History of football in world

History of football

Football was once a war ritual, but the model we know today was organized in England on October 26, 1863. This is the date of the foundation of the Football Association in London and the beginning of the professionalization of the sport in the world.

The practice, however, is very old, with records in China, Japan, pre-Hispanic America, Greece, Rome and Italy.

Football was a ritual

In China, around 2600 BC, a ritual called "TsüTsü" consisted of the use of the enemy chief's head, by the winning tribes, to be kicked.

The warriors believed that through the foot they would assimilate the intelligence, courage, strength, skill and leadership of the enemy. Similar accounts are found in Medieval Europe and in tenth-century England.

Also around 2600 BC, the practice of "Kemari" begins in Japan, whose objective is to control the ball with the feet, revealing plasticity, delicacy and elegance. This ceremony, which still exists in the country, celebrates self-knowledge, self-control and self-learning. It also serves as a basis for discipline.

In the period between 1200 and 1600 BC, pre-Hispanic America began the practice of "Tlachtli", played with a hard rubber ball and whose purpose was to represent the battle between light and darkness.

At the end of the dispute, one of the players was decapitated, his body placed next to the field and the blood used to purify the space.

England rules football

On English soil, football was practiced by several colleges between the years 1810 and 1840, but each one followed a different regulation.

So in 1863 a meeting at Freemason's Tavern, headquartered in Great Queen Street, organized the practice.

At the time, 11 schools participated in the discussion. This would explain why this is the number of players defined for each of the teams on the field.

Football in Brazil

In Brazil, football arrived through the British who dedicated themselves to the textile business in the country. This way, the directors started to practice the sport with the employees of their factories.

Football was once a war ritual, but the model we know today was organized in England on October 26, 1863. This is the date of the foundation of the Football Association in London and the beginning of the professionalization of the sport in the world.

The practice, however, is very old, with records in China, Japan, pre-Hispanic America, Greece, Rome and Italy.

In Brazil, Charles Miller officially introduced the sport in 1894, in Rio de Janeiro.

Football was a ritual

In China, around 2600 BC, a ritual called "TsüTsü" consisted of the use of the enemy chief's head, by the winning tribes, to be kicked.

The warriors believed that through the foot they would assimilate the intelligence, courage, strength, skill and leadership of the enemy. Similar accounts are found in Medieval Europe and in tenth-century England.

Also around 2600 BC, the practice of "Kemari" begins in Japan, whose objective is to control the ball with the feet, revealing plasticity, delicacy and elegance. This ceremony, which still exists in the country, celebrates self-knowledge, self-control and self-learning. It also serves as a basis for discipline.

In the period between 1200 and 1600 BC, pre-Hispanic America began the practice of "Tlachtli", played with a hard rubber ball and whose purpose was to represent the battle between light and darkness.

At the end of the dispute, one of the players was decapitated, his body placed next to the field and the blood used to purify the space.

Football as a Sport of the Aristocracy

Less violent were the "Epyskiros" and the "Harpastum", practiced in Greece from the fourth century BC and in Rome. The disputes were marked by the player who should, with his feet, take the ball to the opposing side.

The sport was reserved for aristocrats, but the common people were allowed to practice it at parties to honor Bacchus, the god of wine.

More similar to the model practiced today, "Calcio storico" was practiced in Italy in the 14th century by the nobility.

Players had to respect a space of 120 meters by 180 meters marked by wooden goals at the ends. Teams had between 25 and 30 members each.

Clearly, the object of the game was to get the ball through the opponent's crossbar. This was the model taken to England in the 17th century by supporters of Charles II exiled in Italy.

England rules football

On English soil, football was practiced by several colleges between the years 1810 and 1840, but each one followed a different regulation.

So in 1863 a meeting at Freemason's Tavern, headquartered in Great Queen Street, organized the practice.

At the time, 11 schools participated in the discussion. This would explain why this is the number of players defined for each of the teams on the field.

Football in Brazil

In Brazil, football arrived through the British who dedicated themselves to the textile business in the country. This way, the directors started to practice the sport with the employees of their factories.

Charles Miller, a Brazilian of Scottish descent, is credited with officially introducing football to Brazil. Miller was born in 1874 in São Paulo and studied in England. In 1894, he returned to the country and brought two soccer balls, two complete uniforms, an air pump and a soccer rulebook in his luggage.

However, this statement is contested by some historians, as the first association that included football was Rio Cricket, in 1880, in Rio de Janeiro.

Oscar Cox, of English descent, would organize the first official football match in the country on August 1, 1901 at the Rio Cricket & Associação Atlética field, in Niterói (RJ). On the field, a team of Brazilians faced a team of English players and the match ended in 1X1.

At the same time, the German professor Hans Nobiling founded, in 1899, in São Paulo, the Sport Club Germania – today Pinheiros – and Cox founded the Fluminense Football Club, in 1902.

From then on, Miller and Cox began to encourage the creation of clubs in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, promoting matches and disseminating the sport across the country.

Football World Cup History

Every four years, football teams from different countries meet to compete in the Football World Cup. 

The competition was created by the Frenchman Jules Rimet, in 1928, after taking charge of the most important institution in world football: FIFA (Federation International Football Association).

The first edition of the World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930. It had the participation of only 13 teams, which were invited by FIFA, without dispute of qualifiers, as it happens today. The Uruguayan team was crowned champion and was able to stay, for four years, with the Jules Rimet cup.

In the two following cups (1934 and 1938) Italy won the title. However, between 1942 and 1946, the competition was suspended due to the outbreak of World War II.

In 1950, Brazil was chosen to host the World Cup. The Brazilians were enthusiastic and confident in the title. With a great team, Brazil reached the final against Uruguay. The final, held in the newly built Maracanã (Rio de Janeiro - RJ) was attended by approximately 200,000 spectators. A simple draw would give Brazil the title, but the Uruguayan Olympian achieved what seemed impossible: she beat Brazil 2-1 and became champion. The Maracanã was silent and the crying took over the country of football.

Brazil would feel the pleasure of raising the cup for the first time in 1958, in the cup disputed in Sweden. This year, playing for the Brazilian national team, the one who would be considered the best football player of all time appeared to the world: Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Pelé.

Four years after the conquest in Sweden, Brazil returned to taste the title. In 1962, in Chile, the Brazilian team won the cup for the second time.

In 1970, in Mexico, with a team made up of excellent players (Pelé, Tostão, Rivelino, Carlos Alberto Torres among others), Brazil became world champion for the third time by beating Italy by 4 to 1. If three-time champion, Brazil won the right to stay permanently with possession of the Jules Rimet cup.

After the 1970 title, Brazil entered a 24-year fast without a title. The conquest took place again in 1994, at the World Cup in the United States. Led by top scorer Romário, our team beat Italy in an exciting penalty shootout. Four years later, Brazil would reach the final again, but would lose the title to the host country: France.

In 2002, at the World Cup in Japan / South Korea, led by Ronaldo, Brazil became five-time champion by defeating Germany by 2-0.

In 2006, the World Cup was held in Germany. The competition returned to the lawns of Europe. The event was hotly contested and full of emotions, as it always has been. Italy was crowned champion by defeating France in the final by a score of 5 to 3 on penalties. In normal time, the game ended in a 1-1 tie.

In 2010, for the first time in history, the World Cup was held on the African continent. South Africa was the host of the event that took place between June 11 and July 11, 2010. Spain became, for the first time in history, world champion. 

In 2014, the World Cup was held in Brazil. The event returned to Brazilian territory after 64 years, as it was in 1950 that the last cup in Brazil had taken place.

In 2018, Russia hosted the Football World Cup for the first time in history. The games took place between June 14 and July 15, 2018. France was the champion, after defeating Croatia by 4-2.

In 2022 the Cup will take place in Qatar during the 20th of November and 18th of December. In this edition, the Argentine team was champion (it won the tri championship), after beating the French team on penalties. The game ended 2-2 in normal time and 3-3 in overtime.

Facts about the History of the Football World Cup 

The record for goals in the same Cup is held by French Fontaine with 13 goals (scored in the 1958 Cup). The overall record in the history of all Cups is held by the German Miroslav Klose with 16 goals.

It wasn't until the 1950 World Cup that players wore numbered shirts. The numbers on each player's shirt made it easy for the referee, press and fans to identify each player.

It is estimated that around 200,000 people watched the final game at Maracanã during the 1950 World Cup. Probably the biggest audience for a football game of all time. With Brazil's defeat, the atmosphere in the stadium was extremely sad. There were thousands of fans crying in the stadium and, soon after, in the streets of Rio de Janeiro.

In the 1950 World Cup there was still no television broadcast in Brazil. Those who did not attend the stadiums followed the games through the radio, the main means of communication until the 50s.

Brazil is the only country that has participated in all World Cups.

Brazil is the country with the most titles won: a total of five.

Italy and Germany were world champions four times. Argentina, France and Uruguay have two titles. England and Spain have only one title each.

The World Cup is the second biggest sporting event on the planet, second only to the Olympic Games.

The World Cups in France (1998), Japan / South Korea (2002), Germany (2006), South Africa (2010), Brazil (2014) and Russia (2018) had the participation of 32 teams. However, the 2022 World Cup, which will be held in Qatar, will be the last with 32 teams. FIFA announced that, in the 2026 World Cup (USA, Canada and Mexico), the event will feature 48 teams.

The biggest defeats in the history of the Soccer World Cup were: Hungary 10 x 1 El Salvador (1982 Cup); Yugoslavia 9 x 0 Zaire (1974 World Cup); Hungary 9 x 0 South Korea (1954 World Cup); Germany 8 x 0 Saudi Arabia (2002 World Cup); Sweden 8 x 0 Cuba (1938 World Cup); Portugal 7 x 0 North Korea (2010 World Cup) and Poland 7 x 0 Haiti (1974 World Cup).

The biggest rout imposed by the Brazilian team took place at Maracanã, during the 1950 World Cup held in our country. In the final quadrangular, Brazil beat Sweden by the score of 7 to 1.

The biggest defeat suffered by Brazil in World Cup games occurred in 2014. The Brazilian team lost in the semifinals to Germany by 7-1.

Brazil has the best performance in the history of the Football World Cup: 21 cups were played, that is, all of them. Played 113 games with 75 wins, 18 draws and 20 losses. 

In December 2022, the Brazilian national team ranked 1st in the FIFA ranking. In second place was Argentina.

As of the 2026 Football World Cup, there will be 48 participating teams. During the championship, 80 games will be held in 32 days. In 2026, the World Cup will be held, for the first time in history, in three countries (United States, Canada and Mexico)

All time champions

Uruguay (1930) / Italy (1934) / Italy (1938) / Uruguay (1950) / Germany (1954) / Brazil (1958) / Brazil (1962) / England (1966) / Brazil (1970) / Germany (1974) / Argentina (1978) / Italy (1982) / Argentina (1986) / Germany (1990) / Brazil (1994) / France (1998) / Brazil (2002), Italy (2006) , Spain (2010), Germany (2014), France (2018) and Argentina (2022).