Footballs 4 Family

We take football for granted. In the fall we watch it on TV or in person and play a family game with an official NFL football or in organized leagues. How did football get started? This article sheds some light on football’s history.

Football likely began in 19th century England as part of a soccer game. Some frustrated soccer player got tired of kicking the ball and picked it up and ran with it. His action sparked other soccer players to do the same and so rugby was born.

Rugby caught on quickly around the world. It came to the United States in the mid 1800’s and was played in America’s northeastern colleges. Harvard and Yale played a key match in 1876 and formalized the rules for rugby, similar to English rules. The key difference was the ball. The American ball was egg shaped and so the game name was changed to football. This action led to forming the Intercollegiate Football Association (IFA).

But football then was still American rugby and different than today’s game. So, in 1880, a Yale football player, named Walter Camp, convinced the IFA to change the rules of American rugby to the game we know today. Camp is popularly remembered as the father of modern football.

Football was an intercollegiate sport until the beginning of the 20th century when professional teams began to emerge. By then college sports fell under the NCAA (National College Athletic Association). The rules of professional football mirrored the collegiate game. By 1920 there were more than 10 professional teams. They met in Canton, Ohio to form what became the NFL (National Football League).

The rest is history. In the last 50 years TV has made football the fall sport. We watch and play football. What we see in the college and professional games we try to copy in our recreational games. We love football for its healthy outdoor recreation and play it for the fun and exercise it provides.

As we play family football, we don’t think about the game’s pioneers. We never consider the unknown English soccer player who began rugby. Little thought is given to old college teams or Walter Camp. Yes, we know about our favorite college and professional teams. But football only comes alive when we play it with family and friends for family football fun on a warm summer afternoon. That’s the way it’s meant to be!

One Response to “How Did Football Begin?”

1. How Did Football Begin? Says:
   August 28th, 2008 at 9:29 am

   […] Original post by bobjjw […]

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