So where did the word "soccer" come from? It is used almost exclusively in the United States. The rest of the world just calls the sport "football." In fact, the international governing body is
Fédération Internationale de Football Association (F.I.F.A.).
English - football
Spanish - fútbol
Portuguese - futebol
French - football
German - Fußball
Danish - fodbold
Czech - fotbal
Romanian - fotbal
Russian - Футбол
Dutch - voetbal
Swedish - fotboll
Norwegian - fotball
Latvian - Futbols
Ukrainian - футбол
Finnish - Jalkapallo
Hungarian - foci
Italian - calcio
So you can see, with few exceptions, the sport is known by a common term.
L. Very early, c. 1863, football with inflatable rubber bladder (replaced pigs bladder).
C. 1936 Olympic ball, 12 panels, leather
R. Modern synthetic ball, Buckminster design, 20 hexagonal and 12 pentagonal surfacesBut back in 1863, when several football clubs got together to decide upon a common set of laws for the sport, there was some dissent (that is a yellow card offense on the pitch!). The new organization was called the "Football Association." But some of the clubs wished to continue the tradition of carrying the ball with their hands.
Hence, by 1871, the Rugby Union was formed. If you followed the Rugby Union rules, you were a "rugger." If you followed the Association rules, you were a "soccer" (sosh-er). So the term is King's English in it's derivation. But why is it only used in the US?
Well, back in the late 1860s, football and rugby became popular imports in the US, especially in the colleges. At time, the European influx brought with them their traditions, one being fooball. If you look carefully at this picture, which portrays the first college football game played between Rutgers and Princeton, in November of 1869, notice the ball in the middle - round, not oblate.
The Americans tended to appreciate the rugby game better, and adopted many of its rule. In fact, in 1880, when Walter Camp codified the American football rules, he based them to a great extent on the rugby style.
Here is a picture of a rugby football circa 1880:
Not spherical, slightly egg-shaped.
The rugby balls of the late 1800s to the early 1900 were virtually indistinguishable from the footballs used in the American game.
Early 20th century style rugby ball
"Pumpkin Seed" American football, early 1900s
American football legalized the forward pass as a way of cutting down on injuries caused by blocking and tackling. The ball evolved into a more oblate form, suitable for throwing.
1920s forward pass
Modern passing quarterback
American football, with it's rugby heritage, remains the most popular variation of the sport in the US. hence, the old term "soccer" is relegated to the sport known otherwise as football in the rest of the world.
