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PIECES OF THE PAST - A fascination with football
published: Monday | August 7, 2006
Dr. Rebecca Tortello, Contributor
Cover of official match day programme for Jamaica vs Honduras World Cup 2002 qualifying game.
Football is truly the world's sport. It is played in every nation on earth by more than 300 million people. It is the number one sport in the majority of countries and it also attracts the largest number of spectators. Football is also a major global industry complete with multimillion-dollar player contracts, lucrative merchandising and high earning teams.
Football began in Jamaica over 100 years ago, in the 1880s. As in most English colonies, it is likely that the sport was introduced by English servicemen, merchants and colonists in general. It is not certain where exactly it started on the island, or who first played it here, but it is certain that today it ranks as the country's most popular spectator sport.
Football - the Beginnings
Many sources point to evidence of a game involving members of the Chinese military during the Han Dynasty kicking a ball from as early as 3,000 years ago. A similar game is said to have been played in Japan around 1004 BC and, interestingly, third century Chinese frescoes show women playing a game involving kicking a ball. The Greeks and ancient Romans are also said to have played a type of game involving kicking a ball (athleticscholarships.net/history-of-soccer.htm, www.sportsknowhow.com/ soccer/history/soccer-history.shtml). Similarly, the North American Indians are said to have played a game called pasuckuakohowog (National Geographic, June 2006).
Yet, regardless of where football began, Britain is where modern association football/soccer is said to have truly been born. It most likely started as a game of war played to celebrate victories, and has been a popular sport of the British masses since the 8th century. In the Middle Ages, villages and towns played against each other.
Hundreds of spectators turned out to watch what is best described as mob football, given the large numbers of players, the lack of rules and regulations and the high incidences of violence. The games could last all day. In the 1820s football somehow became as popular in English colleges and universities as it was on the streets, and the roots of the organised game we know today emerged. A set of strict rules, including the length of time, number of players, size of pitch, disciplinary sanctions, etc., was adopted.
Football in Jamaica
Jamaica's first football club is said to have been formed in 1893 and it remained largely a club sport for half a century before evolving into a community-based sport. According to the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), the Kingston Cricket Club was one of the first to introduce football although many members quickly became jealous of the new game's popularity. The first recorded organised competition took place in 1906 when former governors Sir Sydney Oliver and Sir William Manning donated trophies to be won by schoolboy teams.
The JFF notes that by 1910 the Football Association had been formed and it controlled all of the games, the majority of which were played mainly in the Corporate Area. Jamaica's first international appearance occurred in 1925 when a national team was selected from the Corporate Area teams and they played against Haiti. Jamaica won all three games 1-0, 2-1 and 3-0. The following year Jamaica hosted Haiti at Sabina Park and won 6-0. Between 1925 and 1962, Jamaica played regularly with teams from Haiti, Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago, as well as the Argentinean Tigers and the British Corinthians. Many of the games were played at Sabina Park and
PIECES OF THE PAST - A fascination with football
published: Monday | August 7, 2006
Dr. Rebecca Tortello, Contributor
Cover of official match day programme for Jamaica vs Honduras World Cup 2002 qualifying game.
Football is truly the world's sport. It is played in every nation on earth by more than 300 million people. It is the number one sport in the majority of countries and it also attracts the largest number of spectators. Football is also a major global industry complete with multimillion-dollar player contracts, lucrative merchandising and high earning teams.
Football began in Jamaica over 100 years ago, in the 1880s. As in most English colonies, it is likely that the sport was introduced by English servicemen, merchants and colonists in general. It is not certain where exactly it started on the island, or who first played it here, but it is certain that today it ranks as the country's most popular spectator sport.
Football - the Beginnings
Many sources point to evidence of a game involving members of the Chinese military during the Han Dynasty kicking a ball from as early as 3,000 years ago. A similar game is said to have been played in Japan around 1004 BC and, interestingly, third century Chinese frescoes show women playing a game involving kicking a ball. The Greeks and ancient Romans are also said to have played a type of game involving kicking a ball (athleticscholarships.net/history-of-soccer.htm, www.sportsknowhow.com/ soccer/history/soccer-history.shtml). Similarly, the North American Indians are said to have played a game called pasuckuakohowog (National Geographic, June 2006).
Yet, regardless of where football began, Britain is where modern association football/soccer is said to have truly been born. It most likely started as a game of war played to celebrate victories, and has been a popular sport of the British masses since the 8th century. In the Middle Ages, villages and towns played against each other.
Hundreds of spectators turned out to watch what is best described as mob football, given the large numbers of players, the lack of rules and regulations and the high incidences of violence. The games could last all day. In the 1820s football somehow became as popular in English colleges and universities as it was on the streets, and the roots of the organised game we know today emerged. A set of strict rules, including the length of time, number of players, size of pitch, disciplinary sanctions, etc., was adopted.
Football in Jamaica
Jamaica's first football club is said to have been formed in 1893 and it remained largely a club sport for half a century before evolving into a community-based sport. According to the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), the Kingston Cricket Club was one of the first to introduce football although many members quickly became jealous of the new game's popularity. The first recorded organised competition took place in 1906 when former governors Sir Sydney Oliver and Sir William Manning donated trophies to be won by schoolboy teams.
The JFF notes that by 1910 the Football Association had been formed and it controlled all of the games, the majority of which were played mainly in the Corporate Area. Jamaica's first international appearance occurred in 1925 when a national team was selected from the Corporate Area teams and they played against Haiti. Jamaica won all three games 1-0, 2-1 and 3-0. The following year Jamaica hosted Haiti at Sabina Park and won 6-0. Between 1925 and 1962, Jamaica played regularly with teams from Haiti, Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago, as well as the Argentinean Tigers and the British Corinthians. Many of the games were played at Sabina Park and
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