Portal:Association football
Main page | Categories & Topics | WikiProjects & Things you can do |
The Association football portal
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players each, who primarily use their feet to propel a ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposing team by moving the ball beyond the goal line into a rectangular-framed goal defended by the opposing team. Traditionally, the game has been played over two 45-minute halves, for a total match time of 90 minutes. With an estimated 250 million players active in over 200 countries and territories, it is the world's most popular sport.
The game of association football is played in accordance with the Laws of the Game, a set of rules that has been in effect since 1863 and maintained by the IFAB since 1886. The game is played with a football that is 68–70 cm (27–28 in) in circumference. The two teams compete to score goals by getting the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts, under the bar, and fully across the goal line). When the ball is in play, the players mainly use their feet, but may also use any other part of their body, such as their head, chest and thighs, except for their hands or arms, to control, strike, or pass the ball. Only the goalkeepers may use their hands and arms, and only then within the penalty area. The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner. There are situations where a goal can be disallowed, such as an offside call or a foul in the build-up to the goal. Depending on the format of the competition, an equal number of goals scored may result in a draw being declared, or the game goes into extra time or a penalty shoot-out.
Internationally, association football is governed by FIFA. Under FIFA, there are six continental confederations: AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, OFC, and UEFA. Of these confederations, CONMEBOL is the oldest one, being founded in 1916. National associations (e.g. The FA or JFA) are responsible for managing the game in their own countries both professionally and at an amateur level, and coordinating competitions in accordance with the Laws of the Game. The most senior and prestigious international competitions are the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Women's World Cup. The men's World Cup is the most-viewed sporting event in the world, surpassing the Olympic Games. The two most prestigious competitions in European club football are the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Women's Champions League, which attract an extensive television audience throughout the world. Since 2009, the final of the men's tournament has been the most-watched annual sporting event in the world. (Full article...)
Selected article
The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the first football World Cup tournament ever staged. It was played in Uruguay from July 13 to July 30. FIFA chose Uruguay as hosts at the Barcelona conference on May 18, 1929, as the country would be celebrating the centenary of its independence and the Uruguay national football team had successfully retained their football title at the 1928 Summer Olympics.
Thirteen teams participated; nine from the Americas and four from Europe. Few European teams chose to participate due to the duration and cost of travel. The first two World Cup matches took place simultaneously, and were won by France and the USA, who beat Mexico 4-1 and Belgium 3-0, respectively. The first goal in World Cup history was scored by Lucien Laurent of France. In the final, hosts and pre-tournament favourites Uruguay defeated Argentina 4-2 in front of a crowd of 93,000 people, and became the first nation to win a World Cup. (Full article...)
Selected biography
Ribéry's career began in 1989 as a youth player for local hometown club Conti Boulogne. He left the club after seven years to join professional outfit Lille, but departed the club after three years after having difficulties adjusting. In 1999, Ribéry joined US Boulogne, where he played for two years. After spending two more years in the amateur divisions with two different clubs (Alès and Brest), in 2004, Ribéry earned a move to Ligue 1 club FC Metz. After six months with the club, Ribéry moved to Turkey in January 2005 joining Galatasaray where he won the Turkish Cup. After six months at Galatasaray, he departed the club in controversial fashion in order to return to France to join Marseille. Ribéry spent two seasons at the club helping the Marseillais reach the final of the Coupe de France in back-to-back seasons. In 2007, Ribéry joined German club Bayern Munich for a then club-record fee of €25 million. With Bayern, he has won the double on two occasions; in the 2007–08 and 2009–10 seasons. In 2010, Ribéry contributed to the team that reached the 2010 UEFA Champions League Final, but was unable to participate in the match due to suspension.
Ribéry is a French international. Prior to representing the senior team, he played at under-21 level. At senior level, Ribéry has represented his nation two FIFA World Cups and UEFA Euro 2008. He made his international debut in May 2006 against Mexico. At the 2006 World Cup, Ribéry scored his first international goal against Spain and played in the final match against Italy. Individually, Ribéry is a two-time winner of the French Player of the Year award and has also won the German Footballer of the Year becoming the first player to hold both honours. He has also been named to the UEFA Team of the Year and declared the Young Player of the Year in France. (Full article...)
Selected association
The Football Association or the FA is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the amateur and professional game in its territory.
The FA facilitates all competitive football matches within its remit at national level, and indirectly at local level through the county football associations. It runs numerous competitions, the most famous of which is the FA Cup. It is also responsible for appointing the management of the men's, women's, and youth national football teams. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that goalkeeper Sophie Whitehouse, who has lived in England, Africa and the US, has been chosen to play soccer for the Republic of Ireland?
- ... that Ecuadorian footballer Hernán Galíndez won a bicycle for beating a team featuring Lionel Messi when they were children?
- ... that after his soccer career, Steve Palacios enlisted in the United States Army and played for the United States Armed Forces soccer team?
- ... that Welsh footballer Jon Morgan went on to become a college principal after retiring?
- ... that Ryan Roberts, a defensive end for Notre Dame, was a soccer player in high school?
- ... that Carlton Town F.C., now competing at the eighth tier of the English football pyramid, was once denied promotion by a hat-trick scored by future England international Jamie Vardy?
Selected image
Selected quote
General images -
Selected World Cup
Selected topic
More did you know -
- ... that 23-year-old Michael Oliver refereed the 2009 Football League One play-off Final at Wembley Stadium the day after his father had officiated the 2009 Football League Two play-off Final? (11 March 2021)
- ... that Camillo Vaz managed Paris Saint-Germain Féminine when they qualified for the UEFA Women's Champions League for the first time? (1 May 2021)
- ... that at the conclusion of the 2006 Football League Two play-off Final, the losing manager said his side did not deserve to win and the winning goalscorer said he did not mean to score? (3 March 2021)
- ... that Wycombe Wanderers secured back-to-back promotions when they won the 1994 Football League Third Division play-off Final? (11 March 2021)
- ... that when Irene del Río was called up to the Spain women's national football team squad, she was the only player who did not compete in the country's top division? (28 April 2021)
- ... that the East Bengal Ultras, founded in 2013, became India's first ultras group? (29 March 2021)
Association football portals
More sports portals
Associated Wikimedia
The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:
-
Commons
Free media repository -
Wikibooks
Free textbooks and manuals -
Wikidata
Free knowledge base -
Wikinews
Free-content news -
Wikiquote
Collection of quotations -
Wikisource
Free-content library -
Wikiversity
Free learning tools -
Wiktionary
Dictionary and thesaurus
More portals
- ^ "Franck Ribéry". fcbayern.de. Retrieved 11 March 2009.
- ^ "Franck Ribéry ESPN Profile". ESPN. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- ^ "A Ferrari in the Bayern shirt". Bundesliga.de. 27 November 2007. Retrieved 10 April 2010.