Read on to learn

more about the

most popular

sport on Earth.

• Soccer traces its roots

to medieval Britain.

There, villagers often

played a “folk football,”

making up their own

rules.

• The sport became

especially popular at elite

British universities, such as

Oxford and Cambridge, in

the 19th century.

• In 1863, the English

Football Association

formalized how the game is

played. Its rules prohibited

players from touching the

ball with their hands.

• Throughout most of the world, what

we know as “soccer” is called

“football.” The “foot” part of the word

was originally used to distinguish the

sport from rugby, in which players

are allowed to use their hands as

well as kick the ball.• The American game of football

evolved from both soccer and rugby.

The first American football game was

played

in 1869 between

Rutgers University

and Princeton

University.

• In the late 19th century, soccer spread

throughout Europe. Through colonization

and trade, Europeans introduced it all

over the world.

• In 1904, European soccer leagues formed

the Fédération Internationale de Football

Association (FIFA), which oversees

international professional soccer today.

• Soccer became popular in part because

all that is needed is a ball. In poor

countries, kids

make balls out of

anything they can—

even rags.

• FIFA organized the World Cup after

the International Olympic Committee

refused to include soccer in the 1932

Summer Olympics.

• The first World Cup was played in

Uruguay in 1930. Teams from 13

countries competed. Uruguay beat

Argentina 4-2 in the final.

• Brazil has won five World Cups, the

most of any national team. Italy, in

second place with four titles,

defeated France in the 2006 final

(see photo).

• Teams that make it to the World

Cup are the object of great national

pride.

• In some countries, more than half

the population watches their team’s

World Cup matches on TV.

Thousands

of people gather before large

public screens, and kids are let out

of school early.• In recent decades, fan violence

has been a major problem for

professional soccer. Hooliganism,

as it is known, is common in parts

of Europe and South America.

• The first matches of

World Cup 2010 will be

played on June 11 in

Johannesburg and Cape

Town, South Africa.

• Thirty-two national teams—

including South Africa’s

(above)—will compete. They

will play several rounds until

the last two surviving teams

meet each other in the final

on July 11.

• No team from Africa has

ever won the World Cup.

This year South Africa,

which is hosting the event,

and five other African

nations will be competing.

Could this

be Africa’s year?

1. Why do you think soccer is so popular around the world?

2. Why do South Africans have mixed feelings about hosting the World Cup?

3. How could the World Cup help foster greater cooperation among nations

—or spark tensions?