History of Soccer
The Soccer Ball
Through out history, humans have enjoyed kicking a ball or something like a ball. South American Indians were known to use a light elastic ball. However rubber was not to be practically manufactured until a few thousand years later.
According to historical references and legend, early balls ranged from human heads, stitched up cloth, animal and human skulls to pig or cow bladders.
During the Ts'in and Han Dynasties (255 BC-220 AD), the Chinese played 'tsu chu', in which animal-skin balls were dribbled through gaps in a net stretched between two poles. Certain ancient Egyptian rites are said by historians to have similarities with football, and both the ancient Greeks and Romans also played a game that entailed carrying and kicking a ball.
According to pre-medieval legend, an entire village would kick a skull along a path to a nearby village square. The opposing village would in turn attempt to kick the skull to the first village's square. Wow, that probably caused more riots than in modern soccer games.
A Medieval custom was to take pig bladders used from live stock killed in preparation for winter sustenance and inflate them. They would play a game using their feet and hands to keep the "ball" in the air.
The animal bladder balls were eventually covered with leather for better shape retention.
The Word "Soccer"
Soccer has come in many names but the two names have been fighting for the right of use (soccer and football). in England if you called football soccer they would not get what you are saying. Also if you call soccer football in America they would most likely think you are talking about American football which is a different sport entirely.
In the 1880s students of Oxford university abbreviated words by adding "er" to the end; for instance, breakfast became "breakers" and "rugby rules" was referred to as "rugger." When one student, Charles Wreford Brown, was asked if he'd like to play rugger, he was the first to abbreviate "association rules" (Football Association rules) by answering, "No, soccer." Brown later became an England international and Football Association vice-president.
Spread to England
Soccer spread to England from the East. How this happened no one knows, but england soon became the unofficial home of the sport. In the beginning soccer was not liked by England royalty. They soon got so fed up that King Edward I said, "For as much as there is a great noise in the city caused by hustling over large balls, from which many evils may arise, which God forbid, we forbid on behalf of the King, on pain of imprisonment, such game to be used in the city." In 1365 King Edward III banned soccer from the entire continent because of the injuries sustained during the games and military reasons, playing took time away from archery practice, the game had become too popular to be contained.
Laws failed to slow the popularity of football and by 1681 it received official sanction in England. The games were still dangerous and very few people left the field without broken bones. the games were still unorganized and the amount of people on teams and size of field were still undecided.
Today
Today soccer has become the most popular sport in the world. It's players have become some of the most influential people around, their styles and trends are being copied by kids and adults everywhere. The World Cup is the most watch sporting event in all the world. Soccer is without question the greatest sport ever.