THE BIRTH OF FOOTBALL

In the late Middle Ages and the following centuries, the British Isles and surrounding areas developed a kind of game that would be World-wide famous: two groups of people run after a ‘ball’ (made of different materials and sizes) trying to kick it into the opposite’s team scoring zone.

This practice had no rules whatsoever until the second half of the seventeenth century. At that time, a great unification of the previous ‘football codes’ was done and different types of football were born: rugby football, American football, Australian football…today just known as ‘FOOTBALL’.

But, Europe was not the only place where this game was developed. In South America, games where a ball was driven with the feet also were practiced.

The Spanish Jesuit José Manuel Peramás –who lived in San Ignacio Miní, a Jesuit reduction of Indians under Catholic care- wrote in his personal journal –later published as ´De Vita et moribus tredecim virorum paraguaycorum’ (or ‘The life and customs of the thirteen Paraguayan’)- a description of the game: 

‘They used to play with a ball which, although rubber filled, was so light and fast that every time they hit it, it continued bouncing for some time, without stopping, driven by its own weight.  They don’t throw the ball with their hands, like us, but with the top of the bare foot, passing it and receiving it with great agility and precision’.

There is a theory that suggests that football was first played in South America, especially among the Guaraní people.

However, football was first ruled in Britain. The British Codes were characterized for its few rules and extreme violence. One of the most popular carnivals was ‘soccer’ (and one of the most violent ones) which was prohibited by decree of King Edward III and remained forbidden during 500 years.

Nevertheless, the British Codes were taken in different cities and evolved towards a less violent game. One of the most popular games was the Florentine Calcium, originally from Florence, Italy. This sport influenced what we today know as football, not only with its rules, but also –and most important- with the party atmosphere in which these games were (and are) played. 

Nowadays, football is one of the most popular sports. We watch it, we play it, we argue about it, we even fight about it...but most of all, we LOVE it! 

Lautaro Romano García and Ariel Condori - 5th Year