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Tags: soccer | english football association
OPINION

160 Years Ago, 1st Meeting of English Football Association Held

a soccer ball
(Dreamstime)

Scott Rasmussen By Thursday, 26 October 2023 12:12 PM EDT Current | Bio | Archive

October 26, 2023: On October 26, 1863, 11 football clubs based out of London, England, met to create a set of common rules. Between the months of October and December of that year, six meetings were held before an agreed upon set of rules was established.

Eight years later, in 1871, 15 English Football Clubs competed in the Football Association Cup. The final match took place in 1872, and was viewed by over 2,000 spectators.

At the time, “football” was a generic term for several games involving a ball and the players using their feet. The creation of the Football Association and the rules associated with “Association Football” is responsible for the use of the word “soccer” to describe the game, with ‘soc’ coming from association.

Today the English Football Association is home to over 40,000 association football clubs.

Scott Rasmussen is founder and president of the Rasmussen Media Group. He is a political analyst, author, public speaker, independent public opinion pollster and columnist for Creators Syndicate. Read Scott Rasmussen's Reports — More Here.

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ScottRasmussen
On October 26, 1863, 11 football clubs based out of London, England, met to create a set of common rules.
soccer, english football association
174
2023-12-26
Thursday, 26 October 2023 12:12 PM
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