Modern History of Soccer

n 1815, a major development took place that made soccer popular in Universities, Colleges and Schools. The popular English School and Eton College came forth with a set of rules, known as the Cambridge Rules. Football was segregated into two groups; some colleges and schools opted for Rugby rules that allowed tripping, shin kicking and also carrying the ball. These rules were exclusively prohibited as per the Cambridge rules.

The history of modern-day soccer was established in 1863. In October 1863, eleven representatives from London clubs and schools met at the Freemason’s Tavern to set up common fundamental rules to control the matches amongst themselves. The outcome of this meeting was the formation of the Football Association. In December 1863, the Rugby Football and Association football finally split as the supporters of the Rugby School rules walked out.

Firmly establishing the foundation of soccer in 1869, the Football Association strictly banned any kind of handling of the ball. Soccer’s popularity spread rapidly during the 1800s as British sailors, traders and soldiers introduced the sport to different parts of the globe.

Italians, Austrians and Germans drew to Europe, while Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil adopted the sport in South America. FIFA was established in the year 1904 and by early 1930s, different leagues were operating from various countries. FIFA is credited with organizing the first world cup in Uruguay. The history of soccer is rich with events, development and its growing craze all over the world. You will find yourself amazed as you learn about different times of this wonderful sport that has held our awe and admiration for over 3000 years.

Soccer History

Soccer is one of the most popular sports in Europe and the Americas. It has a vivid and interesting history in the world of sports. Early evidence of soccer being played as a sport finds occurrence in China during the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC. In China, it was during the Han dynasty that people dribbled leather balls by kicking it into a small net. Recorded facts also support the fact that Romans and Greeks used to play ball for fun and frolic. Some facts point to Kyoto in Japan where kicking of ball was a popular sport.

It is said that early growth of the modern soccer started in England. Some amusing facts even mention that the first ball used was the head of some Danish brigand. It is said that during medieval times, the old form of soccer used to allow many ill practices like kicking, punching, biting and gouging. The main aim was to carry the ball to a target spot. People grew so fond of the game that they would throng the field all day long. Sometimes the competition grew fierce and masses got so wild that there were frequent incidents of violence during the game. It is also said that soldiers admired the game so much that they missed archery practice to watch it.

King Edward III banned soccer in 1365 owing to the growing incidents of violence and military indulgence in the sport. In 1424 King James I of Scotland also proclaimed in the Parliament— "Na man play at the Fute-ball" (No man shall play football)

When and where exactly did soccer start is a question that has no precise answer to it. You can easily say that this popular game has been played for more than three thousand years. The nativity of modern-day soccer must be credited to Britain. It was also known as the association football, with Scotland and England being the co-founders of the systematic game of soccer.

History of Football 1

Throughout history, people have played sports which involved using a ball and hands, feet, or sticks. Each area had its own rules. so there was no global definition of any sport.

In the 1300s, the king of England, Edward III, banned football, hockey, and handball. This shows a difference between sports using the feet, hands and sticks. So comes the argument that football was traditionally played using the feet and not the hands. However FIFA acknowledges Association Football (soccer)'s earliest drafts demonstrate 'handling' (possibly similar to Gaelic/Australian Rules) was acceptable, and hands appear to be involved in the earliest lithographic sketches of 'mob football' games such as Shrove-tide.

None of the modern codes of 'football' seem to have diverged formally from the various 'mob-footballs' until the 1800s.

In 1863,at Cambridge University, a group of Englishmen formed the Football Association and invented the modern game of soccer.

Many other "codes" of football were invented around this time. Rugby and Australian rules (earliest known draft, Melbourne 1858) were among the first to establish clear drafted rules. In North America, rugby and soccer were both played, and a hybrid, American football, was invented.

All sports using the term football have words placed in front such as Association (der.- Soccer), Rugby, American or Aussie Rules (Australian) or Gaelic (Irish) to differentiate them from each other. Typically they are individually and simply referred to as 'football' within the context in which they are the dominant code.

Willie Tidwell invented American football. He was a really good player in the day. Willie and Walter Camp both made up the rules for Gridiron. They got it from rugby and football. They took the hitting and other activities from rugby. Soccer uses the foot, and Tidwell and Camp both thought it would be good to have goal post for kicking field goals worth three points.

There are many possible places and times when American football might have been created. However, the most commonly accepted answer is in 1869, when Rutgers and Princeton had the "first" game. Of course, there had been others played before then, but this game was the first time that the game had a name. As for who created it, American football is derived almost directly from rugby, though there are many people who could be credited with the creation of many of the rules that are used today.

The word 'football' is from the English language and was originally spelt as 'foot ball'. When the term 'foot ball' was first used in medieval England it described 'a ball game played on foot' known as mob football or Shrovetide football in which more running with the ball was required than kicking the ball. These ball games had earlier descriptions such as 'playing at ball' and there were similar if not identical ball games being played in other countries at the same time. These games include 'Hurling' played in Wales & Cornwall and 'La Soule' or 'Choule' played in the north of France. However, mob football or Shrovetide football was the first ball game to be specifically referred to as 'foot ball'. I have created the link 'Shrovetide football' from the BBC which provides an insight into how the game is played showing photos of the Up'ards and Down'ards 'mob' playing the game.

These Shrovetide games evolved into other forms of football notably Rugby football which was said to have been started by a pupil at Rugby school called William Webb Ellis in 1823. The Rugby Union Football world cup is called the "Webb Ellis Trophy" after him. The rules of early Rugby contributed too many other codes of football in England and other English speaking countries during the 19th century. American football is one of these games. It could be argued that American football is a purer form of football than say Association football (soccer) or Australian Rules football because like Rugby is retains more of the original medieval characteristics.

Soccer was invented by the Chinese over a thousand years ago, it was re-invented and codified by Britain, who is known as "the home of football." Goal posts with nets were introduced in the very late 1800s.

Football started as a form of Rugby. Walter Camp is credited with being " The father of American Football" by implementing various rule changes.

American football is created from Rugby (English sport) and soccer is actually the real football(or as it is known around the world) Football was created by the English.

The Chinese invented playing with a soccer ball and goals but in a very different style. The ball was made from blubber from the inner intestate of frogs and other animals. They would have a certain number of small goals or holes used as goals to score in. Later as dynasties changed they would use the soccer ball to play volleyball style soccer, and technique and juggling became a fashion as opposed to playing and scoring.

Britain later adapted but more over invented the official game of football.

They changed the style and rules up with 1 goal and 2 post thus inventing the game of football, futbol, or known in US as soccer.

The first Major league was started by the Scottish called the Scottish Premier League

The word "football" is an English term which in early medieval times was spelt "fote-ball" (first recorded c.1400) to describe a 'ball game played on foot'. Early football games were not only played by the English but also by other European peoples under different names with localized innovations. Other forms include Irish "Caid" meaning 'Ball' the ancestor of Gaelic football, Cornish Hurling "Hyrlian", Welsh Hurling "Cnapan". A game called "La Soule" meaning 'The Ball' was played in France, "Ba" pronounced baw meaning 'Ball' played in Scotland and "Ball play" or "Playing at ball" or significantly "fote-ball" games played in England. These medieval ball games are the ones from which all modern football codes evolved and the Shrovetide ball game referred to as "fote-ball" is the version from which all modern football games take their name. These games may have evolved from a game played by the Romans called "Harpastum" which itself was an adaptation of an Ancient Greek game called "Episkyros" or "Phaininda" which, dating back to at least the 4th century BC, is the Worlds oldest known ball game that matches the medieval definition of football. It is worth noting that Harpastum was later recreated in 16th centaury Italy as "Calcio". Although there is a strong possibility the Roman and Greek ball games evolved into Shrovetide football and other similar ball games played in Europe as yet there are no verifiable connections. Dispite the lack of evidence it should be noted it is recorded that in Florence 59BC a game of Harpastum was played between Eipiphany and Lent the last day "Shrove Tuesday" the exact day on which Shrovetide football is still played in Derbyshire England. It should also be noted that Harpastum was taken to the Roman province of Britannia (modern day Britain) where it is recorded in 217AD that a game took place between the Romans and the native Britons. The Ancient Chinese also played a game called "Cuju" that dates back to the late 3rd centaury BC which has similarities to Association football. However, despite attempts by FIFA to infer an historical link between Cuju and Association Football there are no connections between Cuju and early ball games played in medieval Europe.

When discussing football it is a common mistake that football is the same subject as Soccer. This is incorrect. There are many forms of football of which "Soccer" or "Association Football" is just one code. Other popular codes include American football (Gridiron), Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, Rugby Union football and Rugby league football. Some of these codes took ideas from previous codes. American football is a mix of Soccer, Rugby and ideas created in the USA in particular the forward pass. Canadian football is based on Rugby whilst Australian rules football and Gaelic football both draw ideas from Rugby, Soccer and in particular the medieval Shrovetide game Caid played in Ireland. Association football or Soccer was a product of English Public schools who had played football by various rules for centuries. Then in 1848 Cambridge University attempted to create a standard set of rules for Public schools. Two former students of Shrewsbury School Mr. H. de Winton and Mr. J.C. Thring organized a meeting at Trinity College, Cambridge with 12 representatives from other schools namely Eton, Harrow, Rugby, Winchester and Shrewsbury. In the eight hour meeting these men created what became the 'blue print' for Soccer. These rules became known as the "Cambridge Rules" which unlike "Rugby School Rules" (1823) favours a game in which the ball would be kicked more than carried. In 1863 a solicitor from Hull called Ebenezer Cobb Morley wrote an article for Bell's Life newspaper promoting the idea of a new regulatory body for football. This led to the formation of the "Football Association" whose main aim was to standardise the rules of football nationally. This new code was to be based on the Cambridge Rules. The 'Laws of the game' for Soccer or Association football were drafted by E. C. Morley along with other founder members of the Football Association. They agreed the rules at a public house called the Freemasons Tavern in London on 26th October 1863. Morley became the Football Associations first secretary. He also founded the Barnes Football Club in 1862 which he captained against Richmond football club in the first ever soccer match. The game ended 0-0 but in a return game he scored the first ever goal. He died in 1924 and is buried at a Cemetery on Barnes Common not far from where he drafted the Laws of the game at 26 The Terrace, Barnes, London. A blue plaque commemorating his life's work was placed on the wall of this address by English Heritage in 2009.

Entomology of the word soccer: The word soccer is a phonetic abbreviation of the word 'Association' coined by English public school students who took the 'soc' from 'Association' and put an 'er' on the end. That is why prior to 1863 the word soccer did not exist. It is probably worth noting the same students called Rugby football 'Rugger' but this word fell out of use.

When I first heard FIFA's claim soccer originated in China I was intrigued by the idea. Like many others I believed what FIFA said must be true. As a football fan I was keen to read the evidence they hand uncovered. I already knew that Association Football, American Football, Rugby Union Football, Rugby League Football, Australian Rules football and Gaelic football all evolved from medieval ball games played Europe, but prior to this I had no idea where football came from. I decided to read up on this new FIFA discovery.

One problem I encountered straight away was that when looking for this proof FIFA claimed to have uncovered I could not find any! I then discovered FIFA had only put together a hypothesis that the British community who lived in China during the 19th centaury had taken Cuju back to England where it was used as a basis for Association Football. FIFA found no evidence to back up this colonialist idea and the more they looked the more they discovered their idea had no basis in fact, yet they still clamed "scientific evidence".

I decided to take a look at this so called 'scientific evidence'. What I found was a cleverly worded opinion by a self appointed FIFA authority who implied there was a scientific connection between Cuju and Soccer and who wrote in a way that any casual reader would be seduced into thinking they were reading proof when in fact they were reading theory.

Around the same time it became clear FIFA were aggressively pushing the sale of their football product in China. That is when the alarm bells started to ring and I realised there might be an ulterior motive to why FIFA were going to so much trouble. It should be noted that the Football Association in England who are promoting their Premiership product in China were happy to capitulate with FIFA accepting as a gift a Chinese picture of a Cuju player whilst smiling for the cameras.

Meanwhile back in the real world, despite anything FIFA have said the rules of Association Football remain a reworked version of Cambridge Rules Football which themselves were a hybrid of many games which had been played in English and some Irish public schools for hundreds of years. That is a verifiable and unchanged.

Later on I read an article where the FIFA President clamed Cuju spread from China to the Roman Empire. Clearly being unable to connect Cuju directly to Soccer through British colonialist FIFA had changed their story. I looked for the evidence to support this new claim. The Roman ball in question is called Harpastum. What I discovered is that Harpastum was the Romanised version of an Ancient Greek football game called Phaininda or Episkyros played as early as 2000 BC some 1300 - 1700 years before Cuju is appeared in China.

Incredibly it would seem FIFA were trying to change known European history by substituting the Greek game of Episkyros with the Chinese game of Cuju. I conclude FIFA's claim that football originated in China literally does not add up in time frame or otherwise. I believe this theory has now been abandoned by FIFA, although the importance of the Greek and Roman contribution to all forms of modern football is still played down by them.

I have looked at Cuju and there in no doubt the game agrees with the definition of a foot ball game. However, short of FIFA providing evidence there is a connection with Cuju and the foot ball games played in medieval Europe, the only possible conclusion is that Cuju developed in south east Asia free of outside influence and as such has to be viewed as a sport in it's own right which from first principles developed independently.

After this I decided to start researching the origins of medieval ball games played in Europe which are known to have collectively contributed to the evolution of football. I wanted to find out if medieval foot ball games could be connected to the Roman game Harpastum.

The games I researched were the ball game played in Northern French known as La Soule "The Ball", Mob football played in England, Cornish Hurling, Welsh Hurling, Gaelic football, Irish Hurling and Shrovetide football which was played in many European countries in medieval times. All these games have similar rules (if any rules) two teams, two goals (such as they were) and were played within a defined area.

All these games have similarities to Harpastum but the one that stands our above the rest is Cornish Hurling. It is now my belief that the Roman games Harpastum and Cornish Hurling (Hyrlian in Cornish Celtic) are one and the same game. The game of Hurling is of Celtic origin and the Cornish are descendants of the Romano-Britons who are known to have played Harpastum.

The rules of Harpastum are ambiguous but what we do know from the concepts used include a small hard ball, two goals (such as they were), two teams. Cornish Hurling also uses small hard ball, two goals, two teams and virtually no rules which might account for the reason detailed rules of Harpastum have not survived.

Harpastum and Cornish Hurling were/are also played on public holidays notably days of Christian importance such as Shrovetide. And it was of course the Romans who converted the Romano-Britons to Christianity which also ties in.

I accept that this theory does not provide absolute proof of a connection between Harpastum and Cornish Hurling. Due to very few first millennium AD documents surviving it is unlikely definitive proof exist. However, when you take an overall view on this I have identified decedents of Romano-Britons who live in the right place, who Cary on traditions from generation to generation, playing a similar ball game to the Romans, using a similar small hard ball as the Romans, with the same disregard for safety as the Romans and who are celebrating Christian festivals in a way the Romans did. I would liken this to what Douglas Adams once said "If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, we have at least to consider the possibility that we have a small aquatic bird of the family anatidae on our hands". At the very least there is a tangible theory here which connects Harpastum with modern day forms of football which is more than can be for Cuju.

I will leave it there for you to decide for yourself. We know Cornish Hurling was one of the similar medieval ball games which contributed to the creation of early Rugby games. Some of the codes and concepts introduced by Rugby and other public schools in England would later be used to create Cambridge Rules football, American Football, Association Football (soccer) and Australian Rules football.

Gaelic Football is much older that the aforementioned games and is one of the family of medieval ball game which evolved independently of Rugby although is should be noted is connected from medieval times and contributed to the rules of Australian Rules Football which also draw upon the rules of Association Football. So when UEFA placed an image of a Greek Episkyros player taken on the European Cup there were right to do so because all the evidence points to football originating in Ancient Greece 4000 years ago.

History of Football 2

The first description of a football match in England was written by William FitzStephen in about 1170. He records that while visiting London he noticed that "after dinner all the youths of the city goes out into the fields for the very popular game of ball." He points out that every trade had their own football team. "The elders, the fathers, and the men of wealth come on horseback to view the contests of their juniors, and in their fashion sport with the young men; and there seems to be aroused in these elders a stirring of natural heat by viewing so much activity and by participation in the joys of unrestrained youth."

A few centuries later another monk wrote that football was a game "in which young men... propel a huge ball not by throwing it into the air, but by striking and rolling it along the ground, and that not with their hands but with their feet." This chronicler strongly disapproved of the game claiming it was "undignified and worthless" and that it often resulted in "some loss, accident or disadvantage to the players themselves."

One manor record, dated 1280, states: "Henry, son of William de Ellington, while playing at ball at Ulkham on Trinity Sunday with David le Ken and many others, ran against David and received an accidental wound from David's knife of which he died on the following Friday." In 1321, William de Spalding, was in trouble with the law over a game of football: "During the game at ball as he kicked the ball, a lay friend of his, also called William, ran against him and wounded himself on a sheath knife carried by the canon, so severely that he died within six days." There are other recorded cases during this period of footballers dying after falling on their daggers.

Edward II became involved in the debate on football and in 1314 complained about "certain tumults arising from great footballs in the fields of the public, from which many evils may arise." At the time he was trying to raise an army to fight the Scots and was worried about the impact that football was having on the skills of his archers.

In an attempt to make the English the best longbowmen in the world, a law was passed ordering all men earning less than 100 pence a year to own a longbow. Every village had to arrange for a space to be set aside for men to practice using their bows. It was especially important for boys to take up archery at a young age. It was believed that to obtain the necessary rhythm of "laying the body into the bow" the body needed to be young and flexible. It was said that when a young man could hit a squirrel at 100 paces he was ready to join the king's army.

Edward II came to the conclusion that young people were more interested in playing football than practicing archery. His answer to this problem was to ban the playing of the game. His father, Edward III, reintroduced the ban in 1331 in preparation for an invasion of Scotland. Henry IV was the next monarch who tried to stop England's young men from playing football when he issued a new ban in 1388. This was ineffective and in 1410 his government imposed a fine of 20s and six days' imprisonment on those caught playing football. In 1414, his son, Henry V, introduced a further proclamation ordering men to practise archery rather than football. The following year Henry's archers played an important role in the defeat of the French at Agincourt.

Edward IV was another strong opponent of football. In 1477 he passed a law that stipulated that "no person shall practise any unlawful games such as dice, quoits, football and such games, but that every strong and able-bodied person shall practise with bow for the reason that the national defence depends upon such bowmen." Henry VII outlawed football in 1496 and his son, Henry VIII, introduced a series of laws against the playing of the game in public places.

Whereas the monarchy objected for military reasons, church leaders were more concerned about the game being played on a Sunday. In 1531 the Puritan preacher, Thomas Eliot, argued that football caused "beastly fury and extreme violence". In 1572 the Bishop of Rochester demanded a new campaign to suppress this "evil game". In his book, Anatomy of Abuses (1583) Philip Stubbs argued that "football playing and other devilish pastimes.. withdraweth us from godliness, either upon the Sabbath or any other day." Stubbs was also concerned about the injuries that were taking place: "sometimes their necks are broken, sometimes their backs, sometimes their legs, sometimes their arms, sometimes one part is thrust out of joint, sometimes the noses gush out with blood... Football encourages envy and hatred... sometimes fighting, murder and a great loss of blood."

However, there were some people who thought that football was good for the health of young men. Richard Mulcaster, the headmaster of Merchant Taylors' School, wrote in 1581, that football had "great helps, both to health and strength." He added the game "strengtheneth and brawneth the whole body, and by provoking superfluities downward, it dischargeth the head, and upper parts, it is good for the bowels, and to drive the stone and gravel from both the bladder and kidneys."

The records show that young men refused to accept the banning of football. In 1589, Hugh Case and William Shurlock were fined 2s for playing football in St. Werburgh's cemetery during the vicar's sermon. Ten years later a group of men in a village in Essex were fined for playing football on a Sunday. Other prosecutions took place in Richmond, Bedford, Thirsk and Guisborough.

Local councils also banned the playing of football. However, young men continued to ignore local by-laws. In 1576 it was recorded in Ruislip that around a hundred people "assembled themselves unlawfully and played a certain unlawful game, called football". In Manchester in 1608 "a company of lewd and disordered persons... broke many men's windows" during an "unlawful" game of football. It was such a major problem that in 1618 the local council appointed special "football officers" to police these laws.

After the execution of Charles I in 1649 the new ruler, Oliver Cromwell, instructed his Major-Generals to enforce laws against football, bear-baiting, cock-fighting, horse-racing and wrestling. Cromwell was more successful than previous rulers in stopping young men from playing football. However, after his death in 1660 the game gradually re-emerged in Britain.

The ball used in football was made from an inflated animal bladder. Two teams, made up of large numbers of young men, attempted to get the ball into the opposition goal. In towns the game was mainly played by craft apprentices. As James Walvin points out in The People's Game (1994): "Overworked, exploited and generally harbouring a range of grievances, they formed a frequently disaffected body of young men, living close to each other... They posed a regular threat of unruliness and not surprisingly, they were readily recruited for football."

According to George Owen (c. 1550) in Wales football was slightly different from the game played in England: "There is a round ball prepared... so that a man may hold it in his hand... The ball is made of wood and boiled in tallow to make it slippery and hard to hold... The ball is called a knappan, and one of the company hurls it into the air... He that gets the ball hurls it towards the goal... the knappan is tossed backwards and forwards... It is a strange sight to see a thousand or fifteen hundred men chasing after the knappan... The gamesters return home from this play with broken heads, black faces, bruised bodies and lame legs... Yet they laugh and joke and tell stories about how they broke their heads... without grudge or hatred."

The gap between the two goals in football games could be several miles. For example, in Ashbourne, Derbyshire, a football game was played annually on Shrove Tuesday. It involved two teams consisting of anyone who lived in the town and the action took place between goals three miles apart.

In 1772 a game in Hitchen resulted in the ball being "drowned for a time in the Priory pond, then forced along Angel Street across the Market Place into the Artichoke beer-house, and finally goaled in the porch of St Mary's Church".

Large football games often took place on Shrove Tuesday. In 1796 it was reported that in Derby, John Snape was "an unfortunate victim to this custom... which is disgraceful to humanity and civilization, subversive of good order and government and destructive to the morals, properties, and lives of our inhabitants."

In the 18th century football was played by most of Britain's leading public schools. There is documentary evidence that football was played at Eton as early as 1747. Westminster started two years later. Harrow,Shrewsbury, Winchester and Charterhouse had all taken up football by the 1750s.

In 1801 Joseph Strutt described the game of football in his book, The Sports and Pastimes of the People of England: "When a match at football is made, two parties, each containing an equal number of competitors, take the field, and stand between two goals, placed at the distance of eighty or an hundred yards the one from the other. The goal is usually made with two sticks driven into the ground, about two or three feet apart. The ball, which is commonly made of a blown bladder, and cased with leather, is delivered in the midst of the ground, and the object of each party is to drive it through the goal of their antagonists, which being achieved the game is won. The abilities of the performers are best displayed in attacking and defending the goals; and hence the pastime was more frequently called a goal at football than a game at football. When the exercise becomes exceeding violent, the players kick each other's shins without the least ceremony, and some of them are overthrown at the hazard of their limbs."

Thomas Arnold was appointed headmaster of Rugby in 1828. He had a profound and lasting effect on the development of public school education in England. Arnold introduced mathematics, modern history and modern languages and instituted the form system and introduced the prefect system to keep discipline. He modernized the teaching of Classics by directing attention to literary, moral or historical questions. Although Arnold held strong views, he made it clear to his students they were not expected to accept those views, but to examine the evidence and to think for themselves.

Arnold also emphasized the importance of sport in young men's education. Like most headteachers in public schools, Arnold believed that sport was a good method for "encouraging senior boys to exercise responsible authority on behalf of the staff". He also argued that games like football provided a "formidable vehicle for character building".

Each school had its own set of rules and style of game. In some schools the ball could be caught, if kicked below the hand or knee. If the ball was caught near the opposing goal, the catcher had the opportunity of scoring, by carrying it through the goal in three standing jumps.

Rugby, Marlborough and Cheltenham developed games that used both hands and feet. The football played atShrewsbury and Winchester placed an emphasis on kicking and running with the ball (dribbling). School facilities also influenced the rules of these games. Students at Charterhouse played football within the cloisters of the old Carthusian monastery. As space was limited the players depended on dribbling skills. Whereas schools like Eton and Harrow had such large playing fields available that they developed a game that involved kicking the ball long distances.

According to one student at Westminster, the football played at his school was very rough and involved a great deal of physical violence: "When running... the enemy tripped, shinned, charged with the shoulder, got down and sat upon you... in fact did anything short of murder to get the ball from you."

Football games often led to social disorder. As Dave Russell pointed out in Football and the English (1997), football had a "habit of bringing the younger element of the lower orders into public spaces in large numbers were increasingly seen as inappropriate and, indeed, positively dangerous in an age of mass political radicalism and subsequent fear for public order."

Action was taken to stop men playing football in the street. The 1835 Highways Act provided for a fine of 40s for playing "football or any other game on any part of the said highways, to the annoyance of any passenger."

In 1840 soldiers had to be used to stop men playing football in Richmond. Six years later the Riot Act had to be read in Derby and a troop of cavalry was used to disperse the players. There were also serious football disturbances in East Molesey, Hampton and Kingston-upon-Thames.

Although the government disapproved of the working-classes playing football, it continued to be a popular sport in public schools. In 1848 a meeting took place at Cambridge University to lay down the rules of football. As Philip Gibbons points out in Association Football in Victorian England (2001): "The varying rules of the game meant that the public schools were unable to compete against each other." Teachers representing Shrewsbury, Eton, Harrow, Rugby, Marlborough and Westminster, produced what became known as the Cambridge Rules. One participant explained what happened: "I cleared the tables and provided pens and paper... Every man brought a copy of his school rules, or knew them by heart, and our progress in framing new rules was slow."

It was eventually decided that goals would be awarded for balls kicked between the flag posts (uprights) and under the string (crossbar). All players were allowed to catch the ball direct from the foot, provided the catcher kicked it immediately. However, they were forbidden to catch the ball and run with it. Only the goalkeeper was allowed to hold the ball. He could also punch it from anywhere in his own half. Goal kicks and throw-ins took place when the ball went out of play. It was specified that throw-ins were taken with one hand only. It was also decided that players in the same team should wear the same colour cap (red and dark blue).

Sometimes public schools played football against boys from the local town. Although these games often ended in fights, it did help to spread knowledge of Cambridge Rules football. Former public school boys also played football at university. Many continued to play after finishing their education. Some joined clubs like the Old Etonians, Old Harrovians and the Wanderers (a side only open to men who had attended the leading public schools), whereas others formed their own clubs.

Football was a very popular sport in Sheffield and in 1857 a group of men established the Sheffield Football Club at Bramall Lane. It is believed to be the first football club in the world. Two former Harrow students, Nathaniel Creswick and William Prest, published their own set of rules for football. These new rules allowed for more physical contact than those established by some of the public schools. Players were allowed to push opponents off the ball with their hands. It was also within the rules to shoulder charge players, with or without the ball. If a goalkeeper caught the ball, he could be barged over the line. At first the Sheffield Club played friendly games against teams in London and Nottingham.

On 29th December, 1862, Sheffield played Hallam in a football charity game. It was one of the first-ever football games to be recorded in a newspaper. The Sheffield Independent reported: "At one time it appeared that the match would be turned into a general fight. Major Creswick had got the ball away and was struggling against great odds - Mr Shaw and Mr Waterfall (of Hallam). Major Creswick was held by Waterfall and in the struggle Waterfall was accidentally hit by the Major. All parties agreed that the hit was accidental. Waterfall, however, ran at the Major in the most irritable manner, and struck him several times. He also threw off his waistcoat and began to show fight in earnest. Major Creswick, who preserved his temper admirably, did not return a single blow."


The following week a letter appeared in The Sheffield Independent defending the actions of William Waterfall: "The unfair report in your paper of the... football match played on the Bramall Lane ground between the Sheffield and Hallam Football Clubs calls for a hearing from the other side. We have nothing to say about the result - there was no score - but to defend the character and behaviour of our respected player, Mr William Waterfall, by detailing the facts as they occurred between him and Major Creswick. In the early part of the game, Waterfall charged the Major, on which the Major threatened to strike him if he did so again. Later in the game, when all the players were waiting a decision of the umpires, the Major, very unfairly, took the ball from the hands of one of our players and commenced kicking it towards their goal. He was met by Waterfall who charged him and the Major struck Waterfall on the face, which Waterfall immediately returned."

In 1862 a new set of rules were established at Cambridge University. These specified 11-a-side, an umpire from each side plus a neutral referee, goals 12ft across and up to 20ft high. An offside rule was added. A man could play a ball passed to him from behind, so long as there were three opponents between him and the goal. It was also decided that each game should only last one hour and a quarter. The first game under these rules took place between the Old Etonians and Old Harrovians in November, 1862.