|
While it is undisputed that
the origins of modern soccer, or football, originated in
Britain, there is a great deal of evidence that points to
this beloved game as having an older history.
Where did the game of
soccer really begin, and how old is it? To understand how
many different varieties of "soccer" there are,
you need to understand a bit about the older versions of
the game and how they have evolved.
Below, you will find a list
of the predominant cultures that had a variety of soccer,
and learn how each one differs from what we play today.
And no, they never used anything like Lotto shinguards
back then either!
- Chinese Soccer History
- Japanese Soccer History
- Egyptian Soccer History
- Greek/Roman Soccer
History
- British Soccer History
Chinese Soccer History
To many, this is the oldest
version of soccer to exist. However, there is quite a lot
of controversy of whether or not this is the oldest, or
Japan's version is the elder. The Chinese version of the
game, originally named "Tsu Chu", involved
players on a field that had to hit a leather ball stuffed
with fur into a small hole. Like Soccer, no hands were
permitted during the play of the game, and it was
considered an honor to be a member of a team.
The Emperor of the Han
Dynasty, when the game was developed, was an avid player
and fan, and spread the popularity of this game all over
China during his reign. This roughly dates back to 300
B.C., although there is controversy on the subject of
dating, which could result in the origins of the game
being as far back as 5000 B.C. Regardless, this version of
Soccer is extremely old. Despite that, there is still a
version of Tsu Chu played today. While the two games are
similar, Tsu Chu has had no effect on the modern version
of the game, as it was originally developed and created
for play in Great Britain.
Japanese Soccer History
Kemari, the Japanese
version of "Soccer", is perhaps one of the most
different forms of the sport, in comparison to modern
soccer. Kemari was a game of "Keep it up", much
like modern hacky sacks, although used with a larger ball
that was stuffed with saw dust. This version involves a
"pitch", or the field, designated by the
selection of four trees, the cherry, maple, pine and
willow. Many great houses in Japan would grow trees to
have a permanent pitch, or field, established.
Kemari was normally played
with two to twelve players. Established in roughly 1004
B.C., it vies for position of the oldest game with China's
Tsu Chu. In fact, China's Tsu Chu players and Japan's
Kemari players were the first to have an
"International" game of their versions of
Soccer, which is dated to have occurred in roughly 50
B.C., although a definite date of 611 A.D. is known.
Regardless, this game stands with China as a sister sport
to Soccer, while it never affected the modern version of
the game.
Egyptian Soccer History
While not much is known
about Egyptian Soccer, or other ball games, it is thought
there was a version of a type of ball game played by young
women during the age of Baqet III. On his tomb, images of
this sport were depicted, although no one is certain how
the game was played or whether or not it truly affected
the outcome of modern soccer. Recordings of this game date
as far back as 2500 B.C., although not much more is known
asides the fact that it was played with a ball. The lack
of information on the sport and how it was played has
eliminated it from runnings as the first evidence of a
game similar to soccer.
Greek/Roman Soccer History
Perhaps the closest
relative to modern soccer are the games that were formed
by the Greeks during the prime of their culture. They had
numerous varieties of football style games, some of which
required hands, some of which forbade hands. In the end,
after the Roman conquering of Greece, the game Harpastum
is what modern soccer would be based from. This game,
probably a modified version of the Greek's
"Harpaston", which translates roughly to
handball. While grossly misnamed, this game is what is
considered to be one of the precursors to modern soccer.
British Soccer History
In Britain during the 8th
century, soccer was created, not as a recreational sport,
but as a war game. One of the stories of the original
roots of the sport comes from when a Danish Prince was
beheaded, and his head was used as a ball and was kicked
around. Ever since this 'legendary' tale, villages and
other communities would play a game where they would have
to kick a ball to a specific goal. It was a violent game,
where injury and death were not uncommon, but it was
popular nevertheless. In fact, it was so violent, that in
1331, King Edward the III passed laws to try to stop the
playing of the game. It did not work, however, and the
sport continued on.
There are even stories of
soccer games that involved hundreds upon hundreds of
players. In these games, there were many deaths, some
resulting in the hundreds. It wasn't until 1815 when Eton
College set up a series of rules for the game that it
became less violent and more of a true sport. At this
time, other colleges and universities took up the banner
and began to play under similar rules. Later, the rules
were evaluated and judged, and the Cambridge rules were
created as a result in 1848. In the Cambridge rules,
shin-kicking, carrying the ball and tripping were all
forbidden. Rugby rules allowed these aspects, and the two
varieties of soccer, or football, split to form their own
followings.
On October 26, 1863, London
schools and sports club sent representatives to the
Freemason's Tavern, where the Football Association was
formed. Rugby supporters left this association to form the
Rugby Association. This is where the birth of modern
soccer began. In 1969, the Football Association finalized
the modern game of soccer by forbidding the use of hands
in the game.
The term "Soccer"
was coined when someone was asked if he was a Rugger,
which is a Rugby player. The -er signified that the person
participated in a a particular sport. The individual,
Charles Wreford Brown, replied with "Soccer!",
taking the phrase from Association, SOC, and adding the
-er. The term stuck. While British individuals still call
the game Football, Americans and other countries call it
Soccer, especially if they have heavy support in American
Football present. Ever since the foundation of the
Association, "Football" has risen in popularity,
becoming one of the best love games in the history of
Earth. Now, hundreds of thousands play the sport, although
it lacks the initial violence present at its creation.
|
