The 2010 FIFA World Cup could be the 19th time the very best soccer teams from around the globe compete face to face in a bid to be crowned kings of the soccer world. But have you any idea how it all got were only available in the first place?
The first recorded instance of an official soccer match between nations was a game played between England and Scotland in 1872. In those days the activity was rarely played beyond your United Kingdom therefore the opportunities for “international play” were limited.
By the time the twentieth century began, all that had changed. Nations all over the globe were taking on soccer and forming leagues. In an effort to bring these nations together on the soccer pitch FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) was born in Paris on May 22, 1904.
In 1904 soccer was featured as an effort sport at the Olympics, and became an officially recognized one at the 1908 games. However only amateur teams were permitted to participate, so FIFA began researching to organize a competition between the world’s soccer professionals. When it was announced that soccer was to be dropped from the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles because of the US lack of interest in the sport, the necessity for a professional worldwide soccer tournament appeared to become even more pressing.
Jules Rimet, then president of FIFA set about the duty of organizing what would end up being the inaugural FIFA World Cup. Nations were invited instead of needing to qualify and Uruguay was chosen because the competition venue, partly to celebrate the centennial off the country’s independence.
The European nations were very poorly represented through the first World Cup – only Belgium, France, Romania, and Yugoslavia made the trip. Strange as it may seem, for a nation that has been apparently not thinking about soccer, it had been a team from the USA that won the inaugural World Cup match – beating Mexico 4-1 – and something of their players, Bert Patenaude, who scored the tournaments very first hat trick in a 3-0 win against Paraguay.
For 해외축구중계 between Uruguay and Argentina, 93,000 people turned out to view the spectacle, which Uruguay won 4-2, becoming the first team to be crowned champions of the soccer world.
The FIFA World Cup has come a long way from its humble beginnings. The qualification process now takes two full years and 32 nations compete in the Finals. The function is broadcast worldwide to millions of TV viewers and in many nations normal life is put on hold for two weeks while the spectacle that is the biggest sports show on Earth unfolds.