Football is a global language

Once again the world is glued to the screen, watching the 2022 Football World Cup unfold, and hoping to see their favorite team succeed on the pitch. Let’s take a look back at football’s roots.

The official English records mention football as early as the 14th century. It pops up in the Cambridge University records of 1579, after a messy and rather violent game. Every team was playing to a different set of rules, and choosing brute force over skill. So in 1848 a group of Cambridge students devised a set of rules for what tactics were allowed, and these eventually became the FA rules as they are played to this day. Known as the “Cambridge rules” they were pinned on trees on the city’s large public playing field, Parker’s Piece.

Cambridge University FC now claims to be the oldest club in England, being able to prove that it established the rules of the game! The rules, set by Henry Winton and John Thring, are inscribed on a statue in seven languages in Parker’s Piece, where the first game was played to these principles. This Cambridge memorial conveys the spirit of the World Cup at its best, highlighting that football is a global language.

What began as a simple set of rules for a game of football played on a patch of ground in Cambridge, has grown into a worldwide phenomena embraced by diverse cultures around the world.

Football History – Cambridge Rules

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