America calls it soccer, the rest of the world calls it football; undisputedly it is still the world’s most beloved sport. Some parts of the world has redefined it into their cultures, such as in Brazil and other Latin American states while others formed a religion out of it.

The game originated from England, following the formation of the Football Association, whose 1863 set of rules created the very foundations for the way the sport is being played today. Football, or Soccer in most countries, is governed internationally by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). The World Cup is the most prestigious international football competition, and is also considered the most widely-viewed sporting event in the world.

Football may have its origins coming from Great Britain; however evidences point the sport’s history to instances as early as 5000 B.C., where older cultures have been found to have their own versions of the game. A good example is Chinese soccer. Many people believe that this is the oldest version of soccer, although, there remains to be a lot of controversy about this claim, since a similar version of this game existed in ancient Japan.

Originally named "Tsu Chu," this Chinese version of the game involved players on a field that had to hit a leather ball stuffed with fur into a small hole. No hands were allowed during the play of the game, and it was considered an honor to be a member of a team. The Emperor of the Han Dynasty, who spread the popularity of this game all over China during his reign was believed to be an avid player and fan.

On the other hand, the Japanese version, called Kemari, used a larger ball that was stuffed with saw dust, and involved a "pitch,”or the field, designated by the selection of four trees, the cherry, maple, pine and willow and normally played with two to twelve players. These versions of Soccer, though very old and similar, didn’t affect the modern version of British soccer.

The Greeks, during the prime of their culture, perhaps formed the closest relative to modern soccer. As they had several varieties of football style games, some of which required hands, some of which forbade hands, it was after the Roman’s conquest of Greece, that the game Harpastum, from where modern soccer would be based from, was developed. The game, a modified version of the Greek's "Harpaston", which literally translates to “handball,” is considered to be one of the precursors of modern soccer.

It was in 8th century Britain that soccer was created, not as a recreational sport, but as a war game. One story states that the origin of this sport came from locals who played “football” with the severed head of a Danish prince they had defeated in battle. This legend started the fundamental rule of kicking a ball to a specific goal. It was a violent game, and injury and death were common but this didn't downplay its popularity. In 1331, King Edward III was forced to pass laws to try and stop the playing of the game due to its violent nature; however it didn't work, and the sport continued on. Other stories even tell of soccer games involving hundreds upon hundreds of players that also resulted in hundreds of deaths as a consequence.

It wasn't until 1815 when the famous English school, Eton College established a series of rules for the game that it became less violent and evolved into a true sport. During this time, other colleges and universities took up the banner and started to play under similar rules. Later, the rules were then evaluated and judged, and in 1848, the Cambridge rules were established as a result. In the Cambridge rules, shin-kicking, carrying the ball and tripping were not allowed. However, football was divided into two separate camps, the Rugby rules that allowed these aspects, and the Soccer or Football rules that embraced the Cambridge rules.

On October 26, 1863, London schools and sports clubs sent representatives to the Freemason's Tavern to establish a single set of fundamental rules to govern the matches played amongst them; hence, the Football Association was formed. Rugby school supporters walked out of this association to form their own Rugby Football. In 1869, the Football Association finalized a provision in the modern game of soccer by forbidding the use of hands in the game. And this is the birth of modern soccer.

During those times, Oxford University students often used slang which involved adding an "er" to the end of words they had deliberately shortened, as for “Rugger,” which is a slang for a Rugby player. One student named, Charles Wreford Brown replied with "Soccer!" when someone asked him if he liked to play “Rugger.” He had somehow shortened association Football and added "er," hence the term stuck and was coined. British individuals still call the game Football, while Americans and other countries call it Soccer, most especially if they also participate in American Football, to avoid confusion. Since the foundation of the Association, "Football" has risen in status, becoming the most popular game in history.

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