| The
International Football Association Board (IFAB) may possess a
proud reputation as having preserved the foundations of the game
as it enters a third century, but there are still a few things
about the way football was once played that might raise a few
eyebrows...
1. During the very first
international football match between Scotland and England in
1872, players not only wore “knickerbockers” or long pants but
bobble hats or caps too. The head dresses were a normal part of
the footballing attire at the time and lasted well into the 20th
century.
2. Balls were not exactly round
when the first club and country matches took place. A pig’s
bladder was blown up like a balloon, tied at the ends and placed
inside a leather case, affording it an egg shape. The discovery
of Indian rubber in the 1860s gave the ball greater roundness.
3. While it is true footballs
of yesteryear gained weight in wet conditions, they were in fact
lighter than today’s ball. In 1889, the spherical object used
had to be between 12-15 ounces (340 – 425 grams) but this
increased to 14-16 ounces (397 -454 grams) in 1937.
4. In the FA rules of 1863,
there was no mention of a crossbar. As in rugby today, a goal
could be scored at any height as long as the ball went between
the sticks or posts. A tape was used to close the goal during
the first internationals before a crossbar replaced it in 1875.
 5.
Mob football, a descendant of the modern game, stormed into
England around the 12th Century and caught on to such an extent
it was banned by Royal decree by many kings and queens. It was a
violent game in which “murder and manslaughter” were allegedly
the only barriers to transporting the ball to village ends. King
Henry VIII, however, is believed to have been a keen player.
6. Contrary to some beliefs,
football was very much an upper class sport in England during
its infancy. The rules of the game were largely drafted by
students belonging to public schools and universities. The
working class adopted the sport during the late 19th Century.
7. The first meeting of the
Football Association on 26 October 1863 in London did not end in
total agreement among the 12 attendees. One club walked out,
refusing to accept the non-inclusion of hacking (kicking below
the knee) among the original rules.
8. Early football tactics
resembled those of today’s rugby. Teams were top-heavy with
forwards and because of the offside law, which prevented
advanced players touching the ball, attacking often meant
players grouping or scrummaging together around the ball to move
it towards goal.
 9.
Penalties or referees found no place in the original rules of
the game. Gentlemen would never intentionally foul, it was
assumed. In fact debating techniques were almost as important as
ball skills in those days as players could appeal against
decisions first to captains and then to umpires before referees,
named so because they had originally been referred to by
umpires, found their place on the pitch in 1891.
10. It was only in the 20th
Century that the penalty spot was introduced. In the decade
before penalties, originally called the kick of death, could be
taken anywhere along a line 12-yards from goal.
11. The word soccer does not
come from the United States but was a term used by public school
and university students, most notably at Oxford, in the 19th
Century to shorten the new game “Association Football”. The
predilection to shorten words with “er” extended to Rugby too,
known as rugger.
12. Many of football’s terms
and expressions are of military origin: defence, back line,
offside, winger, forward, attack, etc
1 3.
The FA’s 1863 rules of the game permitted the use of handling.
Although a player could not handle the ball if it was on the
ground, he was able to catch it in the air and make a mark to
gain a “free” kick, which opposing players were not allowed to
charge down.
14. There were no David
Beckhams or Roberto Carlos’ before 1927 as goals could not be
scored from direct free kicks.
15. Goalkeepers, in their own
half, could handle the ball both inside and outside the penalty
area before 1912.
16. London’s Kensington High
Street traffic lights are the inspiration for the red and yellow
cards used in today’s game. English referee and then FIFA’s Head
of Refereeing Ken Aston was driving through central London
thinking of ways to better illustrate a caution or sending off
when the change of green to yellow to red of the lights gave him
the idea. 
17. Before 1913 when a corner
was taken, instead of deciding on an inswinger, outswinger or
taking a short one, there was nothing to stop a player dribbling
the ball by himself. The rules were changed after several
players teed themselves up before scoring.
18. Not surprisingly with
hacking only a thing of the recent past, shin pads or guards
were first permitted in the rules as early as 1874. They first
appeared as a cut down version of the cricket pad.
19. The first act of a
goalkeeper on a Saturday morning was not always to throw open
the doors of his wardrobe before selecting his mood colour that
day. Back in 1909, he was given a choice of royal blue, white or
scarlet. If a goalkeeper became his country’s number 1 in 1921,
he wore yellow.
20. Referees attempted to catch
up with play around the turn of the century decked in black
trousers, blazer and bow tie!
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