محمد ابوصقر
12-25-2006, 04:43 مساء
Football
Football (also known as association football or soccer) is a team sport played between two teams, of 11 players each, and is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world. It is a ball game played on a rectangular grass field (or occasionally on an artificial pitch) with a goal at each end. The object of the game is to score by maneuvering the ball into the opposing goal. The predominant feature of the sport is that no players other than the goalkeepers may use their hands or arms to propel the ball in general play. The winner is the team who score the most goals by the end of the match.
The modern game was officiated in England following the formation of the Football Association, whose 1863 set of rules created the foundations for the way the sport is played today. Football is governed internationally by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). The most prestigious international football competition is the World Cup, played every four years, which is also the most widely viewed and famous sporting event in the world, watched by twice as many people as the Summer Olympics. [1]
Nature of the game
the other team's goal, thereby scoring a goal. The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner; if both teams have scored an equal number of goals, then the game is a draw. There are exceptions to this rule, however; see Duration and tie-breaking methods below.
The primary rule is that the players (other than the goalkeepers) may not intentionally touch the ball with their hands or arms during play (though they do use their hands during a throw-in restart). Although players mainly use their feet to move the ball around, they may use any part of their bodies other than their hands or arms.
In typical game play, players attempt to propel the ball toward their opponents' goal through individual control of the ball, such as by dribbling (running with the ball close to their feet), passing the ball to a team-mate, and by taking shots at the goal, which is guarded by the opposing goalkeeper. Opposing players may try to regain control of the ball by intercepting a pass or through tackling the opponent who controls the ball; however, physical contact between opponents is restricted. Football is generally a free-flowing game, with play stopping only when the ball has left the field of play, or when play is stopped by the referee. After a stoppage, play recommences with a specified restart.
The Laws of the Game do not specify any player positions other than goalkeeper, but a number of player specialisations have evolved. Broadly, these include three main categories: strikers, or forwards, whose main task is to score goals; defenders, who specialise in preventing their opponents from scoring; and midfielders, who dispossess the opposition and keep possession of the ball in order to pass it to the forwards; players in these positions are referred to as outfield players, in order to discern them from the single goalkeeper. These positions are further differentiated by which side of the field the player spends most time in. For example, there are central defenders, and left and right midfielders. The ten outfield players may be arranged in these positions in any combination (for example, there may be four defenders, four midfielders, and two forwards, or three defenders, three midfielders, and four forwards), and the number of players in each position determines the style of the team's play; more forwards and fewer defenders would create a more aggressive and offensive-minded game, while the reverse would create a slower, more defensive style of play. While players may spend most of the game in a specific position, there are few restrictions on player movement, and players can switch positions at any time. The layout of the players on the pitch is called the team's formation, and defining the team's formation and tactics is usually the prerogative of the team's manager.
History and development
Games revolving around the kicking of a ball have been played in many countries throughout history. The earliest documented version is the Mesoamerican ballgame, played by the Olmec as early as 1500 BC. The Chinese game Cuju is mentioned in military manuals from the time of the Qin Dynasty (255–206 BC).[3] Other ancient ball games include kemari in Japan and the Roman game Harpastum. Various forms of mob football were played in medieval Europe, though rules varied greatly by both period and location.
Whilst football continued to be played in various forms throughout Britain, the English public schools (fee paying schools) are widely credited with certain key achievements in the creation of modern football (association and rugby football). The evidence suggests that during the sixteenth century they were instrumental in taking football away from its violent "mob" form and turning it into an organised team sport that was beneficial to schoolboys. Therefore, the game became institutionalised, regulated, and part of a larger more central tradition. Many early descriptions of football and references to it (e.g. poetry) were recorded by people who had studied at these schools, showing they were familiar with the game. Finally, in the nineteenth century, teachers and former students were the first to write down formal rules of early modern football to enable matches to be played between schools. Though the Harry Potter series is based on fantasy, its favorite sport Quidditch can be seen as closely mirroring the important and vital role which football plays in the English public school system.
The rules of football as they are codified today are effectively based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely varying forms of football played at the public schools of England. The Cambridge Rules were a code of football rules, first drawn up at Cambridge University in 1848, which have influenced the development of Association football (also known simply as "football", or soccer) and subsequent codes. However the historical account citing England as the origin of modern football has been challenged somewhat after the 2006 discovery of a book written by David Wedderburn in 1633 in Scotland over 200 years before the FA was founded.[4] This new finding may rewrite the history of football, because Wedderburn, a poet and teacher at the Aberdeen Grammar School, describes rules that bear much more similarity to the Cambridge Rules than historians had previously believed likely. Whilst older descriptions of ball games involve kicking, historians say that the Scottish manuscript, written in Latin, is the first to report on players passing the ball forward and attempting to score past a goal keeper. The 1711 edition of the manuscript was stored for years at the National Library of Scotland.
Laws of the Game
There are seventeen Laws in the official Laws of the Game. The same Laws are designed to apply to all levels of football, although certain modifications for groups such as juniors, seniors or women are permitted. The Laws are often framed in broad terms, which allow flexibility in their application depending on the nature of the game. In addition to the seventeen Laws, numerous IFAB decisions and other directives contribute to the regulation of football.
Playing field
Due to the original formulation of the Laws in England and the early supremacy of the four British football associations within IFAB, the standard dimensions of a football pitch were originally expressed in imperial units. The Laws now express dimensions with approximate metric equivalents (followed by traditional units in brackets), though popular use tends to continue to use traditional units.
The length of the rectangular field (pitch) specified for international adult matches is in the range 100-110 m (110-120 yards) and the width is in the range 65-75 m (70-80 yards). Fields for non-international matches may be 100-130 yards length and 50-100 yards in width. The longer boundary lines are touchlines or sidelines, while the shorter boundaries (on which the goals are placed) are goal lines. On the goal line at each end of the field a rectangular goal is centred. The inner edges of the vertical goal posts must be 8 yards (7.32 m) apart, and the lower edge of the horizontal crossbar supported by the goal posts must be 8 feet (2.44 m) above the ground. Nets are usually placed behind the goal, but are not required by the Laws.
In front of each goal is an area of the field known as the penalty area (colloquially "penalty box", "18 yard box" or simply "the box"). This area is marked by the goal-line, two lines starting on the goal-line 18 yards (16.5 m) from the goalposts and extending 18 yards into the pitch perpendicular to the goal-line, and a line joining them. This area has a number of functions, the most prominent being to mark where the goalkeeper may handle the ball and where a penal foul by a defender becomes punishable by a penalty kick.
Football (also known as association football or soccer) is a team sport played between two teams, of 11 players each, and is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world. It is a ball game played on a rectangular grass field (or occasionally on an artificial pitch) with a goal at each end. The object of the game is to score by maneuvering the ball into the opposing goal. The predominant feature of the sport is that no players other than the goalkeepers may use their hands or arms to propel the ball in general play. The winner is the team who score the most goals by the end of the match.
The modern game was officiated in England following the formation of the Football Association, whose 1863 set of rules created the foundations for the way the sport is played today. Football is governed internationally by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). The most prestigious international football competition is the World Cup, played every four years, which is also the most widely viewed and famous sporting event in the world, watched by twice as many people as the Summer Olympics. [1]
Nature of the game
the other team's goal, thereby scoring a goal. The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner; if both teams have scored an equal number of goals, then the game is a draw. There are exceptions to this rule, however; see Duration and tie-breaking methods below.
The primary rule is that the players (other than the goalkeepers) may not intentionally touch the ball with their hands or arms during play (though they do use their hands during a throw-in restart). Although players mainly use their feet to move the ball around, they may use any part of their bodies other than their hands or arms.
In typical game play, players attempt to propel the ball toward their opponents' goal through individual control of the ball, such as by dribbling (running with the ball close to their feet), passing the ball to a team-mate, and by taking shots at the goal, which is guarded by the opposing goalkeeper. Opposing players may try to regain control of the ball by intercepting a pass or through tackling the opponent who controls the ball; however, physical contact between opponents is restricted. Football is generally a free-flowing game, with play stopping only when the ball has left the field of play, or when play is stopped by the referee. After a stoppage, play recommences with a specified restart.
The Laws of the Game do not specify any player positions other than goalkeeper, but a number of player specialisations have evolved. Broadly, these include three main categories: strikers, or forwards, whose main task is to score goals; defenders, who specialise in preventing their opponents from scoring; and midfielders, who dispossess the opposition and keep possession of the ball in order to pass it to the forwards; players in these positions are referred to as outfield players, in order to discern them from the single goalkeeper. These positions are further differentiated by which side of the field the player spends most time in. For example, there are central defenders, and left and right midfielders. The ten outfield players may be arranged in these positions in any combination (for example, there may be four defenders, four midfielders, and two forwards, or three defenders, three midfielders, and four forwards), and the number of players in each position determines the style of the team's play; more forwards and fewer defenders would create a more aggressive and offensive-minded game, while the reverse would create a slower, more defensive style of play. While players may spend most of the game in a specific position, there are few restrictions on player movement, and players can switch positions at any time. The layout of the players on the pitch is called the team's formation, and defining the team's formation and tactics is usually the prerogative of the team's manager.
History and development
Games revolving around the kicking of a ball have been played in many countries throughout history. The earliest documented version is the Mesoamerican ballgame, played by the Olmec as early as 1500 BC. The Chinese game Cuju is mentioned in military manuals from the time of the Qin Dynasty (255–206 BC).[3] Other ancient ball games include kemari in Japan and the Roman game Harpastum. Various forms of mob football were played in medieval Europe, though rules varied greatly by both period and location.
Whilst football continued to be played in various forms throughout Britain, the English public schools (fee paying schools) are widely credited with certain key achievements in the creation of modern football (association and rugby football). The evidence suggests that during the sixteenth century they were instrumental in taking football away from its violent "mob" form and turning it into an organised team sport that was beneficial to schoolboys. Therefore, the game became institutionalised, regulated, and part of a larger more central tradition. Many early descriptions of football and references to it (e.g. poetry) were recorded by people who had studied at these schools, showing they were familiar with the game. Finally, in the nineteenth century, teachers and former students were the first to write down formal rules of early modern football to enable matches to be played between schools. Though the Harry Potter series is based on fantasy, its favorite sport Quidditch can be seen as closely mirroring the important and vital role which football plays in the English public school system.
The rules of football as they are codified today are effectively based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely varying forms of football played at the public schools of England. The Cambridge Rules were a code of football rules, first drawn up at Cambridge University in 1848, which have influenced the development of Association football (also known simply as "football", or soccer) and subsequent codes. However the historical account citing England as the origin of modern football has been challenged somewhat after the 2006 discovery of a book written by David Wedderburn in 1633 in Scotland over 200 years before the FA was founded.[4] This new finding may rewrite the history of football, because Wedderburn, a poet and teacher at the Aberdeen Grammar School, describes rules that bear much more similarity to the Cambridge Rules than historians had previously believed likely. Whilst older descriptions of ball games involve kicking, historians say that the Scottish manuscript, written in Latin, is the first to report on players passing the ball forward and attempting to score past a goal keeper. The 1711 edition of the manuscript was stored for years at the National Library of Scotland.
Laws of the Game
There are seventeen Laws in the official Laws of the Game. The same Laws are designed to apply to all levels of football, although certain modifications for groups such as juniors, seniors or women are permitted. The Laws are often framed in broad terms, which allow flexibility in their application depending on the nature of the game. In addition to the seventeen Laws, numerous IFAB decisions and other directives contribute to the regulation of football.
Playing field
Due to the original formulation of the Laws in England and the early supremacy of the four British football associations within IFAB, the standard dimensions of a football pitch were originally expressed in imperial units. The Laws now express dimensions with approximate metric equivalents (followed by traditional units in brackets), though popular use tends to continue to use traditional units.
The length of the rectangular field (pitch) specified for international adult matches is in the range 100-110 m (110-120 yards) and the width is in the range 65-75 m (70-80 yards). Fields for non-international matches may be 100-130 yards length and 50-100 yards in width. The longer boundary lines are touchlines or sidelines, while the shorter boundaries (on which the goals are placed) are goal lines. On the goal line at each end of the field a rectangular goal is centred. The inner edges of the vertical goal posts must be 8 yards (7.32 m) apart, and the lower edge of the horizontal crossbar supported by the goal posts must be 8 feet (2.44 m) above the ground. Nets are usually placed behind the goal, but are not required by the Laws.
In front of each goal is an area of the field known as the penalty area (colloquially "penalty box", "18 yard box" or simply "the box"). This area is marked by the goal-line, two lines starting on the goal-line 18 yards (16.5 m) from the goalposts and extending 18 yards into the pitch perpendicular to the goal-line, and a line joining them. This area has a number of functions, the most prominent being to mark where the goalkeeper may handle the ball and where a penal foul by a defender becomes punishable by a penalty kick.