Soccer is an outdoor ball and
goal game, called football in most other parts of the world. The first
recorded game probably was that on a Shrove Tuesday in
Derby, England, part of a
festival to celebrate a
victory over a contingent of Roman troops (AD
217). By 1175 the Shrove Tuesday soccer game was an annual event.
The sport remained popular for centuries in England under the name
football. But the advent of Rugby (1823) as a variant led to
confusion. The London Football Association was formed (1863) to
further the game that emphasized the kicking of the ball. This became
known as association football and then, through abbreviation,
as soccer. It was rapidly adopted in continental Europe, where
it still generally goes under the name football. Other related sports
called football are popular in countries including Ireland and
Australia.
Soccer is the most popular international team sport, followed by
vast, emotional audiences and associated at times with such events as
the 1969 “Soccer War” between El Salvador and Honduras and oubreaks of
mass hooliganism, notably by British supporters. It has long been
secondary in the United States, though, where American football, a
descendant primarily of rugby, dominates. Since the 1970s, American
soccer has grown at many levels, from childrens' to collegiate;
professional soccer, however, has achieved only sporadic success, with
the birth and decline of several leagues as fan interest generally
lagged. The most recent U.S. professional league, Major League Soccer,
played its first season in 1996 and currently has 10 teams.
International competition is regulated by the Fédération
Internationale de Football Association (FIFA; founded 1904), which
sponsors the quadrennial (since 1930) World Cup competition and whose
membership is larger than that of the United Nations. Soccer has been
an Olympic event since 1900. The first Women's World Cup, in 1991, was
won by the United States, where women's soccer has won more attention
than men's; the women's competition was added to the Olympics in 1996.
Sparked by these successes, a U.S. professional women's soccer league
consisting of eight teams recruited from the best players worldwide
began play in 2001, but it folded two years later.
The game is played on a grassy field usually 120 yd by 75 yd (110
m by 70 m). Centered on each end line is a goal, 8 yd (7.3 m) wide by
8 ft (2.4 m) high, backed with netting. A team consists of eleven
players—traditionally a goalkeeper, two fullbacks, three halfbacks,
and five forwards. Recent variants on these positions include the
striker, a forward who remains close to the opponents' goal, and the
sweeper, a roving defender. Play is continuous through two 45-min
periods, and substitutions are severely limited. Overtime is played in
case of a tie, and if no further scoring occurs, the match may be
resolved with a series of alternating penalty kicks.
The object of the game is to advance an inflated leather
ball—about 28 in. (71 cm) in circumference—into the opponents' goal.
The ball is kicked (often dribbled with short kicks) or advanced with
other parts of the body, but only the goalkeeper may use the hands.
Each goal counts one point. Penalties are various types of free kicks,
depending on the infraction; a player may be ejected (without
replacement) for a flagrant foul. Perhaps the greatest soccer player
of all time is Brazil's Pelé ; other recent notables have included
Franz Beckenbauer (Germany), Roberto Biaggio (Italy), and Diego
Maradonna (Argentina).
victory over a contingent of Roman troops (AD
217). By 1175 the Shrove Tuesday soccer game was an annual event.
The sport remained popular for centuries in England under the name
football. But the advent of Rugby (1823) as a variant led to
confusion. The London Football Association was formed (1863) to
further the game that emphasized the kicking of the ball. This became
known as association football and then, through abbreviation,
as soccer. It was rapidly adopted in continental Europe, where
it still generally goes under the name football. Other related sports
called football are popular in countries including Ireland and
Australia.