What's in a Name?

Is it Football? Is it Soccer? With the finals of the FIFA World Cup happening in just a few days, this seemed like a good time to take a look at the sport, its history, and what in the world we should call it.

First off, the name. Known to most of the world as ‘football’, the beautiful game is almost exclusively referred to as soccer in the United States, but many people would be surprised to learn that that moniker actually originated across the pond.

Modern soccer (or football) was born in 1863 when representatives from several English schools and clubs got together to standardize a single set of rules for their matches. They dubbed their new organization the Football Association, and their version of the game became known as “Association Football”.

The word ‘soccer’ comes from a slang abbreviation of the word association, which British players of the day adapted as “assoc”, “assoccer” and eventually soccer or soccer football. (The habit of adding “er” to nicknames in British vernacular is attributed to Oxford students of that period and can be found in other sporting slang such as “rugger” for rugby).

Both names, soccer and football (or a combination of the two – soccer football), were used pretty much interchangeably to refer to association football well into the 20th century, at which time “football” emerged as the dominant name in most parts of the world. But in countries where another form of football was already popular – such as America and Australia – the name soccer stuck around.

So, just to avoid any confusion or bias, for the rest of today’s blog post we will use the term “futbol” (that’s Spanish!).

Futbol is the world’s most popular sport. It’s a game that’s been around, in one form or another, for a very long time. Records trace its history back more than 2,000 years to ancient China. Greece, Rome and parts of Central America also claim to have started the sport, but it was England that transitioned futbol into the game we know today. Here’s a brief crash course in its history:

Now that we’re up to date, let’s talk a bit about FIFA and the World Cup. In 1904, the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) was founded in Paris. FIFA is the governing body of international futbol, and it was created to oversee the organization of the sport around the world. Today, there are more member countries of FIFA (211) than there are members of the United Nations (193). While the United Nations recognizes only sovereign countries that prove legitimacy, FIFA gives leeway to dominions, unrecognized countries and territories to compete.

The World Cup, which takes place every four years, was first held in 1930 and it was won by Uruguay. This month-long event is a spectacle unlike any other and brings together the best teams and players from around the globe.

But the World Cup isn’t just about the futbol. It’s also about the atmosphere and the culture that surrounds the event. It has become a celebration of the world’s diverse cultures, with fans from all over the globe coming together to support their teams, showing an enthusiasm that’s not even matched by the Olympics.

Here's a few random, hopefully entertaining, facts about futbol:

• In China, the first futbol balls were made from sewn clothing that was filled with rubble. In Europe during the Middle Ages, futbol balls were made from inflated pig bladders.

• Lutz Pfannenstiel is the only professional futbol player to play on a team in all six continents.

(Antarctica, the seventh continent, currently has no active teams in competition)

• Futbol helped to end a civil war. After scoring the goal that sent Ivory Coast to its first World Cup, in 2006, Didier Drogba recorded a video urging the warring factions to put down their arms and make peace.

To support the players, the factions decided to lay down their arms, ending the civil war.

• One of the earliest women’s futbol teams was founded by Nettie Honeyball (no, seriously). In 1895 she founded the British Ladies’ Football Club.

• The futbol stadium with the largest seating capacity (about 114,000) in the world is the Rungrado 1st of May stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea.

• The black and white “Telstar” ball was designed by Adidas.

Its black and white design was to make the ball easier to see on television back in the day when most people only had a black and white tv. Today, more than 55% of futbol balls are made in just one place – Sialkot, Pakistan.

• Out of the 21 World Cup tournaments, only eight countries have won the trophy. Brazil = five times; Germany and Italy have four wins each; Argentina, Uruguay and France have won two titles each with Spain and England laying claim to one title each.

So, whether you’re a die-hard futbol fan or someone who just enjoys a good game, the World Cup is definitely worth a watch. It’s a celebration of the world’s most popular sport, and a great way to experience the excitement and drama of...

Tell us if you’re a futbol/football/soccer fan or player and if you’ve ever had the chance to experience the World Cup in person in the comments below.

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