History of our game
History of Soccer - Introduction
Almost 150 have passed since soccer was officially born in a Tavern in London, under the pens of several clubs that formed the Football Association and wrote up the Laws of the Game. In such a short time, soccer went on from a local phenomenon around England, to an international game that is watched and loved by close to 3 billion people worldwide.
Soccer sparked countless of legendary stories throughout its existence and I'll try to take you on a historical cruise over this section of the website, where I'll cover the roots and evolution of several aspects of the game.
So without further adu, the articles!
The answer to the question "when was soccer invented" isn't as easy to answer as you might think. Sure, the modern version of the game was standardized by the English in the 19th century, as they created the first rules for the game of soccer (the Laws of the Game in 1863), the first national team and the first Football Association, a governing body for English soccer that will soon be copied by many other nations.
However, early versions of the game can be traced back to ancient times, with the Chinese playing a rather blunt kicking game back in the second century BC, or with Mezoamerican cultures practicing a game that was a combination of soccer and basketball. You can read all about the complex history of soccer in this article.
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Although we think of women's soccer as a rather recent phenomenon, since it only gained popularity in the 90s, it has actually been around for quite a while, but social and political factors always held it back. Women started playing soccer around the same time as men did in England. With the English being considered the nation who invented soccer (or the modern version of it anyway), there are records of matches between women as early as the 19th century.
In one account, a women's soccer match in England brought close to 20,000 people in the stands, which caused a form of "jealousy" from the Football Association, who excluded women from the game until recently.
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From sewn up clothing filled with rubble in ancient China, to inflated pig bladders in medieval Europe and high tech modern day wonders, the history of soccer balls was in an evolution directly proportional to the game's popularity.
Almost each World Cup brought a new version of the official soccer ball, the latest ones being true forms of technical art, giving the players on the pitch the best way to express their skills. It won’t help YOU with your football skills knowing how soccer balls evolved, but I guarantee it's a fun read.
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The football versus soccer fight rages on for years now and has sparked quite some controversy. If you go to England and mention the word "soccer", you're bound to get at least some raised eyebrows (if you're unlucky, you might even get a bruised eyebrow – your own). Similarly (or not quite), if you mention something about football in the United States, everyone will instantly think of American Football, one of the most beloved sports out here.
As you can see, most of the controversy is sparked from England over the Atlantic, not vice versa. But what few know is that the origin of the word "soccer" actually resides in England and was simply exported to the United States, where it came to be used as to avoid confusion with the American football game that was growing in popularity at that time.
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History of Soccer in Argentina
Argentina has always been one of the most powerful soccer nations around and their two World Cup wins can testify this. Going through the history of soccer in Argentina though, you'll find that they had their ups and downs, with the highest up occurring during the playing career of one of soccer's greatest: Diego Armando Maradona, a legend and a god in Argentina.
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Despite the fact that they're a cheerful people that never set back from throwing a good party, the Rio de Janeiro carnival would never be the same in Brazil after soccer literally invaded the country. After the rough start with their national team, Brazil rose to become the strongest soccer nation in history, boasting an impressive 5 World Cup wins up to date and several other continental and international trophies.
Brazilian clubs are also well known throughout the South American continent as heavy contenders for the Copa Libertadores and they've been a constant stream of talent for European clubs in the past few decades. I'd like to say that the history of soccer in Brazil had its ups and downs like in any other country, but fortunately for them (and unfortunately to everyone that's not Brazilian) it only went up, up and away.
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Of all the nations I covered in this section, the history of English Football proved the hardest to research & the longest to write. The reason should be obvious: they're the inventors of modern soccer, thus they have the most history to cover. Find out how the modern soccer phenomenon was born, what it took the English to get it to the form we play it today & how the English national team only managed to win a single World Cup, despite the fact that everyone is playing "their game", by their rules & standards.
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History of Soccer in France
One of the nations that developed soccer early next to England was France and despite the historical animosities between the two countries, they can be at peace that they both worked to bringing the game of soccer to where it is today. Many believe that soccer actually originated in France in medieval times and got exported to England who simply managed to make more of what they were given than the original "inventors".
By reading this article, you'll also get to see how the national side performed throughout the history of soccer in France, with an emphasis on their best period of time, around the coming of the 21st century.
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I'm not necessarily a fan of the Germany soccer team, but you have to give these people credit for becoming such a strong soccer nation given the harsh political and social times they went through during the Golden Age of the game. Two world wars that had Germany as one of the main actors, a country divided by social and political factors for 40 years, World Cup bans and international debts and still they managed to become a football super power.
Currently, the only national team that looks Germany from above in terms of World Cup trophies is Brazil. This article will try to shed some light on this complicated yet fascinating history of soccer in Germany.
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Undoubtedly one of the greatest soccer powers throughout time, Italy is considered by many the "re-inventor of soccer", if England is the original inventor. Italian players and coaches took the game to the extreme in the 20th century and if the game became so valuable and popular, we most likely owe it to the Italians in a great measure.
The national Serie A championship, one of the best in the World, has always tried to concentrate the crème of the crop in Italy, with the help of powerful clubs such as Inter, AC Milan, AS Roma, Juventus Torino, Fiorentina or Lazio.
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Strangely enough, despite being considered one of the most powerful soccer countries throughout time and a constant favorite at the start of each World Cup, Spain never managed to win this sought-after trophy. So most of the history of soccer in Spain has the national league at its center, with legendary clubs such as Real Madrid or FC Barcelona changing the face of European football over the years.
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Mexicans have been in the first scene of soccer ever since it became popular, if not with outstanding performances (Mexico's best World Cup performance is reaching a quarter final), but with outstanding organization, as they hosted two World Cups that are still considered amongst the most entertaining and successful in history. But the history of soccer in Mexico doesn't revolve strictly around the national team, as the Primera Division league is one of the toughest and richest in the Americas.
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Soccer History in the United States
Having tough competition in the form of baseball, American football, hockey and basketball, soccer had a harder time making a name for itself in the United States. Still, the U.S. was one of the first nations to have a national squad and it already has a World Cup organization under the belt, in 1994.
Lacking any outstanding performances with the men's national side, the United States were far more successful in women's soccer, where the national team won the Women's World Cup twice, becoming one of the most important nations on the scene. With the birth of the Major League Soccer in the 90s, it seems like the game is catching up in the United States as well.
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