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 Click here for BigSoccer! |
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Click here for BigSoccer! |
FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) world governing body of soccer; based in Zurich, Switzerland, that was founded on 21 May 1904, when delegates from Belgium, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland met in Paris - hence the French version of the organisation's title. The concept "association football" was formally adopted at that time by the new FIFA in order to distinguish it unequivocally from "Union Football", or rugby. The split between the two codes had occurred in the central English town of Rugby in 1823, when a player of the home team scored a goal by picking up the ball and running with it. The classic version of the game, association football, adhered to the original round ball, while derivatives such as rugby and American football chose to introduce an oval ball. The General Secretary is Joseph "Sepp" Blatter of Switzerland and the current membership stands at 203 nations. The FIFA General Secretary oversees FIFA's daily business and ensures that the decisions of the Executive Committee are put into effective operation. As the head of the General Secretariat in Zurich, he also has ultimate responsibility for financial matters, international relations, the organization of the World Cup and other FIFA competitions. The General Secretariat itself is composed of various divisions for finance and services, competitions, development, communications and marketing.
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6 Regional Confederations the scope of FIFA's roles and duties has vastly expanded in recent years, and the world body is ably supported in its co-coordinating task by the confederations. The confederations are broken down into the world's continental regions. The AFC in Asia, CAF in Africa, CONCACAF in North and Central America and the Caribbean, CONMEBOL in South America, UEFA in Europe and the OFC in Oceania are all trusted partners who co-operate closely with FIFA but without in any way infringing on the rights of the 203 member national associations. The United States is part of the CONCACAF region.
203 National Associations national entities that are responsible for all officially sponsored soccer in their borders. These responsibilities include: men's & women's senior and youth national teams, youth organizations, amateur and professional leagues, national tournaments, soccer stadium, development, officiating, indoor/futsal soccer, and any other soccer functions that are nationally specific.
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National Leagues & Organizations nearly every national association has a domestic national league which they are responsible for. Some nations have multiple outdoor leagues broken down into divisions, indoor leagues, women's leagues, amateur leagues, youth leagues and other types of leagues. National associations also contain many various organizations for governing the nation's soccer such as referee, youth, amateur, recreational, etc.
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Clubs teams that play in the various kinds of leagues are called clubs. Between professional, amateur, recreational and youth clubs there could be well into the 100,000's of clubs throughout the world. They could range in size from the professional club Manchester United to a tiny youth club from rural Indiana. So it is nearly impossible to keep track of them all. The most recognizable of all the clubs are the top domestic league professional clubs from each country.
Soccer, just like most sports, uses offensive and defensive formations to win games or protect a lead. Some of the most common formations are covered in great detail. Click on the name of the formation you'd like more information on below:
FIFA provides copies of the rules of the game on their web site in various languages. This is the absolute best resource to get information.
The American Soccer History Archives
is a great site containing historical data about soccer in America, with detailed
summaries going back to 1923. A listing of league champions going back to 1894
is also provided, along with a historical overview of soccer in the United States.
Highly recommended page.
Question: what U.S. team is considered to be the best of all time? If you said DC United (MLS) or the New York Cosmos (NASL) you'd be wrong. The team widely considered to be the best of all time is Bethlehem Steel (Pa.)
Excellent white paper on the first professional soccer league in the United States: the American League of Professional Football (ALPF)
If you are a fan of the indoor style of soccer, check out The History of Indoor Soccer in the United States
Check out this detailed history of the U.S. Open Cup, includes a listing of all previous champions.
The Encyclopedia of American Soccer History
