among the farming and metalworking communities of the [[Weald]].<ref>{{harvnb|Underdown|2000|p=6}}.</ref> The [[England cricket team]] is a composite England and Wales team. One of the game's top rivalries is [[The Ashes]] series between England and [[Australia cricket team|Australia]], contested since 1882. [[Lord's Cricket Ground]] situated in London is sometimes referred to as the "Mecca of Cricket".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket-flaw-lords-out-of-order-1166513.html |title=Cricket: Flaw Lord's out of order |last=Fay |first=Stephen |work=The Independent |location=London |date=21 June 1998 |access-date=9 September 2009 |archive-date=18 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118130512/http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket-flaw-lords-out-of-order-1166513.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> After winning the [[2019 Cricket World Cup]], England became the first country to win the World Cups in football, rugby union, and cricket.<ref>{{Cite web |title=England 1st country to win Cricket World Cup, Football World Cup and Rugby World Cup |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/cricket-world-cup-2019/story/england-1st-country-to-win-cricket-world-cup-football-world-cup-and-rugby-world-cup-1569076-2019-07-15 |access-date=2023-07-16 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref>

[[William Penny Brookes]] was prominent in organising the format for the modern [[Olympic Games]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Father of the modern Olympics|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/content/articles/2006/01/31/william_penny_brookes_feature.shtml|agency=BBC|date=22 September 2017}}</ref> London has hosted the [[Summer Olympic Games]] three times, in [[1908 Summer Olympics|1908]], [[1948 Summer Olympics|1948]], and [[2012 Summer Olympics|2012]]. England competes in the [[Commonwealth Games]], held every four years. [[Sport England]] is the governing body responsible for distributing funds and providing strategic guidance for sporting activity in England.

[[Rugby union]] originated in [[Rugby School]], Warwickshire in the early 19th century.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rugbyfootballhistory.com/originsofrugby.htm#2 |title=Origins of Rugby&nbsp;– Codification "The innovation of running with the ball was introduced some time between 1820 and 1830." |publisher=Rugbyfootballhistory.com |access-date=15 August 2011}}</ref> The top level of club participation is the [[Guinness Premiership|English Premiership]]. [[Rugby league]] was born in [[Huddersfield]] in 1895. Since 2008, the [[England national rugby league team]] has been a full test nation in lieu of the [[Great Britain national rugby league team]], which won three [[Rugby League World Cup|World Cups]]. Club sides play in [[Super League]], the present-day embodiment of the [[Rugby Football League Championship]]. Rugby League is most popular among towns in the northern English counties of [[Lancashire]], Yorkshire and [[Cumbria]].<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyleague/10397530/Rugby-League-World-Cup-2013-will-provide-the-sport-with-a-true-test-of-its-popularity.html "Rugby League World Cup 2013 will provide the sport with a true test of its popularity"]. The Telegraph. Retrieved 23 September 2015</ref>

[[Golf]] has been prominent in England, due in part to its [[Golf in Scotland|cultural and geographical ties to Scotland]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pgatour.com/2008/tourlife/travel/04/08/trans_atlantic/index.html |title=Scotland is the home of golf |publisher=[[PGA Tour]] official website |access-date=4 December 2008 |quote=Scotland is the home of golf&nbsp;... |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828200541/http://www.pgatour.com/2008/tourlife/travel/04/08/trans_atlantic/index.html |archive-date=28 August 2008}}</ref> There are professional tours for men and women, in two main tours: the [[Professional Golfers' Association (Great Britain and Ireland)|PGA]] and the [[European Tour]]. The world's oldest golf tournament, and golf's first major is [[The Open Championship]], played both in England and Scotland. The biennial golf competition, the [[Ryder Cup]], is named after English businessman [[Samuel Ryder]].<ref>Fry, Peter (July 2000). Samuel Ryder: The Man Behind the Ryder Cup. Wright Press.</ref>

[[Tennis]] was created in Birmingham in the late 19th century, and [[The Championships, Wimbledon|the Wimbledon Championships]] is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, and widely considered the most prestigious.<ref>{{cite news |date=5 July 2008 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/05/sports/tennis/05wimbledon.html |title=Traditional Final: It's Nadal and Federer |work=The New York Times |access-date=5 September 2009 |first=Christopher |last=Clarey}}</ref> Wimbledon has a major place in the English cultural calendar.<ref>{{harvnb|Kaufman|Macpherson|2005|p=958}}.</ref>

[[File:Mansell in his Ferrari 641 - 1990 British GP.jpg|thumb|left|Former [[Formula One]] world champion [[Nigel Mansell]] driving at [[Silverstone Circuit|Silverstone]] in 1990. The circuit hosted the [[1950 British Grand Prix|first ever World Championship Formula One race]] in 1950.]]In [[boxing]], under the [[Marquess of Queensberry Rules]], England has produced many world champions across the weight divisions internationally recognised by the governing bodies.<ref>{{cite web |title=Top 20 British Boxers |url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/661141-the-top-20-british-boxers-of-all-time |access-date=12 April 2011 |website=[[Bleacher Report]]}}</ref>

Originating in 17th and 18th-century England, the [[thoroughbred]] is a horse breed best known for its use in [[horse racing]]. The [[National Hunt]] horse race the [[Grand National]], is held annually at [[Aintree Racecourse]] in early April. It is the most watched horse race in the UK, and three-time winner [[Red Rum]] is the most successful racehorse in the event's history.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/horse_racing/3495663.stm Red Rum: Aintree favourite] BBC. Retrieved 11 October 2011</ref>

The [[1950 British Grand Prix]] at [[Silverstone Circuit|Silverstone]] was the first race in the newly created [[Formula One World Championship]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.silverstone.co.uk/about/history/ |publisher=Silverstone.co.uk |title=The History of British Motorsport and Motor Racing at Silverstone |access-date=31 October 2009 |work=Silverstone}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.espn.co.uk/f1/motorsport/page/3421.html |work=ESPN |title=F1 Champions: Dan Wheldon killed in Las Vegas |access-date=15 December 2011}}</ref> It has manufactured some of the most technically advanced racing cars, and many of today's racing companies choose England as their base of operations. England also has a rich heritage in [[Grand Prix motorcycle racing]], the premier championship of motorcycle [[road racing]], and produced several world champions.

[[Darts]] is a widely popular sport in England; a professional competitive sport, it is a traditional [[pub game]].<ref>{{cite news |author=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/2631249.stm |title=Part relishes Taylor triumph |date=6 January 2003 |publisher=BBC |access-date=18 January 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Phil Taylor player profile |url=http://www.dartsdatabase.co.uk/PlayerDetails.aspx?playerKey=1 |work=Dartsdatabase |access-date=23 July 2010 |archive-date=18 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190118094449/http://www.dartsdatabase.co.uk/PlayerDetails.aspx?playerKey=1 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Another popular sport commonly associated with pub games is [[snooker]], and England has produced several world champions. The English are keen sailors and enjoy competitive [[sailing]]; founding and winning some of the world's most famous international competitive tournaments across the various race formats, including the [[match race]], a regatta, and the [[America's Cup]].