Portal:Association football
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Association football, 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 get the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts, under the bar, and across the goal line), thereby scoring a goal. When the ball is in play, the players mainly use their feet, but may use any other part of their body, 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...)
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Nicknamed the "Owls", the club has won four league titles, three FA Cups and one League Cup, but their League Cup triumph in 1991 is their only major trophy since World War II. They did reach both domestic cup finals in 1993, but lost 2-1 to Arsenal each time.
Their main rivals are neighbours Sheffield United. Matches between Wednesday and United are nicknamed Steel City derbies and are usually the highlight of the season for both sets of fans. Famous matches include The Boxing Day Massacre, a Football League Third Division match which took place at Hillsborough on 26 December 1979. A record Third Division crowd of 49,309 fans watched Wednesday beat United 4-0 and the game has become part of Sheffield Wednesday folklore, even inspiring a song. (Full article...)
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Fowler's career began with Liverpool, with whom he made his début in 1993. He scored 120 premiership goals for Liverpool in an eight year period and was also voted the PFA Young Player of the Year in two consecutive years, 1995 and 1996. 1996 was also the year that he won a UEFA Fair Play award for admitting that he had not been fouled by David Seaman at Highbury after a penalty had been given.
Fowler moved on to Leeds United in 2001 and later Manchester City in 2003 before returning to Liverpool in January 2006 for a season. He signed a two-year contract with Cardiff City in July 2007.
He has been capped for England twenty-six times, scoring seven goals. The most recent of these appearances came in the 2002 World Cup. As of August 2007, Fowler is the fourth highest goalscorer in Premier League history. In 2005, Fowler was listed as one of the 1,000 wealthiest Britons by the Sunday Times Rich List. Business interests including a large property portfolio led to Fowler becoming the third wealthiest footballer in that year's selection. (Full article...)
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The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) is one of the six continental confederations of international association football. The OFC has 13 members, 11 of which are full members and two which are associate members not affiliated with FIFA. It promotes the game in Oceania and allows the member nations to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
OFC is predominantly made up of island nations where association football is not the most popular sport, with low GDP and low population meaning very little money is generated by the OFC nations. The OFC has little influence in the wider football world, either in terms of international competition or as a source of players for high-profile club competitions. OFC is the only confederation to have not had at least one international title, the best result being Australia making the final of the 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that Ryan Roberts, a defensive end for Notre Dame, was a soccer player in high school?
- ... that Welsh footballer Jon Morgan went on to become a college principal after retiring?
- ... that after his soccer career, Steve Palacios enlisted in the United States Army and played for the United States Armed Forces soccer team?
- ... 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?
- ... that Ecuadorian footballer Hernán Galíndez won a bicycle for beating a team featuring Lionel Messi when they were children?
- ... that goalkeeper Sophie Whitehouse, who has lived in England, Africa and the US, has been chosen to play soccer for the Republic of Ireland?
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The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 to 30 July 1930. FIFA, football's international governing body, selected Uruguay as the host nation, as the country would be celebrating the centenary of its first constitution and the Uruguay national football team had successfully retained their football title at the 1928 Summer Olympics. All matches were played in the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo, the majority at the Estadio Centenario, which was built for the tournament.
Thirteen teams (seven from South America, four from Europe, and two from North America) entered the tournament. Only a handful of European teams chose to participate because of the difficulty of traveling to South America due to the Great Depression. The teams were divided into four groups, with the winner of each group progressing to the semi-finals. The first two World Cup matches took place simultaneously and were won by France and the United States, who defeated Mexico 4–1 and Belgium 3–0, respectively. Lucien Laurent of France scored the first goal in World Cup history, while United States goalkeeper Jimmy Douglas posted the first clean sheet in the tournament the same day. (Full article...)Selected topic
8 articles Ipswich Town F.C.
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More did you know -
- ... that the 2008 FA Cup Final between Cardiff City and Portsmouth holds the record for the highest attendance for a football match at the new Wembley Stadium, with 89,874? (16 January 2021)
- ... that Icelandic footballer Þórdís Hrönn Sigfúsdóttir has had to self-isolate on four occasions during the COVID-19 pandemic? (18 March 2021)
- ... that Blackburn Rovers won the Premier League three seasons after winning the 1992 Football League Second Division play-off Final? (18 January 2021)
- ... that the French football club GPSO 92 Issy was founded by three Peruvian sisters in 1997? (8 April 2021)
- ... that thousands of football players are trafficked every year? (7 February 2021)
- ... that the 1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final was the first play-off final to feature two brothers when Neil and David Gregory played for Colchester United? (20 March 2021)
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