Sports
SoccerSoccer is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a round ball and is known as football in most countries outside of the United States. It is played by 250 million players in over 200 countries, making it the world's most popular sport. No one knows exactly when soccer was created, but the earliest versions of the game can be traced back 3,000 years.Soccer is the most popular game in the world. In many countries it is known as “football”. In England, soccer was formed when several clubs formed the Football Association about 150 years ago.Women started playing soccer around the same time as men did in England. However, originally men were the main players in the game. Women’s soccer began to become extremely popular in the 90,s. In China, the first soccer balls were made from sewn clothing that was filled with rubble. In Europe during the Middle Ages, soccer balls were made from inflated pig bladders.
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VolleyballVolleyball was 115 years old in 2010.Volleyball began in the United States.William G. Morgan is credited with inventing the game. He wanted to combine elements from baseball, handball, basketball and tennis. He was teaching a group of businessmen at the YMCA in Hollyhock, Massachusetts, and wanted a game that was great exercise with less physical contact. The net from tennis was used and raised to 6 feet and 6 inches above the floor. Volleyball is played on a court that measures 29 feet, 6 inches wide, and 59 feet long. The net height is 7 feet, 11 5/8 inches for men and 7 feet, 4 1/8 inches for women. A team consists of 12 players, with six being on the court at one time. Volleyball positions on a team consist of 3 front row players and 3 back row players. The different positions on a team are passer, digger, spikier, blocker, server, and setter Volleyball was first called “mignonette”. The net from tennis was used and raised to 6 feet and 6 inches above the floor. While watching the game, someone commented that since the players were volleying the ball back and forth over the net, the name “volleyball” might be a more fitting name.
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FootballAmerican football (referred to as football in the United States and also known as gridiron) is a sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. See the fact file below for information on the rules and history of football.The offence, the team with control of the oval-shaped football, attempts to advance down the field by running with or passing the ball, while the team without control of the ball, the defense, aims to stop their advance and take control of the ball for themselves. The offense must advance at least ten yards in four downs, or plays, or else they turn over the football to the opposing team; if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs. Points are primarily scored by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponent's goalposts for a field-goal. The team with the most points at the end of a game wins.
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