The history of Football

The world's most popular game of football is being played by more than 200 hundred countries. 204 countries are affiliated to its governing body, FIFA. The precise origin of football is unknown. Its modern format of 11 players against 11 in a confined area can be attributed to the British in the 19th century but there is evidence of a form of football being played in China about 2000 years ago. China provides a first football report in the writings of the Han dynasty. Japan has 14th century old records of a local game called kenatt which is very similar to today's football. The rules may have changed down the centuries but the passion what we term football has remained one of man's most entertainments. Julius Caesar too brought the roman game of harpastum to Britain which is very similar to football today. This game was a mixture of football and rugby.
The British were the original missionaries of modern organised football. As science developed, the communications and traveling sources, so sailors ,soldiers, merchants, engineers, teachers, students and other professional classes took their sport football around the world. Local people joined in and football gained universal popularity. Towards the end of the 19th century the game invaded Austria. There was sizeable British colony in Vienna and their influence is clear in the names of the two oldest clubs, 1st Vienna FC and Vienna football club. One of Vienna's keenest member was Hogo Miesal little inside forward who became an impressive secretary of the Austrian Football Association. He recalled the first ever game staged in Austria was between the cricketers and Vienna football club on Nov 15,1864.
Football has flourished in Hungary for longer than in almost any other european country. A younger student returning from England imported the first football in 1890's and two englishman, Arthur Yolland and Ashton were included in the first Hungarian team. Before the first World War English teams had visited and impressed everybody. The English played a great part in developing the game in Italy too. Genoa football and cricket club was founded by englishman in 1892. English boys at boarding school are claimed to have broght a rough type of football to Germany as early as 1865, though German football owes much to the enthusiasm of the two Schricker brothers. They actually borrowed money from their mother to help finance the first foreign tour ever made by a football association team in 1899 which was a mixture of amateur and professional player. Steve Bloomer the England and Derby County inside right went to Germany to coach and was interned during the first World War as was the highly influential coach Jimmy Hogan. Hogan also play a big part in the devolpment of dutch football. By 1908 Holland had 96 clubs and a competent national side under the direction of former England international Edgar Chadwick.
Football was introduced to Russia in 1887 by two Englishmen the charnock brothers who ran a mill at orokhovo near Moscow. They brought in equipment from England but had insufficient money for boots. Clement Charnock overcame the problem by getting a strap piercer at the mill to attach studs to players ordinary footwear. The Russian took to the game eagerly and by the late 1890s the Moscow league was in operation. The Charnock's team now called Mozorovsti winning the championship for the first five years. The first continental country to master football was perhaps Denmark, coached by the English the Danes were the outstading continental side in Europe in the early part of the 20th century and reached the final of the Olympic Games in 1908, while they lost unluckily 2-0 to Great Britain. It had all started when an English boy studying at Soro Academy, a famous Danish public school received a football from home. The English football club formed in copenhagen in 1879 and two englishmen Smart and Gibson were instrumental in popularizing the game.
Football was exported all four corners of the world. In Brazil, British sailors were the first to play on the shores in 1874 and in 1878 men from the ship Crimea put an exhibition match for princess Isabel. But Charles Miller born in Sao paolo, the son of English immigrants who came to England to study and returned ten years later with kit and two new footballs after playing for Southampton is the true inspiration of the game in Brazil. The first real match was staged in april 1894 with the Rail team beating the Gas team 4-2. Thus the game in south America is as old as on the Europian continent. The British influence is seen clearly in the names of some of the clubs in Brazil. In Argentina although football was begun in the 19th century by British residents of Buenos Aires, it was slow to catch on with the locals. The national side of 1911 was full of Englishmen though one, Arnold Hutton, a star forward declined to play in one match because he had agreed to play rugby for his club.
In Africa not only the English but the French, German and Portuguese colonial movements played important roles in introducing football. For Portugal, the investment paid off spectacularly, their team at the 1966 World Cup drew its finest players Eusebio and Coluna from the colony of Mozambique.
Football spread in india after British people came in the form of the East India Company. The Durand Cup the oldest tournament was staged in Shimla for the first time in 1888. Calcutta, Hyderabad, Bombay were the frontrunners while Kerela, Punjab and Goa follow them closely.