Association football
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Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players, and is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world.[1][2][3][4][5]
It is a football variant played on a rectangular grass or artificial turf field, with a goal at each of the short ends. The object of the game is to score by manoeuvring the ball into the opposing goal. In general play, the goalkeepers are the only players allowed to use their hands or arms to propel the ball; the rest of the team usually use their feet to kick the ball into position, occasionally using their torso or head to intercept a ball in midair. The team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins. If the score is tied at the end of the game, either a draw is declared or the game goes into extra time and/or a penalty shootout, depending on the format of the competition.
The modern game was codified in England following the formation of The Football Association, whose 1863 Laws of the Game created the foundations for the way the sport is played today. Football is governed internationally by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football), commonly known by the acronym FIFA. The most prestigious international football competition is the FIFA World Cup, held every four years. This event, the most widely viewed in the world, boasts an audience twice that of the Summer Olympic Games.[6]
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[edit] Major international competitions
The major international competition in football is the World Cup, organised by FIFA. This competition takes place over a four-year period. More than 190 national teams compete in qualifying tournaments within the scope of continental confederations for a place in the finals. The finals tournament, which is held every four years, involves 32 national teams competing over a four-week period.[7] The 2006 FIFA World Cup took place in Germany; in 2010 it will be held in South Africa.[8]
There has been a football tournament at every Summer Olympic Games since 1900, except at the 1932 games in Los Angeles. Before the inception of the World Cup, the Olympics (especially during the 1920s) had the same status as the World Cup. Originally, the event was for amateurs only,[9] however, since the 1984 Summer Olympics professional players have been permitted, albeit with certain restrictions which prevent countries from fielding their strongest sides. Currently, the Olympic men's tournament is played at Under-23 level. In the past the Olympics have allowed a restricted number of over-age players per team;[10] but that practice will cease in the 2008 Olympics. The Olympic competition is not generally considered to carry the same international significance and prestige as the World Cup. A women's tournament was added in 1996; in contrast to the men's event, full international sides without age restrictions play the women’s Olympic tournament. It thus carries international prestige considered comparable to that of the FIFA Women's World Cup.
After the World Cup, the most important international football competitions are the continental championships, which are organised by each continental confederation and contested between national teams. These are the European Championship (UEFA), the Copa América (CONMEBOL), African Cup of Nations (CAF), the Asian Cup (AFC), the CONCACAF Gold Cup (CONCACAF) and the OFC Nations Cup (OFC). The most prestigious competitions in club football are the respective continental championships, which are generally contested between national champions, for example the UEFA Champions League in Europe and the Copa Libertadores de América in South America. The winners of each continental competition contest the FIFA Club World Cup.[11]
[edit] Domestic competitions
The governing bodies in each country operate league systems, normally comprising several divisions, in which the teams gain points throughout the season depending on results. Teams are placed into tables, placing them in order according to points accrued. Most commonly, each team plays every other team in its league at home and away in each season, in a round-robin tournament. At the end of a season, the top team is declared the champion. The top few teams may be promoted to a higher division, and one or more of the teams finishing at the bottom are relegated to a lower division. The teams finishing at the top of a country's league may be eligible also to play in international club competitions in the following season. The main exceptions to this system occur in some Latin American leagues, which divide football championships into two sections named Apertura and Clausura, awarding a champion for each.
The majority of countries supplement the league system with one or more cup competitions. These are organised on a knock-out basis, the winner of each match proceeding to the next round; the loser takes no further part in the competition.
Some countries' top divisions feature highly-paid star players; in smaller countries and lower divisions, players may be part-timers with a second job, or amateurs. The five top European leagues— Serie A (Italy), La Liga (Spain), the Premier League (England),[12] the Bundesliga (Germany) and Ligue 1 (France)—attract most of the world's best players.[citation needed]
[edit] See also
- Association football culture
- List of association football clubs
- List of men's national association football teams
- List of top association football goal scorers
- List of top association football goal scorers by country
- Lists of association football players
- List of association football competitions
- Paralympic association football
[edit] References
- ^ "Soccer". Encarta. MSN. Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
- ^ Guttman, Allen [1993]. "The Diffusion of Sports and the Problem of Cultural Imperialism", in Eric Dunning, Joseph A. Maguire, Robert E. Pearton: The Sports Process: A Comparative and Developmental Approach. Champaign: Human Kinetics, p129. ISBN 0880116242. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. “the game is complex enough not to be invented independently by many preliterate cultures and yet simple enough to become the world's most popular team sport”
- ^ Dunning, Eric [1999]. "The development of soccer as a world game", Sport Matters: Sociological Studies of Sport, Violence and Civilisation. London: Routledge, p103. ISBN 0415064139. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. “During the twentieth century, soccer emerged as the world's most popular team sport”
- ^ "Soccer Popularity In U.S.", Austin, Texas: KXAN (2006-06-12). Retrieved on 2008-01-26. "Soccer is easily the most popular sport worldwide, so popular that much of Europe practically shuts down during the World Cup."
- ^ Frederick O. Mueller, Robert C. Cantu, Steven P. Van Camp [1996]. "Team Sports", Catastrophic Injuries in High School and College Sports. Champaign: Human Kinetics, p57. ISBN 0873226747. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. “Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, and its popularity is growing in the United States. It has been estimated that there were 22 million soccer players in the world in the early 1980s, and that number is increasing. In the United States soccer is now a major sport at both the high school and college levels.”
- ^ "2002 FIFA World Cup TV Coverage". FIFA official website (2006-12-05). Retrieved on 2008-01-06. (webarchive)
- ^ The number of competing teams has varied over the history of the competition. The most recent changed was in 1998, from 24 to 32.
- ^ 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa". FIFA World Cup website. Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
- ^ "Where it all began". FIFA official website. Retrieved on 2007-06-08. (webarchive)
- ^ "Football - An Olympic Sport since 1900". IOC website. Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
- ^ "Organising Committee strengthens FIFA Club World Cup format". FIFA (2007-08-24). Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
- ^ "Premier League conquering Europe". BBC News (2008-03-31). Retrieved on 2008-05-27.
