Football

This article is about the family of sports. For specific sports and other uses, seeFootball (disambiguation).

Association football (soccer)

American football(gridiron)

Australian rules football

Gaelic football (GAA)

Rugby league football

Rugby union football

Several codes of football

Footballis a family ofteam sportsthat involve, to varying degrees,kickingaballto score agoal.Unqualified,the wordfootballgenerally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly calledfootballincludeassociation football(known assoccerinAustralia,Canada,South Africa,theUnited States,and sometimes in Ireland and New Zealand);Australian rules football;Gaelic football;gridiron football(specificallyAmerican football,arena football,orCanadian football);International rules football;rugby league football;andrugby union football.These various forms of football share, to varying degrees, common origins and are known as "football codes".

There are a number of references to traditional, ancient, or prehistoric ball games played in many different parts of the world.Contemporary codes of football can be traced back to the codification ofthese games at English public schoolsduring the 19th century, itself an outgrowth ofmedieval football.The expansion and cultural power of theBritish Empireallowed these rules of football to spread to areas of British influence outside the directly controlled empire.By the end of the 19th century, distinct regional codes were already developing:Gaelic football,for example, deliberately incorporated the rules of local traditional football games in order to maintain their heritage.In 1888, theFootball Leaguewas founded in England, becoming the first of many professional football associations. During the 20th century, several of the various kinds of football grew to become some of the most popularteam sportsin the world.

Common elements

The action of kicking in (clockwise from upper left) association, gridiron, rugby, and Australian football

The various codes of football share certain common elements and can be grouped into two main classes of football:carryingcodes like American football, Canadian football, Australian football, rugby union and rugby league, where the ball is moved about the field while being held in the hands or thrown, andkickingcodes such as association football and Gaelic football, where the ball is moved primarily with the feet, and where handling is strictly limited.

Common rules among the sports include:

• Twoteamsusually have between 11 and 18 players; some variations that have fewer players (five or more per team) are also popular.
• A clearly defined area in which to play the game.
• Scoringgoalsorpointsby moving the ball to an opposing team's end of the field and either into a goal area, or over a line.
• Goals or points resulting from players putting the ball between twogoalposts.
• The goal or line beingdefendedby the opposing team.
• Players using only their body to move the ball, i.e. no additional equipment such as bats or sticks.

In all codes, common skills includepassing,tackling,evasion of tackles, catching andkicking.In most codes, there are rules restricting the movement of playersoffside,and players scoring a goal must put the ball either under or over acrossbarbetween thegoalposts.

Etymology

Main article:Football(word)

There are conflicting explanations of the origin of the word "football". It is widely assumed that the word "football" (or the phrase "foot ball" ) refers to the action of the foot kicking a ball.There is an alternative explanation, which is that football originally referred to a variety of games inmedieval Europethat were playedon foot.There is no conclusive evidence for either explanation.

Early history

Ancient games

See also:EpiskyrosandCuju

Ancient China

Emperor Taizu of Songplayingcuju(Chinese football) with his prime ministerZhao Pu( Triệu Phổ ) and other ministers, byYuan dynastyartistQian Xuan(1235–1305)

The Chinese competitive gamecujuis an early type of ball game where feet were used, in some aspects resembling modernassociation football.It was possibly played around theHan dynastyand earlyQin dynasty,based on an attestation in a military manual from around the second to third centuries BC.In one version, gameplay consisted of players passing the ball between teammates without allowing it to touch the ground (much likekeepie uppie). In its competitive version, two teams had to pass the ball without it falling, before kicking the ball through a circular hole placed in the middle of the pitch. Unlike association football, the two teams did not interact with each other but instead stayed on opposite sides of the pitch.Cuju has been cited by FIFA as the earliest form of football.
The Japanese version ofcujuiskemari( đá cầu ), and was developed during theAsuka period.This is known to have been played within the Japanese imperial court inKyotofrom about 600 AD. Inkemari,several people stand in a circle and kick a ball to each other, trying not to let the ball drop to the ground. TheSilk Roadfacilitated the transmission ofcuju,especially the game popular in theTang dynasty,the period when theinflatableball was invented and replaced the stuffed ball.

Anancient Romantombstone of a boy with aHarpastumball fromTilurium(modernSinj,Croatia)

Ancient Greece and Rome

TheAncient GreeksandRomansare known to have played many ball games, some of which involved the use of the feet. The Roman gameharpastumis believed to have been adapted from aGreekteam game known asἐπίσκυρος(episkyros)orφαινίνδα(phaininda),which is mentioned by a Greek playwright,Antiphanes(388–311 BC) and later referred to by the Christian theologianClement of Alexandria(c. 150–c. 215 AD). These games appear to have resembledrugby football.The Roman politicianCicero(106–43 BC) describes the case of a man who was killed whilst having a shave when a ball was kicked into a barber's shop. Roman ball games already knew the air-filled ball, thefollis.Episkyrosis described as an early form of football by FIFA.

Native Americans

There are a number of references to traditional,ancient,orprehistoricball games, played byindigenous peoplesin many different parts of the world. For example, in 1586, men from a ship commanded by an English explorer namedJohn Daviswent ashore to play a form of football withInuitin Greenland.There are later accounts of an Inuit game played on ice, calledAqsaqtuk.Each match began with two teams facing each other in parallel lines, before attempting to kick the ball through each other team's line and then at a goal. In 1610,William Strachey,a colonist atJamestown, Virginiarecorded a game played by Native Americans, calledPahsaheman.Pasuckuakohowog,a game similar to modern-dayassociation footballplayed amongstAmerindians,was also reported as early as the 17th century.

Games played in Mesoamericawith rubber balls byindigenous peoplesare also well-documented as existing since before this time, but these had more similarities tobasketballorvolleyball,and no links have been found between such games and modern football sports. Northeastern American Indians, especially theIroquoisConfederation, played a game which made use of net racquets to throw and catch a small ball; however, although it is a ball-goal foot game,lacrosse(as its modern descendant is called) is likewise not usually classed as a form of "football".

Oceania

On theAustralian continentseveral tribes ofindigenous peopleplayed kicking and catching games with stuffed balls which have been generalised by historians asMarn Grook(Djab Wurrungfor "game ball" ). The earliest historical account is ananecdotefrom the 1878 book byRobert Brough-Smyth,The Aborigines of Victoria,in which a man called Richard Thomas is quoted as saying, in about 1841 inVictoria, Australia,that he had witnessed Aboriginal people playing the game: "Mr Thomas describes how the foremost player will drop kick a ball made from the skin of apossumand how other players leap into the air in order to catch it. "Some historians have theorised thatMarn Grookwas one of theorigins ofAustralian rules football.

TheMāoriin New Zealand played a game calledKī-o-rahiconsisting of teams of seven players play on a circular field divided into zones, and score points by touching the 'pou' (boundary markers) and hitting a central 'tupu' or target.

These games and others may well go far back into antiquity. However, the main sources of modern football codes appear to lie in western Europe, especially England.

Turkic peoples

Mahmud al-Kashgariin hisDīwān Lughāt al-Turk,described a game calledtepukamongTurksinCentral Asia.In the game, people try to attack each other's castle by kicking a ball made of sheep leather.

• 
  Ancient Greekathlete balancing a ball on his thigh,Piraeus,400–375 BC
• 
  ASong dynastypainting by Su Hanchen (c. 1130–1160), depicting Chinese children playingcuju
• 
  Paint of aMesoamerican ballgameplayer of the Tepantitla murals inTeotihuacan
• 
  A group of indigenous people playing a ball game inFrench Guiana
• 
  An illustration from the 1850s ofindigenous Australiansplayingmarn grook
• 
  A revived version ofkemaribeing played at theTanzan Shrine,Japan, 2006

Medieval and early modern Europe

Further information:Medieval football

TheMiddle Agessaw a huge rise in popularity of annualShrovetide footballmatches throughout Europe, particularly in England. An early reference to a ball game played in Britain comes from the 9th-centuryHistoria Brittonum,attributed toNennius,which describes "a party of boys... playing at ball".References to a ball game played in northern France known asLa SouleorChoule,in which the ball was propelled by hands, feet, and sticks,date from the 12th century.

An illustration of so-called "mob football"

The early forms of football played in England, sometimes referred to as "mob football",would be played in towns or between neighbouring villages, involving an unlimited number of players on opposing teams who would clashen masse,struggling to move an item, such as inflated animal'sbladderto particular geographical points, such as their opponents' church, with play taking place in the open space between neighbouring parishes.The game was played primarily during significant religious festivals, such as Shrovetide, Christmas, or Easter,and Shrovetide games have survived into the modern era in a number of English towns (see below).

The first detailed description of what was almost certainly football in England was given byWilliam FitzStephenin about 1174–1183. He described the activities of London youths during the annual festival ofShrove Tuesday:

After lunch all the youth of the city go out into the fields to take part in a ball game. The students of each school have their own ball; the workers from each city craft are also carrying their balls. Older citizens, fathers, and wealthy citizens come on horseback to watch their juniors competing, and to relive their own youth vicariously: you can see their inner passions aroused as they watch the action and get caught up in the fun being had by the carefree adolescents.

Most of the very early references to the game speak simply of "ball play" or "playing at ball". This reinforces the idea that the games played at the time did not necessarily involve a ball being kicked.

An early reference to a ball game that was probably football comes from 1280 atUlgham,Northumberland, England: "Henry... while playing at ball.. ran against David".Football was played in Ireland in 1308, with a documented reference to John McCrocan, a spectator at a "football game" atNewcastle, County Downbeing charged with accidentally stabbing a player named William Bernard.Another reference to a football game comes in 1321 atShouldham,Norfolk, England: "[d]uring the game at ball as he kicked the ball, a lay friend of his... ran against him and wounded himself".

In 1314,Nicholas de Farndone,Lord Mayor of the City of Londonissued a decree banning football in the French used by the English upper classes at the time. A translation reads: "[f]orasmuch as there is great noise in the city caused by hustling over large foot balls [rageries de grosses pelotes de pee]in the fields of the public from which many evils might arise which God forbid: we command and forbid on behalf of the king, on pain of imprisonment, such game to be used in the city in the future. "This is the earliest reference to football.

In 1363, KingEdward III of Englandissued a proclamation banning "...handball, football, or hockey; coursing and cock-fighting, or other such idle games",showing that "football" – whatever its exact form in this case – was being differentiated from games involving other parts of the body, such as handball.

"Football" in France, circa 1750

A game known as "football" was played in Scotland as early as the 15th century: it was prohibited by the Football Act 1424 and although the law fell into disuse it was not repealed until 1906. There is evidence for schoolboys playing a "football" ball game in Aberdeen in 1633 (some references cite 1636) which is notable as an early allusion to what some have considered to be passing the ball. The word "pass" in the most recent translation is derived from "huc percute" (strike it here) and later "repercute pilam" (strike the ball again) in the original Latin. It is not certain that the ball was being struck between members of the same team. The original word translated as "goal" is "metum", literally meaning the "pillar at each end of the circus course" in a Roman chariot race. There is a reference to "get hold of the ball before [another player] does" (Praeripe illi pilam si possis agere) suggesting that handling of the ball was allowed. One sentence states in the original 1930 translation "Throw yourself against him" (Age, objice te illi).

KingHenry IV of Englandalso presented one of the earliest documented uses of the English word "football", in 1409, when he issued a proclamation forbidding the levying of money for "foteball".

There is also an account inLatinfrom the end of the 15th century of football being played atCaunton,Nottinghamshire. This is the first description of a "kicking game" and the first description ofdribbling:"[t]he game at which they had met for common recreation is called by some the foot-ball game. It is one in which young men, in country sport, propel a huge ball not by throwing it into the air but by striking it and rolling it along the ground, and that not with their hands but with their feet... kicking in opposite directions." The chronicler gives the earliest reference to a football pitch, stating that: "[t]he boundaries have been marked and the game had started.

Oldest known painting of foot-ball in Scotland, byAlexander Carse,c. 1810

"Football" in Scotland,c. 1830

Other firsts in the medieval andearly moderneras:

• "A football", in the sense of a ball rather than a game, was first mentioned in 1486.This reference is in DameJuliana Berners'Book ofSt Albans.It states: "a certain rounde instrument to play with...it is an instrument for the foote and then it is calde in Latyn 'pila pedalis', a fotebal".
• A pair of football boots were ordered by KingHenry VIII of Englandin 1526.
• Women playing a form of football was first described in 1580 by SirPhilip Sidneyin one of his poems: "[a] tyme there is for all, my mother often sayes, when she, with skirts tuckt very hy, with girles at football playes".
• The first references togoalsare in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. In 1584 and 1602 respectively,John NordenandRichard Carewreferred to "goals" inCornish hurling.Carew described how goals were made: "they pitch two bushes in the ground, some eight or ten foote asunder; and directly against them, ten or twelue [twelve] score off, other twayne in like distance, which they terme their Goales".He is also the first to describe goalkeepers and passing of the ball between players.
• The first direct reference toscoring a goalis inJohn Day's playThe Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green(performed circa 1600; published 1659): "I'll play a gole atcamp-ball"(an extremely violent variety of football, which was popular inEast Anglia). Similarly in a poem in 1613,Michael Draytonrefers to "when the Ball to throw, and drive it to the Gole, in squadrons forth they goe".

Calcio Fiorentino

Main article:Calcio Fiorentino

An illustration of theCalcio Fiorentinofield and starting positions, from a 1688 book by Pietro di Lorenzo Bini

In the 16th century, the city ofFlorencecelebrated the period betweenEpiphanyandLentby playing a game which today is known as "calcio storico"(" historic kickball ") in thePiazza Santa Croce.The young aristocrats of the city would dress up in fine silk costumes and embroil themselves in a violent form of football. For example,calcioplayers could punch, shoulder charge, and kick opponents. Blows below the belt were allowed. The game is said to have originated as a military training exercise. In 1580, Count Giovanni de' Bardi di Vernio wroteDiscorso sopra 'l giuoco del Calcio Fiorentino.This is sometimes said to be the earliest code of rules for any football game. The game was not played after January 1739 (until it was revived in May 1930).

Official disapproval and attempts to ban football

Main article:Attempts to ban football games

There have been many attempts to ban football, from theMiddle Agesthrough to the modern day. The first such law was passed in England in 1314; it was followed by more than 30 in England alone between 1314 and 1667.Women werebanned from playingat English and Scottish Football League grounds in 1921, a ban that was only lifted in the 1970s. Female footballers still face similar problems in some parts of the world.

American footballalso faced pressures to ban the sport. The game played in the 19th century resembledmob footballthat developed in medieval Europe, including a version popular on university campuses known asold division football,and several municipalities banned its play in the mid-19th century.By the 20th century, the game had evolved to a more rugby style game. In 1905, there were calls to banAmerican footballin the U.S. due to its violence; a meeting that year was hosted by American presidentTheodore Rooseveltled to sweeping rules changes that caused the sport to diverge significantly from its rugby roots to become more like the sport as it is played today.

Establishment of modern codes

English public schools

Main article:English public school football games

While football continued to be played in various forms throughout Britain, itspublic schools(equivalent to private schools in other countries) are widely credited with four key achievements in the creation of modern football codes. First of all, the evidence suggests that they were important in taking football away from its "mob" form and turning it into an organised team sport. Second, many early descriptions of football and references to it were recorded by people who had studied at these schools. Third, it was teachers, students, and former students from these schools who first codified football games, to enable matches to be played between schools. Finally, it was at English public schools that the division between "kicking" and "running" (or "carrying" ) games first became clear.

The earliest evidence that games resembling football were being played at English public schools – mainly attended by boys from the upper, upper-middle and professional classes – comes from theVulgariaby William Herman in 1519. Herman had been headmaster atEtonandWinchestercolleges and hisLatintextbook includes a translation exercise with the phrase "We wyll playe with a ball full of wynde".

Richard Mulcaster,a student at Eton College in the early 16th century and later headmaster at other English schools, has been described as "the greatest sixteenth Century advocate of football".Among his contributions are the earliest evidence of organised team football. Mulcaster's writings refer to teams ( "sides" and "parties" ), positions ( "standings" ), a referee ( "judge over the parties" ) and a coach "(trayning maister)". Mulcaster's "footeball" had evolved from the disordered and violent forms of traditional football:

[s]ome smaller number with such overlooking, sorted into sides and standings, not meeting with their bodies so boisterously to trie their strength: nor shouldring or shuffing one an other so barbarously... may use footeball for as much good to the body, by the chiefe use of the legges.

In 1633,David Wedderburn,a teacher fromAberdeen,mentioned elements of modern football games in a short Latin textbook calledVocabula.Wedderburn refers to what has been translated into modern English as "keeping goal" and makes an allusion to passing the ball ( "strike it here" ). There is a reference to "get hold of the ball", suggesting that some handling was allowed. It is clear that the tackles allowed included the charging and holding of opposing players ( "drive that man back" ).

A more detailed description of football is given inFrancis Willughby'sBook of Games,written in about 1660.Willughby, who had studied atBishop Vesey's Grammar School,Sutton Coldfield,is the first to describe goals and a distinct playing field: "a close that has a gate at either end. The gates are called Goals." His book includes a diagram illustrating a football field. He also mentions tactics ( "leaving some of their best players to guard the goal" ); scoring ( "they that can strike the ball through their opponents' goal first win" ) and the way teams were selected ( "the players being equally divided according to their strength and nimbleness" ). He is the first to describe a "law" of football: "they must not strike [an opponent's leg] higher than the ball".

English public schools were the first to codify football games. In particular, they devised the firstoffsiderules, during the late 18th century.In the earliest manifestations of these rules, players were "off their side" if they simply stood between the ball and the goal which was their objective. Players were not allowed to pass the ball forward, either by foot or by hand. They could only dribble with their feet, or advance the ball in ascrumor similarformation.However, offside laws began to diverge and develop differently at each school, as is shown by the rules of football from Winchester,Rugby,HarrowandCheltenham,during between 1810 and 1850.The first known codes – in the sense of a set of rules – were those of Eton in 1815andAldenhamin 1825.)

During the early 19th century, most working-class people in Britain had to work six days a week, often for over twelve hours a day. They had neither the time nor the inclination to engage in sport for recreation and, at the time, manychildren were part of the labour force.Feast dayfootball played on the streets was in decline. Public school boys, who enjoyed some freedom from work, became the inventors of organised football games with formal codes of rules.

Football was adopted by a number of public schools as a way of encouraging competitiveness and keeping youths fit. Each school drafted its own rules, which varied widely between different schools and were changed over time with each new intake of pupils. Two schools of thought developed regarding rules. Some schools favoured a game in which the ball could be carried (as at Rugby,Marlboroughand Cheltenham), while others preferred a game where kicking and dribbling the ball was promoted (as at Eton, Harrow,WestminsterandCharterhouse). The division into these two camps was partly the result of circumstances in which the games were played. For example, Charterhouse and Westminster at the time had restricted playing areas; the boys were confined to playing their ball game within the schoolcloisters,making it difficult for them to adopt rough and tumble running games.

Although theRugby School(pictured) became famous due to a version thatrugby footballwas invented there in 1823, most sports historians refuse this version stating it is apocryphal.

William Webb Ellis,a pupil at Rugby School, is said to have "with a fine disregard for the rules of football,as played in his time[emphasis added], first took the ball in his arms and ran with it, thus creating the distinctive feature of the rugby game. "in 1823. This act is usually said to be the beginning of Rugby football, but there is little evidence that it occurred, and most sports historians believe the story to be apocryphal. The act of 'taking the ball in his arms' is often misinterpreted as 'picking the ball up' as it is widely believed that Webb Ellis' 'crime' was handling the ball, as in modern association football, however handling the ball at the time was often permitted and in some cases compulsory,the rule for which Webb Ellis showed disregard wasrunning forward with itas the rules of his time only allowed a player to retreat backwards or kick forwards.

The boom in rail transport in Britainduring the 1840s meant that people were able to travel farther and with less inconvenience than they ever had before. Inter-school sporting competitions became possible. However, it was difficult for schools to play each other at football, as each school played by its own rules. The solution to this problem was usually that the match be divided into two-halves, one half played by the rules of the host "home" school, and the other half by the visiting "away" school.

Themodernrules of many football codes were formulated during the mid- or late- 19th century. This also applies to other sports such as lawn bowls, lawn tennis, etc. The major impetus for this was the patenting of the world's firstlawnmowerin 1830. This allowed for the preparation of modern ovals, playing fields, pitches, grass courts, etc.

Apart from Rugby football, the public school codes have barely been played beyond the confines of each school's playing fields. However, many of them are still played at the schools which created them (see§ British schools).

A Football Game(1839) by British painterThomas Webster

Public schools' dominance of sports in the UK began to wane after theFactory Act 1850,which significantly increased the recreation time available to working class children. Before 1850, many British children had to work six days a week, for more than twelve hours a day. From 1850, they could not work before 6 a.m. (7 a.m. in winter) or after 6 p.m. on weekdays (7 p.m. in winter); on Saturdays they had to cease work at 2 pm. These changes meant that working class children had more time for games, including various forms of football.

The earliest known matches between public schools are as follows:

Football match in the 1846Shrove TuesdayinKingston upon Thames,England

• 9 December 1834: Eton School v. Harrow School.
• 1840s: Old Rugbeians v. Old Salopians (played at Cambridge University).
• 1840s: Old Rugbeians v. Old Salopians (played at Cambridge University the following year).
• 1852: Harrow School v. Westminster School.
• 1857: Haileybury School v. Westminster School.
• 24 February 1858:Forest Schoolv.Chigwell School.
• 1858: Westminster School v. Winchester College.
• 1859: Harrow School v. Westminster School.
• 19 November 1859: Radley College v. Old Wykehamists.
• 1 December 1859: Old Marlburians v. Old Rugbeians (played at Christ Church, Oxford).
• 19 December 1859: Old Harrovians v. Old Wykehamists (played at Christ Church, Oxford).

Firsts

Clubs

Main article:Oldest football clubs

Sheffield F.C.(here pictured in 1857, the year of its foundation) is the oldest surviving association football club in the world.

Notes about a Sheffield v. Hallam match, dated 29 December 1862

Sports clubs dedicated to playing football began in the 18th century, for exampleLondon's Gymnastic Societywhich was founded in the mid-18th century and ceased playing matches in 1796.

The first documented club to bear in the title a reference to being a 'football club' were called "The Foot-Ball Club" who were located inEdinburgh,Scotland, during the period 1824–41.The club forbade tripping but allowed pushing and holding and the picking up of the ball.

In 1845, three boys at Rugby school were tasked with codifying the rules then being used at the school. These were the first set of written rules (or code) for any form of football.This further assisted the spread of the Rugby game.

The earliest known matches involving non-public school clubs or institutions are as follows:

• 13 February 1856: Charterhouse School v. St Bartholemew's Hospital.
• 7 November 1856: Bedford Grammar School v. Bedford Town Gentlemen.
• 13 December 1856: Sunbury Military College v. Littleton Gentlemen.
• December 1857: Edinburgh University v. Edinburgh Academical Club.
• 24 November 1858: Westminster School v. Dingley Dell Club.
• 12 May 1859: Tavistock School v. Princetown School.
• 5 November 1859: Eton School v. Oxford University.
• 22 February 1860: Charterhouse School v. Dingley Dell Club.
• 21 July 1860: Melbourne v. Richmond.
• 17 December 1860: 58th Regiment v. Sheffield.
• 26 December 1860: Sheffield v. Hallam.

Competitions

Main article:Oldest football competitions

One of the longest running football fixture is theCordner-Eggleston Cup,contested betweenMelbourne Grammar SchoolandScotch College, Melbourneevery year since 1858. It is believed by many to also be the first match ofAustralian rules football,although it was played under experimental rules in its first year. The first football trophy tournament was the Caledonian Challenge Cup, donated by the RoyalCaledonianSociety of Melbourne, played in 1861 under theMelbourne Rules.The oldest football league is a rugby football competition, theUnited Hospitals Challenge Cup(1874), while the oldest rugby trophy is theYorkshire Cup,contested since 1878. TheSouth Australian Football Association(30 April 1877) is the oldest surviving Australian rules football competition. The oldest surviving soccer trophy is theYoudan Cup(1867) and the oldest national football competition is the English FA Cup (1871).The Football League(1888) is recognised as the longest running association football league.The first international Rugby football matchtook place between Scotland and England on 27 March 1871 atRaeburn Place,Edinburgh.Thefirst international Association football matchofficially took place between sides representing England and Scotland on 30 November 1872 atHamilton Crescent,theWest of Scotland Cricket Club's ground inPartick,Glasgowunder the authority of the FA.

Modern balls

Main article:Football (ball)

Richard Lindon(seen in 1880) is believed to have invented the first footballs with rubber bladders.

In Europe, early footballs were made out of animalbladders,more specificallypig's bladders,which were inflated. Later leather coverings were introduced to allow the balls to keep their shape.However, in 1851,Richard LindonandWilliam Gilbert,both shoemakers from the town ofRugby(near the school), exhibited both round and oval-shaped balls at theGreat Exhibitionin London. Richard Lindon's wife is said to have died of lung disease caused by blowing up pig's bladders.Lindon also won medals for the invention of the "Rubber inflatable Bladder" and the "Brass Hand Pump".

In 1855, the U.S. inventorCharles Goodyear– who had patentedvulcanised rubber– exhibited a spherical football, with an exterior of vulcanised rubber panels, at theParisExhibition Universelle.The ball was to prove popular in early forms of football in the U.S.

The iconic ball with a regular pattern of hexagons and pentagons (seetruncated icosahedron) did not become popular until the 1960s, and was first used in the World Cupin 1970.

Modern ball passing tactics

Main article:Passing (association football)

The earliest reference to a game of football involving players passing the ball and attempting to score past a goalkeeper was written in 1633 by David Wedderburn, a poet and teacher inAberdeen,Scotland.Nevertheless, the original text does not state whether the allusion to passing as 'kick the ball back' ('repercute pilam') was in a forward or backward direction or between members of the same opposing teams (as was usual at this time).

"Scientific" football is first recorded in 1839 fromLancashireand in the modern game in rugby football from 1862and from Sheffield FC as early as 1865.The first side to play a passingcombination gamewas theRoyal Engineers AFCin 1869/70.By 1869 they were "work[ing] well together", "backing up" and benefiting from "cooperation".By 1870 the Engineers were passing the ball: "Lieut. Creswell, who having brought the ball up the side then kicked it into the middle to another of his side, who kicked it through the posts the minute before time was called".Passing was a regular feature of their style.By early 1872 the Engineers were the first football team renowned for "play[ing] beautifully together".A double pass is first reported from Derby school againstNottingham Forestin March 1872, the first of which is irrefutably ashortpass: "Mr Absey dribbling the ball half the length of the field delivered it to Wallis, who kicking it cleverly in front of the goal, sent it to the captain who drove it at once between the Nottingham posts".The first side to have perfected the modern formation wasCambridge University AFC;they also introduced the 2–3–5 "pyramid" formation.

Rugby football

Main articles:Rugby footballandHistory of rugby union

The Last Scrimmageby Edwin Buckman, depicting a rugby scrum in 1871

Rugby football was thought to have been started about 1845 atRugby SchoolinRugby, Warwickshire,England although forms of football in which the ball was carried and tossed date tomedievaltimes. InBritain,by 1870, there were 49 clubs playing variations of the Rugby school game.There were also "rugby" clubs in Ireland, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. However, there was no generally accepted set of rules for rugby until 1871, when 21 clubs from London came together to form theRugby Football Union(RFU). The first official RFU rules were adopted in June 1871.These rules allowed passing the ball. They also included thetry,where touching the ball over the line allowed an attempt at goal, though drop-goals from marks and general play, and penalty conversions were still the main form of contest. Regardless of any form of football, the first international match between the national team ofEnglandandScotlandtook place at Raeburn Place on 27 March 1871.

Rugby footballsplit intoRugby union,Rugby league,American football,andCanadian football.Tom Willsplayed Rugby football in England before foundingAustralian rules football.

Cambridge rules

Main article:Cambridge rules

During the nineteenth century, several codifications of the rules of football were made at theUniversity of Cambridge,in order to enable students from different public schools to play each other. The Cambridge Rules of 1863 influenced the decision of theFootball Associationto ban Rugby-style carrying of the ball in its own first set of laws.

Sheffield rules

Main article:Sheffield rules

By the late 1850s, many football clubs had been formed throughout the English-speaking world, to play various codes of football.Sheffield Football Club,founded in 1857 in the English city ofSheffieldby Nathaniel Creswick and William Prest, was later recognised as the world's oldest club playing association football. However, the club initially played its own code of football: theSheffield rules.The code was largely independent of the public school rules, the most significant difference being the lack of anoffsiderule.

The code was responsible for many innovations that later spread to association football. These includedfree kicks,corner kicks,handball,throw-insand the crossbar.By the 1870s they became the dominant code in the north and midlands of England. At this time, a series of rule changes by both theLondonandSheffieldFAs gradually eroded the differences between the two games until the adoption of a common code in 1877.

Australian rules football

Main article:Australian rules football

See also:Origins of Australian rules football

Tom Wills,major figure in the creation of Australian football

There is archival evidence of "foot-ball" games being played in various parts of Australia throughout the first half of the 19th century. The origins of an organised game of football known today as Australian rules football can be traced back to 1858 inMelbourne,the capital city ofVictoria.

In July 1858,Tom Wills,an Australian-borncricketereducated atRugby Schoolin England, wrote a letter toBell's Life in Victoria& Sporting Chronicle,calling for a "foot-ball club" with a "code of laws" to keep cricketers fit during winter.This is considered by historians to be a defining moment in the creation of Australian rules football. Through publicity and personal contacts Wills was able to co-ordinate football matches in Melbourne that experimented with various rules,the first of which was played on 31 July 1858. One week later, Wills umpired a schoolboys match betweenMelbourne Grammar SchoolandScotch College.Following these matches, organised football in Melbourne rapidly increased in popularity.

Wood engraving of an Australian rules football match at theRichmond Paddock,Melbourne,1866

Wills and others involved in these early matches formed theMelbourne Football Club(the oldest surviving Australian football club) on 14 May 1859. Club members Wills,William Hammersley,J. B. ThompsonandThomas H. Smithmet with the intention of forming a set of rules that would be widely adopted by other clubs. The committee debated rules used in English public school games; Wills pushed for variousrugby footballrules he learnt during his schooling. The first rules share similarities with these games, and were shaped to suit to Australian conditions.H. C. A. Harrison,a seminal figure in Australian football, recalled that his cousin Wills wanted "a game of our own".The code was distinctive in the prevalence of themark,free kick,tackling,lack of an offside rule and that players were specifically penalised forthrowing the ball.

The Melbourne football rules were widely distributed and gradually adopted by the other Victorian clubs. The rules were updated several times during the 1860s to accommodate the rules of other influential Victorian football clubs. A significant redraft in 1866 by H. C. A. Harrison's committee accommodated theGeelong Football Club's rules, making the game then known as "Victorian Rules" increasingly distinct from other codes. It soon adoptedcricket fieldsand an oval ball, used specialised goal and behind posts, and featuredbouncing the ball while runningandspectacular high marking.The game spread quickly to otherAustralian colonies.Outside its heartland in southern Australia, the code experienced a significant period of decline following World War I but has since grown throughout Australia and inother parts of the world,and theAustralian Football Leagueemerged as the dominant professional competition.

The Football Association

Main article:The Football Association

The firstfootballinternational,ScotlandversusEngland.Once kept by theRugby Football Unionas an early example ofrugby football.

During the early 1860s, there were increasing attempts in England to unify and reconcile the various public school games. In 1862, J. C. Thring, who had been one of the driving forces behind the original Cambridge Rules, was a master atUppingham School,and he issued his own rules of what he called "The Simplest Game" (these are also known as the Uppingham Rules). In early October 1863, another new revised version of the Cambridge Rules was drawn up by a seven member committee representing former pupils from Harrow, Shrewsbury, Eton, Rugby, Marlborough and Westminster.

At theFreemasons' Tavern,Great Queen Street, London on the evening of 26 October 1863, representatives of several football clubs in theLondon Metropolitan areamet for the inaugural meeting of theFootball Association(FA). The aim of the association was to establish a single unifying code and regulate the playing of the game among its members. Following the first meeting, the public schools were invited to join the association. All of them declined, except Charterhouse and Uppingham. In total, six meetings of the FA were held between October and December 1863. After the third meeting, a draft set of rules were published. However, at the beginning of the fourth meeting, attention was drawn to the recently published Cambridge Rules of 1863. The Cambridge rules differed from the draft FA rules in two significant areas; namely running with (carrying) the ball andhacking(kicking opposing players in the shins). The two contentious FA rules were as follows:

IX. A player shall be entitled to run with the ball towards his adversaries' goal if he makes a fair catch, or catches the ball on the first bound; but in case of a fair catch, if he makes his mark he shall not run.
X. If any player shall run with the ball towards his adversaries' goal, any player on the opposite side shall be at liberty to charge, hold, trip or hack him, or to wrest the ball from him, but no player shall be held and hacked at the same time.

At the fifth meeting it was proposed that these two rules be removed. Most of the delegates supported this, butF. M. Campbell,the representative fromBlackheathand the first FA treasurer, objected. He said: "hacking is the true football". However, the motion to ban running with the ball in hand and hacking was carried and Blackheath withdrew from the FA. After the final meeting on 8 December, the FA published the "Laws of the Game",the first comprehensive set of rules for the game later known as association football. The term" soccer ", in use since the late 19th century, derives from anOxford University abbreviationof "association".

The first FA rules still contained elements that are no longer part of association football, but which are still recognisable in other games (such as Australian football and rugby football): for instance, a player could make a fair catch and claim amark,which entitled him to a free kick; and if a player touched the ball behind the opponents' goal line, his side was entitled to afree kickat goal, from 15 yards (13.5 metres) in front of the goal line.

North American football codes

Main articles:Gridiron football,History of American football,andCanadian football § History

As was the case in Britain, by the early 19th century, North American schools and universities played their own local games, between sides made up of students. For example, students atDartmouth CollegeinNew Hampshireplayed a game calledOld division football,a variant of the association football codes, as early as the 1820s.They remained largely "mob football"style games, with huge numbers of players attempting to advance the ball into a goal area, often by any means necessary. Rules were simple, violence and injury were common.The violence of these mob-style games led to widespread protests and a decision to abandon them.Yale University,under pressure from the city ofNew Haven,banned the play of all forms of football in 1860, whileHarvard Universityfollowed suit in 1861.In its place, two general types of football evolved: "kicking" games and "running" (or "carrying" ) games. A hybrid of the two, known as the "Boston game",was played by a group known as theOneida Football Club.The club, considered by some historians as the first formalfootball clubin the United States, was formed in 1862 by schoolboys who played the Boston game onBoston Common.The game began to return to American college campuses by the late 1860s. The universities of Yale,Princeton(then known as the College of New Jersey),Rutgers,andBrownall began playing "kicking" games during this time. In 1867, Princeton used rules based on those of the EnglishFootball Association.

The Tigers ofHamilton, Ontario,circa 1906. Founded 1869 as the Hamilton Foot Ball Club, they eventually merged with the Hamilton Flying Wildcats to form theHamilton Tiger-Cats,a team still active in theCanadian Football League.

In Canada, the first documented football match was a practice game played on 9 November 1861, atUniversity College, University of Toronto(approximately 400 yards west of Queen's Park). One of the participants in the game involving University of Toronto students was (Sir) William Mulock, later Chancellor of the school.In 1864, atTrinity College,Toronto, F. Barlow Cumberland, Frederick A. Bethune, and Christopher Gwynn, one of the founders of Milton, Massachusetts, devised rules based onrugby football.A "running game", resembling rugby football, was then taken up by theMontreal Football Clubin Canada in 1868.

Rutgers University (here pictured in 1882) played the first inter-collegiate football game v Princeton in 1869.

On 6 November 1869,RutgersfacedPrincetonin a game that was played with a round ball and, like all early games, used improvised rules. It is usually regarded asthe first game of American intercollegiate football.

The Harvard v McGill game in 1874. It is considered the first rugby football game played in the United States.

Modern North American football grew out ofa matchbetweenMcGill Universityof Montreal andHarvard Universityin 1874. During the game, the two teams alternated between the rugby-based rules used by McGill and the Boston Game rules used by Harvard.Within a few years, Harvard had both adopted McGill's rules and persuaded other U.S. university teams to do the same. On 23 November 1876, representatives from Harvard, Yale, Princeton, andColumbiamet at the Massasoit Convention inSpringfield, Massachusetts,agreeing to adopt most of theRugby Football Unionrules, with some variations.

In 1880,YalecoachWalter Camp,who had become a fixture at the Massasoit House conventions where the rules were debated and changed, devised a number of major innovations. Camp's two most important rule changes that diverged the American game from rugby were replacing thescrummagewith theline of scrimmageand the establishment of thedown-and-distancerules.American football still however remained a violent sport where collisions often led to serious injuries and sometimes even death.This led U.S. PresidentTheodore Rooseveltto hold a meeting with football representatives from Harvard, Yale, and Princeton on 9 October 1905, urging them to make drastic changes.One rule change introduced in 1906, devised to open up the game and reduce injury, was the introduction of the legalforward pass.Though it was underutilised for years, this proved to be one of the most important rule changes in the establishment of the modern game.

Over the years, Canada absorbed some of the developments in American football in an effort to distinguish it from a more rugby-oriented game. In 1903, theOntario Rugby Football Unionadopted theBurnside rules,which implemented theline of scrimmageanddown-and-distancesystem from American football, among others.Canadian football then implemented the legal forward pass in 1929.American and Canadian footballremain different codes,stemming from rule changes that the American side of the border adopted but the Canadian side has not.

Gaelic football

Main article:History of Gaelic football

TheAll-Ireland Football FinalinCroke Park,2004

In the mid-19th century, various traditional football games, referred to collectively ascaid,remained popular in Ireland, especially inCounty Kerry.One observer, Father W. Ferris, described two main forms ofcaidduring this period: the "field game" in which the object was to put the ball through arch-like goals, formed from the boughs of two trees; and the epic "cross-country game" which took up most of the daylight hours of a Sunday on which it was played, and was won by one team taking the ball across a parish boundary. "Wrestling", "holding" opposing players, and carrying the ball were all allowed.

By the 1870s, rugby and association football had started to become popular in Ireland.Trinity College Dublinwas an early stronghold of rugby (see theDevelopments in the 1850ssection above). The rules of the English FA were being distributed widely. Traditional forms ofcaidhad begun to give way to a "rough-and-tumble game" which allowed tripping.

There was no serious attempt to unify and codify Irish varieties of football, until the establishment of theGaelic Athletic Association(GAA) in 1884. The GAA sought to promote traditional Irish sports, such ashurlingand to reject imported games like rugby and association football. The first Gaelic football rules were drawn up byMaurice Davinand published in theUnited Irelandmagazine on 7 February 1887.Davin's rules showed the influence of games such as hurling and a desire to formalise a distinctly Irish code of football. The prime example of this differentiation was the lack of an offside rule (an attribute which, for many years, was shared only by other Irish games like hurling, and by Australian rules football).

Schism in Rugby football

Further information:History of rugby league

An English cartoon from the 1890s lampooning the divide in rugby football which led to the formation ofrugby league.The caricatures are of Rev. Frank Marshall, an arch-opponent of player payments, and James Miller, a long-time opponent of Marshall. The caption reads: Marshall: "Oh, fie, go away naughty boy, I don't play with boys who can't afford to take a holiday for football any day they like!" Miller: "Yes, that's just you to a T; you'd make it so that no lad whose father wasn't a millionaire could play at all in a really good team. For my part I see no reason why the men who make the money shouldn't have a share in the spending of it."

TheInternational Rugby Football Board(IRFB) was founded in 1886,but rifts were beginning to emerge in the code.Professionalismhad already begun to creep into the various codes of football.

In England, by the 1890s, a long-standingRugby Football Unionban onprofessionalplayers was causing regional tensions within rugby football, as many players in northern England were working class and could not afford to take time off to train, travel, play and recover from injuries. This was not very different from what had occurred ten years earlier in soccer in Northern England but the authorities reacted very differently in the RFU, attempting to alienate the working class support in Northern England. In 1895, following a dispute about a player being paid broken time payments, which replaced wages lost as a result of playing rugby, representatives of the northern clubs met inHuddersfieldto form theNorthern Rugby Football Union(NRFU). The new body initially permitted only various types of player wage replacements. However, within two years, NRFU players could be paid, but they were required to have a job outside sport.

The demands of a professional league dictated that rugby had to become a better "spectator" sport. Within a few years the NRFU rules had started to diverge from the RFU, most notably with the abolition of theline-out.This was followed by the replacement of theruckwith the "play-the-ball ruck", which allowed a two-player ruck contest between the tackler at marker and the player tackled.Maulswere stopped once the ball carrier was held, being replaced by a play-the ball-ruck. The separate Lancashire and Yorkshire competitions of the NRFU merged in 1901, forming the Northern Rugby League, the first time the namerugby leaguewas used officially in England.

Over time, the RFU form of rugby, played by clubs which remained members of national federations affiliated to the IRFB, became known asrugby union.

Globalisation of association football

Main article:History of FIFA

The need for a single body to oversee association football had become apparent by the beginning of the 20th century, with the increasing popularity of international fixtures. The English Football Association had chaired many discussions on setting up an international body, but was perceived as making no progress. It fell to associations from seven other European countries: France, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland, to form an international association. TheFédération Internationale de Football Association(FIFA) was founded in Paris on 21 May 1904.Its first president wasRobert Guérin.The French name and acronym has remained, even outside French-speaking countries.

Further divergence of the two rugby codes

Rugby league rules diverged significantly from rugby union in 1906, with the reduction of the team from 15 to 13 players. In 1907, a New Zealand professional rugby team toured Australia and Britain, receiving an enthusiastic response, and professionalrugby leagues were launched in Australiathe following year. However, the rules of professional games varied from one country to another, and negotiations between various national bodies were required to fix the exact rules for each international match. This situation endured until 1948, when at the instigation of the French league, theRugby League International Federation(RLIF) was formed at a meeting inBordeaux.

During the second half of the 20th century, the rules changed further. In 1966, rugby league officials borrowed the American football concept ofdowns:a team was allowed to retain possession of the ball for four tackles (rugby union retains the original rule that a player who is tackled and brought to the ground must release the ball immediately). The maximum number of tackles was later increased to six (in 1971), and in rugby league this became known as thesix tackle rule.

With the advent of full-time professionals in the early 1990s, and the consequent speeding up of the game, the five-metre off-side distance between the two teams became 10 metres, and the replacement rule was superseded by various interchange rules, among other changes.

The laws of rugby union also changed during the 20th century, although less significantly than those of rugby league. In particular, goals frommarkswere abolished, kicks directlyinto touchfrom outside the22-metreline were penalised, new laws were put in place to determine who had possession following an inconclusiveruckormaul,and the lifting of players inline-outswas legalised.

In 1995, rugby union became an "open" game, that is one which allowed professional players.Although the original dispute between the two codes has now disappeared – and despite the fact that officials from both forms of rugby football have sometimes mentioned the possibility of re-unification – the rules of both codes and their culture have diverged to such an extent that such an event is unlikely in the foreseeable future.

Use of the wordfootball

Further information:Football (word)

The wordfootball,when used in reference to a specific game can mean any one of those described above. Because of this, much controversy has occurred over the termfootball,primarily because it is used in different ways in different parts of theEnglish-speaking world.Most often, the wordfootballis used to refer to the code of football that is considered dominant within a particular region (which is association football in most countries). So, effectively, what the wordfootballmeans usually depends on where one says it.

Heading from The Sportsman (London) front page of 25 November 1910, illustrating the continued use of the word "football" to encompass both association football and rugby

In each of the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, one football code is known solely asfootball,while the others generally require a qualifier. In New Zealand,footballhistorically referred torugby union,but more recently may be used unqualified to refer to association football. The sport meant by the wordfootballin Australia is eitherAustralian rules footballorrugby league,depending on local popularity (which largely conforms to theBarassi Line). InfrancophoneQuebec,whereCanadian footballis more popular, the Canadian code is known asle footballwhile American football is known asle football américainand association football is known asle soccer.

Of the 45 nationalFIFA(Fédération Internationale de Football Association) affiliates in which English is an official or primary language, most currently useFootballin their organisations' official names; the FIFA affiliates inCanadaand theUnited StatesuseSoccerin their names. A few FIFA affiliates have recently "normalised" to usingFootball,including:

• Australia's association football governing bodychanged its name in 2005 from usingsoccertofootball.
• New Zealand's governing bodyrenamed itself in 2007, saying "the international game is called football".
• Samoa changed from "Samoa Football (Soccer) Federation" to "Football Federation Samoa"in 2009.

Popularity

Small football stadium inCroatia

Several of the football codes are the most popular team sports in the world.Globally,association footballis played by over 250 million players in over 200 nations,and has the highest television audience in sport,making it the most popular in the world.American football, with 1.1 millionhigh school footballplayers and nearly 70,000college footballplayers, is the most popularsport in the United States,with the annualSuper Bowlgame accounting for nine of the top ten of themost watched broadcasts in U.S. television history.TheNFLhas the highest averageattendance(67,591) of any professional sports league in the world and has the highestrevenueout of any single professional sports league.Thus, the best association football and American football players are among thehighest paid athletes in the world.

Australian rules footballhas the highest spectator attendance of all sports in Australia.Similarly,Gaelic footballis the most popular sport in Ireland in terms of match attendance,and theAll-Ireland Football Finalis the most watched event of that nation's sporting year.

Rugby unionis the most popular sport in New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, and Fiji.It is also the fastest growing sport in the U.S.,withcollege rugbybeing the fastest growingcollege sportin that country.

Football codes board

Medieval football	Cambridge rules (1848–1863)	Association football (1863–)
			Indoor
			Beach(1992–)
			Futsal(1930–)
	Sheffield rules (1857–1877)
			Paralympic
			Street
			Rugby unionwith minor modifications	American football (1869–)	Underwater(1967–),Indoor,Arena,Sprint,Flag,Touch,Street,Wheelchair(1987–),XFL
	Rugby football(1845–)
			Burnside rules	Canadian football(1861–)	Flag football
			Rugby Football Union(1871–)
				Sevens(1883–),Tens,X,Touch,Tag,American flag,Mini,Beach,Snow,Tambo,Wheelchair,Underwater
				Rugby league(1895–)
					Nines
					Sevens
					Touch football,Tag,Wheelchair,Mod
	Rugby rules and other English public school games	Australian rules(1859–)			International rules football(1967–),Austus,Rec footy,Auskick,Samoa Rules,Metro,Lightning,AFLX,Nine-a-side,Kick-to-kick
	Gaelic football(1885–),Ladies' Gaelic football(1969–)

Football codes development tree

Football codes development tree
| Football Cambridge rules(1848–1863) Sheffield rules(1857–1877) Rugby football(1845–) Rugby rules and other English public school games Association football(1863–) Australian rules(1859–) Gaelic(1887–) Rugby union with minor modifications Canadian football(1861–) Rugby Football Union(1871–) Int'l Rules(1967–) American football(1869–) Rugby league(1895–) Rugby sevens(1883–) Flag football Arena football(1987–) Flag football (Canadian) Futsal(1930–) Rugby league nines Rugby league sevens Touch football Beach soccer(1992–) Indoor soccer Paralympic football Street football
Notes:

Present-day codes and families

Code	Total field length	Total field width	Field shape	Number of players	Governing Body	Football shape	Offside rule	Use of hands
Association football	100-110 m (international)	64-75 m (international)	Rectangular	11	FIFA	Sphere	Yes	Only goalkeeper
Futsal	38-42 m (international)	20-25 m (international)	Rectangular	5	FIFA	Sphere	No	Only goalkeeper
Beach football	35-37 m	26-28 m	Rectangular	5	FIFA	Sphere	No	Only goalkeeper
Rugby union	106-144 m	68-70 m	Rectangular	15	World Rugby	prolate spheroid	Yes	Yes
Rugby league	112-122 m	68 m	Rectangular	13	IRL	prolate spheroid	Yes	Yes
American football	109.7 m	48.8 m	Rectangular	11	IFAF	prolate spheroid	Yes	Yes
Indoor American football	61.0 m	25.9 m	Rounded rectangular	8		prolate spheroid	Yes	Yes
Flag football	45.7 m (standard)	22.9 m (standard)	Rectangular	5	IFAF	prolate spheroid	Yes	Yes
Canadian football	137.2 m	59.4 m	Rectangular	12		prolate spheroid	Yes	Yes
Australian rules football	135-185 m (professional)	110-155 m (professional)	Oval	18	AFL Commission	prolate spheroid	No	Yes
Gaelic football	130-145 m	80-90 m	Rectangular	15	GAA	Sphere	No	Yes

Association

Main article:Variants of association football

Anindoor soccergame at an open-air venue in Mexico. Therefereehas just awarded the red team a free kick.

Street football, Venice (1960)

Women'sbeach soccergame at YBF 2010 inYyteri Beach,Pori,Finland

These codes have in common the prohibition of the use of hands (by all players except the goalkeeper, though outfield players can "throw-in" the ball when it goes out of play), unlike other codes where carrying or handling the ball by all players is allowed

• Association football, also known asfootball,soccer,footyandfootie
• Indoor/basketball court variants:
  • Five-a-side football– game for smaller teams, played under various rules including:
    • Futsal– theFIFA-approved five-a-side indoor game
    • Minivoetbal– the five-a-side indoor game played in East and WestFlanderswhere it is extremely popular
    • Papi fut– the five-a-side game played in outdoor basketball courts (built with goals) in Central America.
  • Indoor soccer– the six-a-side indoor game, the Latin American variant (fútbol rápido,"fast football" ) is often played in open-air venues
  • Masters Football– six-a-side played in Europe by mature professionals (35 years and older)
• Paralympic football– modified game for athletes with a disability.Includes:
  • Football 5-a-side – forvisually impairedathletes
  • Football 7-a-side – for athletes withcerebral palsy
  • Amputee football – for athletes withamputations
  • Deaf football – for athletes withhearing impairments
  • Powerchair football– for athletes in electric wheelchairs
• Beach soccer,beach football or sand soccer – variant modified for play on sand
• Street football– encompasses a number of informal variants
• Rush goalie– a variation in which the role of the goalkeeper is more flexible than normal
• Crab football– players stand on their hands and feet and move around on their backs whilst playing
• Swamp soccer– the game as played on aswamporbogfield
• Jorkyball
• Walking football– players are restricted to walking, to facilitate participation by older and less mobile players
• Rushball

The hockey gamebandyhas rules partly based on the association football rules and is sometimes nicknamed as 'winter football'.

There are also motorsport variations of the game.

Rugby

Rugby sevens;FijivWalesat the2006 Commonwealth Gamesin Melbourne

Griffins RFC Kotka, therugby unionteam fromKotka,Finland, playing in the Rugby-7 Tournament in 2013

These codes have in common the ability of players to carry the ball with their hands, and to throw it to teammates, unlike association football where the use of hands during play is prohibited by anyone except the goalkeeper. They also feature various methods of scoring based upon whether the ball is carried into the goal area, or kicked above the goalposts.

• Rugby football
  • Rugby union
    • Mini rugbya variety for children.
    • Rugby sevensandRugby tens– variants for teams of reduced size.
  • Rugby league– often referred to simply as "league", and usually known simply as "football" or "footy" in the Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland.
    • Touch,non-contact
    • Rugby league sevensandRugby league nines– variants for teams of reduced size.
  • Beach rugby– rugby played on sand
  • Touch rugby– generic name for forms of rugby football which do not feature tackles.
  • Tag Rugby– non-contact variant in which a flag attached to a player is removed to indicate a tackle.
• Gridiron football
  • American football– called "football" in the United States and Canada, and "gridiron" in Australia and New Zealand.
    • Nine-man football,eight-man football,six-man football– variants played primarily by smaller high schools that lack enough players to field full teams.
    • Street football/backyard football – played without equipment or official fields and with simplified rules
    • Flag football– non-contact variant in which a flag attached to a player is removed to indicate a tackle.
    • Touch football– non-tackle variants
  • Canadian football– called simply "football" in Canada; "football" in Canada can mean either Canadian or American football depending on context. All of the variants listed for American football are also attested for Canadian football.
  • Indoor football– indoor variants, particularlyarena football
  • Wheelchair football– variant adapted to play by athletes withphysical disabilities

See also:Comparison of American football and rugby league,Comparison of American football and rugby union,Comparison of Canadian and American football,andComparison of rugby league and rugby union

Irish and Australian

International rules footballtest match from the2005 International Rules Seriesbetween Australia and Ireland atTelstra Dome,Melbourne,Australia

These codes have in common the absence of an offside rule, the prohibition of continuous carrying of the ball (requiring a periodic bounce or solo (toe-kick), depending on the code) while running, handpassing by punching or tapping the ball rather than throwing it, and other traditions.

• Australian rules football– officially known as "Australian football", and informally as "football", "footy" or "Aussie rules". In some areas it is referred to as "AFL",the name of the main organising body and competition
  • Auskick– a version of Australian rules designed by the AFL for young children
  • Metro footy(or Metro rules footy) – a modified version invented by theUSAFL,for use ongridironfields in North American cities (which often lack grounds large enough for conventional Australian rules matches)
  • Kick-to-kick– informal versions of the game
  • 9-a-side footy– a more open, running variety of Australian rules, requiring 18 players in total and a proportionally smaller playing area (includes contact and non-contact varieties)
  • Rec footy– "Recreational Football", a modified non-contact variation of Australian rules, created by the AFL, which replaces tackles with tags
  • Touch Aussie Rules– a non-tackle variation of Australian Rules played only in the United Kingdom
  • Samoa rules– localised version adapted to Samoan conditions, such as the use ofrugby footballfields
  • Masters Australian football(a.k.a.Superules) – reduced contact version introduced for competitions limited to players over 30 years of age
  • Women's Australian rules football– women's competition played with a smaller ball and (sometimes) reduced contact
• Gaelic football– Played predominantly in Ireland. Commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic"
  • Ladies Gaelic football
• International rules football– a compromise code used for international representative matches between Australian rules football players and Gaelic football players

See also:Comparison of Australian rules football and Gaelic football

Medieval

• Calcio Fiorentino– a modern revival of Renaissance football from 16th centuryFlorence.
• la Soule– a modern revival of French medieval football
• lelo burti– a Georgian traditional football game

Britain

• TheHaxey Hood,played onEpiphanyinHaxey,Lincolnshire
• Shrove Tuesday games
  • Scoring the HalesinAlnwick,Northumberland
  • Royal Shrovetide FootballinAshbourne, Derbyshire
  • TheShrovetide Ball GameinAtherstone,Warwickshire
  • The Shrove Tuesday Football Ceremony of the Purbeck MarblersinCorfe Castle, Dorset
  • Hurling the Silver BallatSt Columb Majorin Cornwall
  • TheBall GameinSedgefield,County Durham
• In Scotland theBa game( "Ball Game" ) is still popular around Christmas andHogmanayat:
  • Duns,Berwickshire
  • Scone, Perthshire
  • Kirkwallin theOrkneyIslands

British schools

Harrow footballplayers after a game atHarrow School(c. 2005)

Games still played at UKpublic(private) schools:

• Eton field game
• Eton wall game
• Rugby football
• Harrow football
• Winchester College football

Recent and hybrid

• Keepie uppie(keep up) – the art of juggling with a football using the feet, knees, chest, shoulders, and head.
  • Footbag– several variations using a small bean bag or sand bag as a ball, the trade marked termhacky sackis sometimes used as a generic synonym.
  • Freestyle football– participants are graded for their entertainment value and expression of skill.

Association

• Three sided football
• Triskelion

Rugby

• Forcebacka.k.a.forcing back,forcemanback

Hybrid

• Austus– a compromise between Australian rules andAmerican football,invented inMelbourneduring World War II.
• Bossaball– mixes association football andvolleyballandgymnastics;played on inflatables andtrampolines.
• Cycle ball– a sport similar to association football played on bicycles
• Footgolf–golfplayed by kicking an association football.
• Footvolley– mixes association football and beach volleyball; played on sand
• Football tennis– mixes association football and tennis
• Kickball– a hybrid of association football and baseball, invented in the United States about 1942.
• Underwater football– played in a pool, and the ball can only be played when underwater. The ball can be carried as in rugby.
• Speedball– a combination of American football, soccer, andbasketball,devised in the United States in 1912.
• Universal football– a hybrid of Australian rules and rugby league, trialled in Sydney in 1933.
• Volata– a game resembling association football andEuropean handball,devised byItalian fascistleader,Augusto Turati,in the 1920s.
• Wheelchair rugby– also known asMurderball,invented in Canada in 1977. Based onice hockeyandbasketballrather than rugby.

Although similar to football and volleyball in some aspects,Sepak takrawhas ancient origins and cannot be considered a hybrid game.

Tabletop games, video games, and other recreations

Based on association football

• Blow football
• Button football– also known asFutebol de Mesa,Jogo de Botões
• Fantasy football
• FIFA Video Games Series
• Lego Football
• Mario Strikers
• Penny football
• Pro Evolution Soccer
• Subbuteo
• Table football– also known asfoosball,table soccer,babyfoot,bar footballorgettone

Based on American football

• Blood Bowl
• Fantasy football (American)
• Madden NFL
• Paper football

Based on Australian football

• AFL video game series
  • List of AFL video games

Based on rugby league football

• Australian Rugby League
• Sidhe'sRugby Leagueseries
  • Rugby League 3

See also

• 1601 to 1725 in sports: Football
• Football field (unit of length)
• List of types of football
• List of players who have converted from one football code to another
• Names for association football
• American football in the United States
• List of largest sports contracts

References

• Eisenberg, Christiane and Pierre Lanfranchi, eds. (2006):Football History: International Perspectives;Special Issue,Historical Social Research31, no. 1. 312 pages.
• Green, Geoffrey (1953);The History of the Football Association;Naldrett Press, London.
• Mandelbaum, Michael (2004);The Meaning of Sports;Public Affairs,ISBN1-58648-252-1.
• Williams, Graham (1994);The Code War;Yore Publications,ISBN1-874427-65-8.