History Of Football: When And Where Was Football Formed? (Essay Sample)

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Introduction
Research shows that the evolution of the football started in England in 1873 during the formation of the association of soccer. The soccer game flourished in England in the 19th century and was mostly used as a form of entertainment. Before the advancement of the footballing to a more modern style, the players used to play football in meadows and roads and thus it was primitive. Most of the times it resulted in violence, deaths and destruction of properties. The research examines the history of the football game since time immemorial, compares and contrasts the traditional football with the current one to see the changes that the footballing field has undergone.
History of Football
When and where was Football Formed?
In 1863, there was branching off the association of football and the rugby football to form different organizations. Thus the football game was established in 1863 after the union of football branched from the rugby football. The process took place in England leading to the formation of a football association. The current form of soccer began in England in the 19th century. However, research shows that there existed alternative versions of football before and are thus part of the game history (Magoun, 1966).
Since the beginning of the 15th century, there has been the existence of football clubs. However, studies show that the clubs were unorganized and without official status. The students of former schools came together and established an unprofessional club in Sheffield in 1855. In 1862, there was the formation of the earliest official football club known as English club Notts County. In 1985, there was the legalization of professional football and 1988 there was the establishment of the football league (Magoun, 1966).
Who Founded the Sport?
The football association of England founded the football sporting. The codification of the organization of football first took place in London in 1863. The football association was formed with an objective of unifying the football games in the public schools and university games. Vince Lombardi once said that “a school without football is in danger of deteriorating into a medieval study hall” and thus the earliest people heeded to this wise saying as they always wanted to keep the students’ minds fresh (Kitching, 2015). There are numerous documents which evidence that football has been in existence since 1314 in England. England is the base for the world’s earliest clubs which dates in 1857 and also the home of the oldest competition in the world that is the FA cup which was established in 1871. It is in England where the establishment of the modern passing game took place in the 1870’s (Kitching, 2015). Therefore, it has been proved beyond doubt that England is the cradle of football and it is the place that saw the founding of the earliest and the modern football.
Where Football was played and how?
The earliest recognized examples of a ball team game consisted of a ball which was made from a rock. It took place over 300 years past in the old Mesoamerican cultures. The ball was a symbol of the sun and the captain of the team which lost the match was offered as a sacrifice to the gods. The first famous ball game which engaged the players in kicking during 2nd and 3rd century BC in China and was known as Cuju. It consisted of a round ball which was played on a square area. The Cuju later spread to other places of the world such as Japan and was mostly played during the ceremonies (Marples, 1954). The Cuju game resembled the modern soccer. The players of the game used a stitched ball, and the playing style was kicking the ball between two goals. After the Cuju game ended, similar games sprouted in Malay Peninsula, Asia, Japan and Australia (Marples, 1954).
In Ancient Greek, there were also other variety of ball games which were also known. The balls were manufactured from shreds of leather and were filled with air. The ball games were not played in big arenas in the Ancient Rome, but they were mostly played in the military exercises. In the United States mainly the southern and central parts of America, the soccer game was standard and reigned throughout these areas. It is only the Mesoamerica which came up with the old rubber ball that bounced that bounced as it was played because it had some air in it. On the other hand, the European countries had little to no soccer balls in its primitive cultures (Marples, 1954).
In 1871, the Football Association challenge cup (FA) became the oldest crucial competition in England. In 1872, two national teams played the first football match. The national derby involved England and Scotland, and the final results were 0-0. Four thousand people were in attendance to witness and spectate for the game. The first international tournament took place in 1883 and included four national teams which are Ireland, Wales, England and Scotland (Taylor, 2016).
Similarities between Early and Modern Football
There are various similarities between the earliest football and the modern one. For instance, both games utilized a single ball and consisted of two opposing teams. The contemporary football game is also played in primary, secondary and university institutions similar to the traditional football. The old soccer was played mostly for entertainment which well compares with the modern soccer game. The fans always visit the football stadiums to entertain themselves and relieve themselves from the stress of daily activities. In the 19th century, the game would record a large group of spectators amounting to 30, 000. The present-day football has also registered thousands of people who attend the football stadiums to cheer their football clubs. According to Tom Brady “Football is unconditional love”, and that is why the many people love football (Kitching, 2015). They always attend football stadiums in large numbers to watch their favourite teams play.
Differences of How the Football Game Used to be played versus how it is Currently Played
The development of the earliest football took place in England in the 12th Century. During this time, the football games were played on roads and meadows. In today’s world, the playing of the football takes place in well-refined football pitches which are well measured and marked. Stadiums have been built surrounding these football grounds where fans and spectators can come in large numbers to watch and spectate for the game (Taylor, 2016). The earliest football had no stadiums, and hence this is a significant advancement. In addition to the kicks, the traditional soccer also involved punching of the ball by the use of a fist. Today, it is illegal to punch or touch the ball as the behavior amounts to a foul ...