The origins of football are unclear, as games similar to the one we know today have been traced back to ancient civilizations in China, Japan, Greece and Rome. However, what is certain is that the modern game was invented in England.
Football had been played in England for centuries, with towns and villages up and down the country having their own versions of the game. These games were usually contested between neighboring villages and were often played on holy days.
The game gradually filtered through into the country`s leading public schools, which also had their own variations on the theme. Eton`s `wall game` and the game played at Rugby were two of the most famous.
However, in 1863 the decision was taken to codify the game and so representatives of the country`s leading clubs and schools met to form the Football Association, the sport`s first governing body.
Over the next decade, the FA Cup was born, with Wanderers becoming the first winners after beating Royal Engineers in the final. The first international was also played, as Scotland drew 0-0 with England.
FA Cup Final 2006 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The original FA Cup finals were played at a number of venues, from Goodison Park to Crystal Palace and did not take up residency at Wembley until 1923, when Bolton beat West Ham 2-0 to lift the trophy.
The popularity of the sport grew towards the end of the nineteenth century and professionalism was eventually allowed in 1885. Three years later, the Football League was formed with 12 founder members taking part, three of which, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers and Everton, went on to be founder members of the Premier League when it was created just over 100 years later.
In 1892, a `Second Division` was established when the Football League absorbed the Football Alliance. Two more professional divisions were eventually added.
England and Scotland continued to play each other regularly and the international game began to flourish with the inception of FIFA in 1904. Jules Rimet, then head of FIFA, oversaw the first World Cup tournament in 1930 when the hosts, Uruguay, became the inaugural winners.
But Europe was where the game was really growing and by the 1950s the European Cup had been created, a competition that saw the best teams in Europe go head to head. Spain`s Real Madrid became its first winners and they have won the tournament nine times in all, more than any other team.
The first British team to win the European Cup was Celtic in 1967 and then Manchester United became the first English team to win it in 1968.
Back in England, the last two decades have seen a few major shake-ups, both involving the FA. The first came in 1992 when 22 clubs broke away from the Football League to form the FA Premier League. Then the FA Cup final was moved to Cardiff`s Millennium Stadium between 2001 and 2006 while Wembley was redeveloped.
However, the FA Cup final is now back at its spiritual home and the new stadium in the famous old location now hosts the FA Cup semi-finals each year. This is not so popular with fans but generates a great deal of money for Wembley and the FA, not to mention the Wembley hotels and bars that welcome football fans on FA Cup weekends. Soccer training.
