Fall 2019 Part 2

Soccer


The world's most popular sport is soccer or football. It involves teams playing with a spherical ball. The two teams playing against each other have 11 players. Worldwide, soccer is played in over 200 countries and dependencies. The number of players include 250 million human beings globally. The teams play in a rectangular field called a pitch. A goal are at each end of a field. The game of soccer desires both teams to score as many goals as possible. Soccer has existed during ancient times. The modern game came about in 1863 with the Laws of the Game which was codified in England by the Football Association. In soccer, players can't touch the ball with hands or arms while it is in play. The only exception is when the goalkeepers within the penalty area. Players other than the goalkeepers, can use mainly their feet to strike or pass the ball. They may use other parts of their bodies to do so except for the hands and arms. The team that scores most goals by the end of the match wins. If the score is level at the end of the game, either a draw is declared or the game goes into extra time or a penalty shootout depending on the format of the competition. Association football is governed internationally by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA; French: Fédération Internationale de Football Association), which organized World Cups for both men and women every four years. In the 21st century, there has been a further increase of the popularity of soccer. Soccer is a cousin to American football and rugby football. America also saw a resurgence of soccer popularity too. That is why U.S. soccer teams in Los Angeles, NYC, and Atlanta are very well known now. Soccer is not only an international game filled with skill, strategy, and talent. It has unified people for generations succinctly.

The Equipment

The ball used in soccer is spherical. It has a circumference of between 68 and 70 cm. (27 and 28 inches). It has a weight in the range of 210 to 450 grams (14 to 16 oz), and it has a pressure between 0.6 and 1.1 bars (or 8.5 and 15.6 pounds per square inch at sea level). The length of the pitch, or field, for international adult matches is in the range of 100–110 m (110–120 yd) and the width is in the range of 64–75 m (70–80 yd). Fields for non-international matches may be 90–120 m (100–130 yd) in length and 45–90 m (50–100 yd) in width, provided that the pitch does not become square. In 2008, the IFAB initially approved a fixed size of 105 m (115 yd) long and 68 m (74 yd) wide as a standard pitch dimension for international matches; however, this decision was later put on hold and was never actually implemented. The longer boundary lines are touchlines, while the shorter boundaries (on which the goals are placed) are goal lines. A rectangular goal is positioned at the middle of each goal line.The inner edges of the vertical goal posts must be 24 feet (7.3 m) apart, and the lower edge of the horizontal crossbar supported by the goal posts must be 8 feet (2.4 m) above the ground. Nets are usually placed behind the goal, but are not required by the Laws. The penalty area is in front of the goal. The penalty area has a goal line. The 2 lines start on the goal line 18 yards from the goalposts and extends 18 yards into the pitch perpendicular to the goal line (and a line joining them). Clothing in soccer are loose and shoes are designed to handle movement and hitting the ball as well.

The Rules of the Game

The rules of the game are specific. The team with the most goals win. There are 2 teams of 11 players. If both teams scored an equal number of goals, then the game is a a draw. Each team is led by a captain who has only one official responsibility as mandated by the Laws of the Game to represent their team in the coin toss before to kick off or penalty kicks. The primary law is that players other than goalkeepers may not deliberately handle the ball with their hands or arms during play, though they must use both their hands during a throw-in restart. Although players usually use their feet to move the ball around they may use any part of their body (notably, "heading" with the forehead) other than their hands or arms. Within normal play, all players are free to play the ball in any direction and move throughout the pitch, though players may not pass to teammates who are in an offside position. Players dribble the ball in order to try to make a goal. Physical contact in soccer is restricted as compared to American football. Games can be stopped by the referee or when the ball left the field of play. Broadly, these include three main categories: strikers, or forwards, whose main task is to score goals; defenders, who specialize in preventing their opponents from scoring; and midfielders, who dispossess the opposition and keep possession of the ball to pass it to the forwards on their team. Players in these positions are referred to as outfield players, to distinguish them from the goalkeeper. These positions are further subdivided according to the area of the field in which the player spends most time. For example, there are central defenders, and left and right midfielders. The ten outfield players may be arranged in any combination. The number of players in each position determines the style of the team's play; more forwards and fewer defenders creates a more aggressive and offensive-minded game, while the reverse creates a slower, more defensive style of play. While players typically spend most of the game in a specific position, there are few restrictions on player movement, and players can switch positions at any time.

The layout of a team's players is known as a formation. Defining the team's formation and tactics is usually the prerogative of the team's manager. There are 17 laws in the official Laws of the Game, each containing a collection of stipulation and guidelines. The same laws are designed to apply to all levels of football, although certain modifications for groups such as juniors, seniors, women and people with physical disabilities are permitted. The laws are often framed in broad terms, which allow flexibility in their application depending on the nature of the game. The Laws of the Game are published by FIFA, but are maintained by the International Football Association Board (IFAB). In addition to the seventeen laws, numerous IFAB decisions and other directives contribute to the regulation of football. A number of players may be replaced by substitutes during the course of the game. The maximum number of substitutions permitted in most competitive international and domestic league games is three in ninety minutes with each team being allowed one more if the game should go into extra-time, though the permitted number may vary in other competitions or in friendly matches. Common reasons for a substitution include injury, tiredness, ineffectiveness, a tactical switch, or timewasting at the end of a finely poised game. In standard adult matches, a player who has been substituted may not take further part in a match. Video replay can investigate plays. Referees officiate the game.

A match usually have two halves of 45 minutes each.  The halves run continuously without stopping. There is a 15 minute break between halves. The end of the match is called full time. The referee is the timekeeper for the match. Some matches have a penalty shootout to decide the winner if a mach ends in a draw. When a ball is out of play, it is restarted by eight restart methods called: kick off, throw in, goal kick, corner kick, indirect free kick, direct free kick, penalty kick, and dropped ball. A yellow card is a caution for players who violate the rules. A red card is when a play is kicked out of the game for misconduct. In our time, the game of soccer is still very strong and influential.

The History of Soccer

The history of football has a long history. FIFA said that the Chinese competitive game of cuju (meaning kick ball) was the earliest form of football in recorded history. Cuju players could use any part of their body apart from hands. The intent of the game was for people to kick a ball through an opening into a net. It was similar to modern football with similarities to rugby. During the Han Dynasty (206 B.C. - 200 A.D.), cuju games were standardized and rules were formed. Phaininda and episkyros were ancient Greek ball games. There is a low relief on a vase of an episkyros player. This vase is found at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. It appears on the UEFA European Championship Cup. Athenaeus wrote in 228 A.D. about the Roman ball game of harpastum. Phaininda, episkyros, and harpastrum were played involving bands and violence. They all appear to have resembled rugby football, wrestling, and volleyball more than what is recognizable as modern football.These games dealt with handling the ball instead of kicking. These three games are similar to mob football and the antecedent of all modern football codes. Association football didn't have a classical history. FIFA has recognized no historical connection with any game played in antiquity outside of Europe. The modern rules of association football came from the mid-19th century. It was then when people wanted to standardize the different forms of football played in the public schools of England. The history of football in England came from at least the eighth century A.D. The Cambridge Rules was created at Cambridge University in 1848. They were influential in forming later codes including association football. Trinity College at Cambridge was where the Cambridge Rules were written. Many attended a meeting where the system was established. The meeting was attended by representatives from Eton, Harrow, Rugby, Winchester, and Shrewsbury schools. They weren't universally adopted. By the 1850's, many club unconnected to schools or universities were created in the English speaking world to play many forms of football. Some created their own rules like the Sheffield Football Club, formed by the former public school pupils in 1857. This led into the forming of Sheffield FA in 1867. By 1862, John Charles Thring of Uppingham School also devised an influential set of rules.

Efforts to modified soccer led to the creation of the Football Association (the FA) in 1853. They first met on the morning of October 23, 1863 at the Freemasons' Tavern in Great Queen Street, London. The only school to be  represented on this occasion was Charterhouse. The Freemason's Tavern was the setting for five more meetings between October and December. This led to the first comprehensive set of rules being formed. At the final meeting, the first FA treasurer, the representative from Blackheath, withdrew his club from the FA over the removal of two draft rules at the previous meeting. This was the first rule allowed for running with the ball in hand. The second rule was for obstructing such a run by hacking (kicking an opponent in the shines), tripping, and holding. Other English rugby clubs, followed this lead and did not join the FA and instead in 1871, it formed the Rugby Football Union. The eleven remaining clubs, under the charge of Ebezener Cobb Morley, went on to ratify the original thirteen laws of the game. These rules included handling of the ball by "marks" and the lack of a crossbar, rules which made it remarkably similar to Victorian rules football being developed at the time in Australia. The Sheffield FA played by its own rules until the 1870's with the FA absorbing some of its rules until there was little difference between the games. The FA Cup had the world's oldest football competition.

It was created by C.W. Alcock. It was contested by English teams since 1872. The first official international football match took place in 1872 between Scotland and England in Glasgow. This was again promoted by C. W. Alcock. England was home to the world's first football league. That was founded in Birmingham in 1888 by Aston Villa director William McGregor. The original format had 12 clubs from the Midlands and Northern England. The International Football Association Board (IFAB) determined the laws of the game.  The board was created in 1886. This came after a meeting in Manchester of the Football Association, the Scottish Football Association, the Football Association of Wales, and the Irish Football Association. The International football body of FIFA was formed in Paris in 1904 and declared that they would adhere to the Laws of the Game of the Football Association. Soccer grew in international popularity. FIFA representatives  were at the International Football Association Board in 1913. Now, football is played at the professional level worldwide. Millions celebrate the sport at stadiums too. Billions watch soccer on television or on the Internet. Amateur football is popular too. According to a survey conducted by FIFA published in 2001, over 240 million people from more than 200 countries regularly play football. Football has the highest global television audience in any sport. Football can led to peace or passion on many sides.

Women have played football for a very long time in human history. Women played the game of tsu chu during the Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.). There are women figures depicted in the Han Dynasty frescoes playing Tsu Chu. There are many people dispute the dates as early as 5,000 B.C. Association football or the modern game had women in it. There was the annual competition in Mid-Lothian, Scotland during the 1790's. By 1863, football governing bodies introduced standardized rules to prohibit violence on the pitch, and they allowed women to play.  The first match was recorded by the Scottish Football Association which took place in 1892 in Glasgow. In England, the first recorded game of football between women took place in 1895. The most well-documented early European team was founded by activist Nettie Honeyball in England in 1894. It was named the British Ladies' Football Club. Nettie Honeyball is quoted, "I founded the association late last year [1894], with the fixed resolve of proving to the world that women are not the 'ornamental and useless' creatures men have pictured. I must confess, my convictions on all matters where the sexes are so widely divided are all on the side of emancipation, and I look forward to the time when ladies may sit in Parliament and have a voice in the direction of affairs, especially those which concern them most." Honeyball and those like her paved the way for women's football. However, the women's game was frowned upon by the British football associations, and continued without their support. It has been suggested that this was motivated by some believing in the sexist view that women playing soccer threaten masculinity (which is a lie). Women's football became popular on a large scale at the time of the First World War, when employment in heavy industry spurred the growth of the game, much as it had done for men fifty years earlier. The most successful teams of the era was Dick, Kerr's Ladies of Preston, England. The team played in the first women's international matches in 1920, against a team from Paris, France, in April, and also made up most of the England team against a Scottish Ladies XI in 1920, and winning 22–0. Despite being more popular than some men's football events (one match saw a 53,000 strong crowd), women's football in England suffered a blow in 1921 when The Football Association outlawed the playing of the game on Association members' pitches, on the grounds that they believed in the sexist lie that women playing soccer was "distasteful." We know that such views are false.

Some speculated that this may have also been due to envy of the large crowds that women's matches attracted. This led to the formation of the English Ladies Football Association and play moved to rugby grounds. Association football has been played by women since at least the time of the first recorded women's games in the late 19th century. It has traditionally been associated with charity games and physical exercise, particularly in the United Kingdom. In the late 1960s and early 1970s women's association football was organised in the United Kingdom, eventually becoming the most prominent team sport for British women. During the 20th and 21st centuries, women's football has grown considerately. National and intentional level competitions are common place. There are struggles too. There was time when the FA banned women from playing football until the late 1960's and early 1970's. The FIFA Women's World Cup was inaugurated in 1991 and has been held every four years since. Women's football has been an Olympic event since 1996. We know about the historic USA women's national soccer team (or the USWNT) wining the FIFA Women's World Cup recently in 2019. The team uniformly desired equality, equal pay, and didn't want to visit Trump at the White House because of the obvious reason (i.e. Trump is a sexist, racist, and xenophobic extremist). The United States women's national soccer team is the most successful women's national team in the history of the Women's World Cup, having won four titles, earning second-place once and third-place finishes three times. The United States is one of the countries besides Germany, Japan, and Norway to win a FIFA Women's World Cup (China 1991, United States 1999, Canada 2015, France 2019). The United States are also the only team that has played the maximum number of matches possible in every tournament. The names of the players are: Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan, Robin Heath, Ashlyn Harris, Carli Lloyd, Christen Press, Ali Krieger, Rose Lavelle, Julie Ertz, Mallory Pugh, Kelley O'Hara, Alexandra Long, Crystal Dunn, Abby Dahlkemper, Alyssa Naeher, Lindsey Horan, Sam Mewis, Becky Sauerbrunn, Morgan Brian, Tierna Davidson, Adrianna Franch, Jessica McDonald, and Emily Sonnett. They are a real team with energy and a strong spirit.

Legendary Players


Pele

Regarding sports, he is one of the greatest athletes in history. He changed the world with his activism and style of play. He fathered the internationalization the game of soccer, and his name is Brother Pelé. His whole name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, and he is 78 years old. Três Corações, Minas Gerais, Brazil is his place of birth. He grew up in poverty, and he was taught to play soccer by his father. As an Afro-Brazilian, he was a victim of racism and bigotry. Yet, he continued to perform excellently in stadiums as a great striker. As early as the 1950's, he became world famous. By the 1960's, his popularity only grew into newer heights. He became the all-time leading scorer for the Santos team. Two years later, he came out of semi-retirement to sign with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League (NASL) for the 1975 season. Pele was one man who caused more Americans to recognize soccer decades ago. Personal records, tributes, and other accolades are a part of his life. He is an Afro-Brazilian man who has promoted sports and other endeavors throughout his life. In the international community, soccer is also called football. In 1999, he was voted World Player of the Century by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS). That year, France Football asked their former Ballon d'Or winners to choose the Football Player of the Century; they selected Pelé. In 1999, Pelé was elected Athlete of the Century by the IOC. He played in Brazil's national football team when he was 16. He was famous internationally by the year 1962. He played soccer in America and he was one of the people who created more awareness of soccer in the States. What is most important with him is the love that he has for his family and the sport of soccer.

 

Lionel Messi

He is from Argentina. He is a forward. He is knwon for his technical ability and a record breaking list of accomplishments. He captains both Barcelona and Argentina national team. He is called by many the best player in the world. Messi has a record trying five Ballon D'Or awards. He won four of them consecutively and a record six European Golden Shoes. He has been involved with his whole professional career with Barcelona, where he has won a club record 34 trophies including 10 La Liga titles, four  UEFA Champions League titles and six Copas del Rey. A prolific goalscorer and a creative playmaker, Messi holds the records for most goals in La Liga (419), a La Liga and European league season (50), most hat-tricks in the UEFA Champions League (8), and most assists in La Liga (169) and the Copa América (12).

Mia Hamm

Mia Hamm (or Mariel Margaret Hamm-garciaparra) was born in 1972. She is an American retired professor soccer player. She won the Olympic gold 2 times (in 1996 in Atlanta and in 2004 at Athens). She is also the two time FIFA Women's World Cup Champion. As a soccer icon, she played as a forward in the United States women's national soccer team from 1987-2004. She was in the Women's Untied Soccer Association (WUSA) or the first professional women's soccer league in America. She played for the Washington Freedom from 2001 to 2003. While she was in college, she held the North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team to win four consecutive NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship titles. Mia Hamm was named U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year five years in a row. She is third in the history of the U.S. national team for international caps (276) and first for career assists (144). The Women's Sports Foundation named her Sportswoman of the Year in 1997 and 1999. She funds charities and has the Mia Hamm Foundation to help families involving health issues. She has a husband and many children.

Abby Wambach

She has played in so many matches in using her strength and aggression. She has almost 200 international goals. She knows how to play in the clutch. Abby Wambach was key player who caused the Americans to have the gold in the 2004 Olympics against Brazil. She won another Olympic gold medal in London in 2012. She was named 2012 FIFA Player of the Year. She is a coach and a FIFA Women's World Cup champion. She is a six time winner of the U.S. Soccer athlete of the Year award. As a forward, she has the current highest all time goal scorer for the national team, and she holds the world record for international goals for both men and women with 184 goals. She was the first American woman to win the 2012 FIFA World Player of the Year in ten years.

 

The Modern Age of Soccer

The modern era of soccer deals with popularity. 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 1920's) were the most prestigious international event. Originally, the tournament was for amateurs only. Soccer isn't just played by those overseas. It's played heavily in the playgrounds and parks of American locations.

Conclusion

The story of soccer definitely deals with the long story of athletics. For thousands of years, people have played with balls for sport or for fun.We have witnessed an explosion of the most popular game on Earth, which is football (or what Americans call soccer). Soccer is popular because of its egalitarian nature. The reason is that football or soccer has a total team concept. Each team in soccer acts as one unit, and when one player makes a goal, the rest of the team benefits in the game. Also, people of every nationality and color either know about football or played the game before. We know about legends like Pele and Mia Hamm. Also, unsung players must be acknowledged too. They are in youth camps all across America. They are in other communities in Africa, Europe, and South America too. They have performed a great deal in Mexico, and they exist in Australia plus the rest of Oceania. With everything going on in the world today, we remember the creed of equality and never giving up. Numerous human beings suffer a great deal more than us, and it is always a blessing to inspire others to achieve their goals. The fact that you're reading these words here in the Internet signifies how blessed you are. Therefore, soccer is an international game that improves people's spirit and personifies human excellence on full display.



 By Timothy