An English soccer brief history
Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world. It has a short history as it was invented in England’s 19 century. It became popular very fast as in the mid 19 century almost all major cities of England had soccer teams. At first the teams belonged to factories and universities and they were all semi professional.
All the soccer matches were played at random as there was no championship. Soccer players played for their pride and small prizes from the factories and universities. There were no referees or rules back then. Unfortunately, the lack of rules was the main cause of many fights between rival teams or even between players and fans. One harsh tackle could lead to a bloody fight those days.
The rules of the soccer were first set up in 1863 in London. Many teams from all over the country met in London in order to set up the soccer constitution which was a set of rules concerning the sport soccer. Some of the rules set up then are still in effect these days and some of them were changed several times. 1863 was also the year of FA’s birth.
England is considered the inventor of modern football. However, even if they invented soccer, England’s national team is not the best soccer teams in the world as you would expect. Many world class players played for the national soccer team of England but the achievements of the English squad are only a few.
The best result of the national soccer team of England is back in 1966 when they won the World Cup. The World Cup in 1966 took place in England so the players and media of that time were very supportive. Many people say that playing on home ground was a decisive advantage in winning the World Cup.
The 1966 national team had great players like their captain, Bobby Moore or Jackie Charlton and Geoff Hurst. The English success in 1966 was their best performance as it was not equaled from then on.
The English soccer national team is one of the best in the world nowadays too. Unfortunately, they do not win trophies and that makes them a secondary team in the world. For example Brazil, Italy, Germany and others won trophies and that makes them better teams than the English one.
English clubs have overshadowed the national team as they are contenders every year at winning the Champions League. Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea or Arsenal have great players and play one of the best soccer in the world. However, their main players are foreigners and that may be a cause why the national team has fewer successes than the English soccer clubs.
Even if clubs like Manchester United and Liverpool have won the Champions League in the last years, English fans are waiting for a great performance of their national team. This performance might be possible this year at the World Cup 2010 in South Africa.