Football
A little introduction about Football and how to play it.
INTRODUCTION :
- Football or Soccer is a team sport played on a rectangular field called a pitch with a goal at each end and with a spherical ball between two teams of 11 players.
- Football is played by approximately 250 million players in over 200 countries making it the world's most popular sport.
- The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) which came into existence in 1904 governs football internationally.
- The All India Football Federation [AIFF] is the governing body of association football in India.
- The first World cup soccer match started in 1930.
SPECIFICATIONS :
- FIELD OF PLAY
- The football field (Pitch) must be rectangular and made of either artificial or natural grass.
- It must be between 90–120m long and between 45–90m wide. The longer sides of the field are called Touch lines, while the shorter sides are called Goal lines.
- Fields are divided into two halves with each team defending their own goal.
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NUMBER OF PLAYERS
- A match consists of two teams of not more than 11 players, each including a goalkeeper.
- Teams must have at least seven players to begin or continue a match.
- There are four classes in which the 11 players are divided :- Goalkeeper, Defenders (D - Left, Center, Right), Midfielders (Mid - Left, Center, Right) & Strikers/Forwards/Attackers (For - Left, Center, Right).
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PLAYERS’ EQUIPMENT
- Compulsory equipment for players are a football jersey, shorts, socks/stockings, shin guards, and soccer shoes or cleats.
- Goalkeepers must wear a uniform that distinguishes them from their own team, their opponents, and the officials.
- THE BALL
- The ball is an air-filled sphere with a circumference of 68–70 cm (27–28 in) and a weight of 410–450 g.
- A Football is made of vulcanized rubber with rubber or plastic bladders, and covered by plastic covers. Most modern Association footballs are stitched from 32 panels of waterproofed leather or plastic.
- THE REFEREE
- The center referee has sole authority. He make decisions such as fouls, free kicks, throw ins, penalties, cautions players (yellow card), sends them off (red card), and is responsible for timekeeping, record-keeping, decides whether a game can go ahead or not etc.
- Two assistant referees formerly called linesmen support the referee, primarily by signalling for corner kicks, throw-ins, offside violations or draw his attention to any fouls that the referee may not have seen.
- The fourth official/referee assists the referee with record keeping, checking players’ equipment and assisting with overseeing substitutions.
- DURATION OF MATCH
- A football match consists of two 45 minutes halves with a 15 minute rest period in between.
- Stoppage time (also called injury time) is the time added on at the end of each half at the discretion of the referee - in case of injuries, substitutions and time wasting.
- START/RESTART OF PLAY
- A coin is tossed at the start of play; the winners has a choice of picking which half to attack or to take first kick-off.
- All players must be in their own half when the kick-off is taken from the center spot and the ball must move into the oppositions’ half.
- BALL IN AND OUT OF PLAY
- The ball is in play when it is inside the field of play and the referee has still not stopped play.
- The ball is out of play when it has completely crossed the side-lines (touch lines) or the goal lines, whether in the air or on the ground.
- If the ball rebounds off a goalpost, crossbar, corner flag post, or the referee or one of the assistant referees, and remains in the field of play, it is still in play.
- METHOD OF SCORING
- A goal is scored when the ball has completely crossed the goal line between the goalposts and under the crossbar, provided that no other violations have taken place.
- The team with the most goals wins. If both teams score the same number of goals, or if no goals are scored at all, the match is declared as a draw.
- OFFSIDE
- A player is in an offside position if any of his body parts, except the hands and arms, are in the opponents' half of the pitch, and closer to the opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent (the last opponent is usually, but not necessarily, the goalkeeper).
- A player cannot be caught offside in their own half. When a player is called offside, the opposition is awarded a free-kick.
- FOULS AND MISCONDUCT
- For fouls committed, in addition to awarding free-kicks, the referee can penalize an individual player by issuing him with either a yellow or red card.
- A player could receive either a yellow or red card depending on the severity of the foul.
- The yellow card is a warning for serious offenses like Unsporting behaviour, persistent fouling, time wasting, dissent etc.
- A red card (for very serious or violent offenses) is a dismissal of that player.
- Two yellow cards will equal one red card. Once a player is sent off, then he cannot be replaced.
- FREE-KICKS
- Free-kicks are to restart play after a foul or violation and are usually taken from the place from which the offense was committed.
- Free-kicks can be “direct,” in which the taker may score directly.
- Direct free-kicks are awarded for serious offenses, such as kicking, tripping, charging, pushing, spitting at an opponent.
- In “indirect” kick, the taker and a second player from either team must touch the ball before it crosses the goal line.
- Indirect free-kicks are awarded for less serious offenses, such as obstruction, impeding the goal keeper or offside etc.
- PENALTY KICK
- A penalty-kick is awarded for a foul committed by a defending player in his or her own penalty area.
- The kick is taken from the penalty spot and all other players except for the goalkeeper and taker must be at least 9.15m from the spot.
- THE THROW-IN
- A throw-in is awarded when the ball has crossed the side-lines (touch lines) and an opposition player was the last to touch it.
- The throw is taken from the point from which the ball crossed the line.
- The taker must have both his feet on the ground, use two hands, throw the ball from behind and over his head, and be facing the field of play.
- GOAL-KICK
- A goal-kick is awarded to the defending team when the whole of the ball passes over the goal line, on the ground or in the air, having last touched by a player of the attacking team, and a goal is not scored.
- CORNER-KICK
- A corner kick is awarded to the attacking team when the opposition is last to touch the ball and the ball crosses the goal line without a goal being scored.
- A corner is also awarded if the ball enters the goal from a throw-in or indirect free-kick.
FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS
- Dribbling
- Juggling
- Passing
- Receiving
- Inside of foot
- Outside of foot
- Shooting
[ For accuracy Passing/Shooting ]
a. Instep Kick [Kick with the laces part of foot] - Power Shooting
FAMOUS PLAYERS
Arjuna Award : The Arjuna Awards are given by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India to recognize outstanding achievement in sports.
- NATIONAL : Bhaichung Bhutia [Arjuna Award-1998], Oinam Bembem Devi [Arjuna Award-2017], Sunil Chhetri [Arjuna Award-2011]
- INTERNATIONAL : Lionel Messi (Argentina), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portuguese), Diego Maradona (Argentina)
IMPORTANT CUPS AND TROPHIES
- NATIONAL : Durand Cup, Santosh Trophy
- INTERNATIONAL : FIFA World Cup, UEFA Champions League