William Clemens, age 13, of Barre, Vt., for his question:
WHEN WAS SOCCER FIRST PLAYED?
Soccer is the common name usually used in North America for the sport that is called football in many other parts of the world. It is the most widely played team game in the world and it is also the most popular spectator sport. A similar game was played by the Chinese as early as 400 B.C.
A game similar to soccer also was played by the ancient Romans in the A.D. 200s in which two teams attempted to get a ball across lines drawn in the middle of a field. A variation of this same game, played by children in the streets, appeared in London during the 1100s.
During the 1800s, many English school students played the game, which by this time had been refined. The game was called association football and in 1848 representatives of a number of schools met at Trinity College in Cambridge to draft a first set of official rules and regulations.
A number of English clubs joined together in 1863 to form the Football Association and in 1871 they introduced the Football Association Challenge Cup Competition, an event that is still one of the most famous in soccer.
In 1904 an international association was organized and since 1930, every four years members of this group take part in a competition called the World Cup.
The United States Soccer Football Association was organized in 1913.
For a soccer game, you will need two teams of 11 men. The players try to knock a round ball through their opponent's goal. The field may vary from 110 to 120 yards long and extend from 70 to 80 yards wide. The goal is made of two wooden posts 24 feet apart and joined at the top by a crossbar that is eight feet above the ground.
Most of the time there is a net attached to the back of the crossbar and posts and pegged to the ground behind them. This is necessary because it stops the ball when it goes in the goal and it is also a way to show everyone that the ball really did pass between the posts and under the crossbar.
Soccer is a fast, exciting game. Most games last for 90 minutes and are divided into two halves, with a rest period between the halves.
Officials in a soccer game include one referee and two linesmen. The referee also acts as the timekeeper and blows a whistle to start or stop play.
Players wear shirts and shorts, heavy knee length socks and cleated soccer shoes. Some also wear shin guards.
Only the goalkeeper can touch the ball with his hands. Other players must kick it with their feet or hit it with their bodies or heads.
The action in a soccer game rarely stops, so it takes great physical endurance. Players must move up and down the field almost continuously. Play stops only when a score is made or a foul is called.
The game is called football or association football around the world. The word "soccer" comes from "assoc.," an abbreviation for "association." American and Canadian football as well as rugby developed from soccer.