Soccer or Association football, commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players, and is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world. It is a football variant played on a rectangular grass or artificial turf field, with a goal at each of the short ends. The object of the game is to score by manoeuvring the ball into the opposing goal. In general play, the goalkeepers are the only players allowed to use their hands or arms to propel the ball; the rest of the team usually use their feet to kick the ball into position, occasionally using their torso or head to intercept a ball in midair. The team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins. If the score is tied at the end of the game, either a draw is declared or the game goes into extra time and/or a penalty shootout, depending on the format of the competition.
The modern game was codified in England following the formation of The Football(soccer) Association, whose 1863 Laws of the Game created the foundations for the way the sport is played today. Football(soccer) is governed internationally by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football), commonly known by the acronym FIFA. The most prestigious international soccer competition is the FIFA World Cup, held every four years. This event, the most widely viewed in the world, boasts an audience twice that of the Summer Olympic Games.
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New Table of Contents
- Soccer in the United States
- Soccer News
- Association football around the world
- Soccer Basics
- Soccer! Will it ever be as popular in the USA as American Football?
- Soccer Cards & Collector Items
- Soccer Basics (part 2)
- Soccer Equipment
- History Of Soccer
- Soccer On YouTube
- Soccer T-Shirts & Gift Ideas
- Soccer on eBay
- Soccer Links
- Soccer Books
- Soccer Video Games
- Reader Feedback
- About this site
- Soccer Merchandise
Soccer in the United States
However, professional soccer has been less popular in the United States than in the other Americas or most European nations. Its professional first-division league is not as well-attended in general as the major leagues of baseball, basketball, American football or ice hockey, but Major League Soccer is also much younger, and has far fewer teams. Major League Soccer debuted in 1996, while other major U.S. leagues have each existed since the first half of the 20th century.
Although MLS is also much younger than most other countries' first divisions, and has only 13 teams in 2007, they are already the 12th most-attended premier division in the entire world. In 2006, MLS broke its all-time record for attendance at a regular-season match, which saw 92,650 spectators fill the Los Angeles Coliseum on a Sunday in August; although that claim is somewhat misattributed to the MLS game as it was one of two games played that night, the second being a match between two power-houses of the Spanish speaking soccer world: FC Barcelona and CD Guadalajara.
In 2007, with the arrivals of international superstar players such as David Beckham, attendance records for specific MLS teams and stadiums continued to rise. Additionally, the USA national team and Mexico national team have been playing to full houses in the U.S. in recent years, and have also broken several stadium, city, and state attendance records for matches held in the past five years. Television viewership of soccer in the U.S. is at an all-time high, with many channels now dedicated to the sport.
Until recently, American soccer was more of a regional phenomenon than it is today. Soccer flourished in hotbeds such as New Jersey, New York, St. Louis, Southern California, and in areas with large immigrant populations that grew up with football (soccer) in their homelands. But soccer is now gradually gaining popularity across the country, partially due to youth programs, the creation of a respectable professional league, and the success of the men's and women's national teams.
Soccer News
- Major League Soccer: Anxious RSL keeps eye on playoff rivals
- "But I do think that we just have to bear down and focus on the fact that we've got to play...
- Two Cuban soccer players defect in Washington
- WASHINGTON, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Two Cuban soccer players have defected from their national team befor...
- State Colleges: Aggies start out WAC soccer play with win
- LOGAN - The Utah State women's soccer team defeated Idaho 4-0 on Friday in its Western Athletic...
Association football around the world
The majority of countries supplement the league system with one or more cup competitions. These are organised on a knock-out basis, the winner of each match proceeding to the next round; the loser takes no further part in the competition.
Some countries' top divisions feature highly-paid star players; in smaller countries and lower divisions, players may be part-timers with a second job, or amateurs. The five top European leagues-the Premier League (England), the Bundesliga (Germany), La Liga (Spain), Ligue 1 (France) and Serie A (Italy)-attract most of the world's best players.
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Soccer Basics
The primary rule is that the players (other than the goalkeepers) may not deliberately handle the ball with their hands or arms during play (though they do use their hands during a throw-in restart). Although players usually 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, 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 limited. Soccer 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.
Click Here To Learn Soccer Positions!
Soccer! Will it ever be as popular in the USA as American Football?
What do you think? The kids are starting to play soccer by the time they enter school. A lot earlier than they start to learn football! Does this mean that soccer will someday be bigger than football? It already is in much of the world!
Soccer Cards & Collector Items
BCW Deluxe Acrylic Ball Stand - Holds Footballs, Basketballs, Volleyballs or Soccer Balls - Display Stand or Holder
Amazon Price: $6.97 (as of 10/11/2008)
Upper Deck 2007 Upper Deck MLS Soccer Trading Cards
Amazon Price: $43.18 (as of 10/11/2008)
CoachDeck - Soccer Drills
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 10/11/2008)
Soccer Basics (part 2)
The referee is the official timekeeper for the match, and may make an allowance for time lost through substitutions, injured players requiring attention, or other stoppages. This added time is commonly referred to as stoppage time or injury time, and is at the sole discretion of the referee. The referee alone signals the end of the match. In matches where a fourth official is appointed, toward the end of the half the referee signals how many minutes of stoppage time he intends to add, and the fourth official then informs the players and spectators by holding up a board showing this number. The signalled stoppage time may be further extended by the referee.
In league competitions games may end in a draw, but in some knockout competitions if a game is tied at the end of regulation time it may go into extra time, which consists of two further 15-minute periods. If the score is still tied after extra time, some competitions allow the use of penalty shootouts (known officially in the Laws of the Game as "kicks from the penalty mark") to determine which team will progress to the next stage of the tournament. Goals scored during extra time periods count toward the final score of the game, but kicks from the penalty mark are only used to decide the team that progresses to the next part of the tournament (with goals scored in a penalty shootout not making up part of the final score).
Competitions held over two legs (in which each team plays at home once) may use the away goals rule to attempt to determine which team progresses in the event of equal aggregate scores. If the result is still equal following this calculation kicks from the penalty mark are usually required, though some competitions may require a tied game to be replayed.
Soccer Equipment
Men's Under Armour® HeatGear® Tactical Compression Shorts
Amazon Price: (as of 10/11/2008)
Under Armour Men Loose Gear UA Tech T-Shirt 0382
Amazon Price: (as of 10/11/2008)
adidas Men's rEvolution III Pant
Amazon Price: (as of 10/11/2008)
History Of Soccer
Games revolving around the kicking of a ball have been played in many countries throughout history. According to FIFA, the "very earliest form of the game for which there is scientific evidence was an exercise of precisely this skilful technique dating back to the 2nd and 3rd centuries B.C. in China. In addition, the Roman game Harpastum may be a distant ancestor of football. Various forms of football were played in medieval Europe, though rules varied greatly by both period and location.
The rules of football as they are codified today are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely varying forms of football played at the public schools of England. The first ever set of football rules were written at Eton College in 1815. 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 and subsequent codes.
For more rules and regulation visit this link at Wikipedia.
Find Jewelry For Your Favorite Sports!
Soccer On YouTube
Soccer T-Shirts & Gift Ideas
Soccer Links
- List of men's national football (soccer) teams
- There are currently 208 men's national football teams affiliated to the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the world's football governing body, through their national football associations.
- Lists of football (soccer) players
- Lists of Association football (soccer) players and lists of players by countries.
- Soccer top goalscorers
- Because of the diversity of matches (friendlies, international, competition) and the difference in competition per country and division, it is hard to make one list of all-time top goal scorers of soccer.
Soccer Books
Great Soccer Drills : The Baffled Parent's Guide
Amazon Price: $11.53 (as of 10/11/2008)
The Man Watching: A Biography of Anson Dorrance, the Unlikely Architect of the Greatest College Sports Dynasty Ever
Amazon Price: $17.79 (as of 10/11/2008)
The Everything Kids' Soccer Book: Rules, Techniques, and More About Your Favorite Sport! (Everything Kids Series)
Amazon Price: $7.95 (as of 10/11/2008)
Soccer Video Games
FIFA Soccer 09
Amazon Price: $59.99 (as of 10/11/2008)
FIFA Soccer 09
Amazon Price: $59.99 (as of 10/11/2008)
World Wide Soccer Manager 2009
Amazon Price: $29.99 (as of 10/11/2008)
Reader Feedback
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| Jay_Gumbs
Nice soccer lens. I'm a big fan. Right now I'm watching the fifa under 20 world cup. Posted July 19, 2007 |
About this site
As I said in my profile, I enjoy collecting and since I retired I've found that building these lenses is a great way to stay busy; And, I hope that I'm helping some of you out by gathering information on your favorite subject and putting it all in one place so you don't have to spend hours searching for it.
I spend part of my time designing t-shirts and buttons to help supplement my social security because, as many of you know, it's pretty difficult to make it on social security. My on-line t-shirt shop is called Dene's Place after my wife.
My "retirement" came a few years earlier than I would have liked because they found that I have an inoperatable tumor about the size of a softball in my right pelvic area. They still don't know what to do about it because for now it has quit growing. One of those "leave it alone and see what happens" type things.
Anyway, if you've made it this far, I'd appreciate it if you would check out Dene's Place to see if there's anything that you might like for yourself or as a gift. It helps me pay the bills!
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Much of the information used here has been researched from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.
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Soccer Merchandise
Prices subject to change.

Backpack Carry Bag Designed with shoulder straps Includes side pockets Size 4 Competition 1601 Soccerball Shiny PVC Hand sewn construction Butyl bladder for longer air retention Youth Size Shinguards High density shell Shock absorbing foam Elastic strap 4 high visibility training disks Pump and needle included

Excellent for backyards and leagues, the 10 Piece Soccer Set really gets children on the road to proficiency and success! The perfect 10 Piece Soccer Set help build skills and coordination for beginners. Includes pump and needle, size 4 ball, youth shin guards, high visibility training disks, water bottle and a back pack to get it all to the field in one convienient piece. Ages 3 and up.

Franklin Soccer Goal 10' x 5' Premier Folding Goal $76.99
This Franklin Soccer Goal is the premier folding goal! This goal assembles to 10' W x 5' H x 4' D. It has a new pull-pin folding joint design for easy set up and storage, and it has heavy duty galvanized steel tubing (1.25" OD). It has precision fit couplings with locking pins for easy and secure assembly. It comes with an all-weather 4" x 4" PE net and 6 galvanized ground stakes. This is recommended for training, backyards, leagues, and club practices! Availability: This item takes 4 business days to leave the warehouse, plus ship time.













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