Mulcaster, who lived from 1531 to 1611, was headmaster of the Merchant Taylors’ School and St. Paul’s School in London. Not only was he a prominent educator of his time, he was also one of the greatest sixteenth-century advocates of soccer. In his 1581 publication titled “Positions Wherein Those Primitive Circumstances Be Examined, Which Are Necessarie for the Training up of Children,” he argued that “Footeball” was beneficial “both to health and strength” of students, and he advocated for, organized, and refereed matches to counteract the craze of mob football.
Quickies
Did you know …
• Parker’s Piece is named after Edward Parker, a cook, who held the original lease on the land and used it as a pasture?
Who was John Charles Thring?
In 1862, a the teacher at Uppingham School, in Rutland, England, named John Charles Thring, who was part of the group that had established the Cambridge Rules 1848, published an alternate set of soccer rules titled “The Simplest Game.” Known as Uppingham Rules, they emphasized a non-violent approach to the game that was popular with other schools.
Who was Ebenezer Cobb Morley?
In 1863, Ebenezer Cobb Morley, the founder and captain of Barnes Football Club, wrote a letter to Bell’s Life newspaper proposing a governing body for football. This letter resulted in a meeting of 12 soccer clubs taking place at the Freeman’s Tavern in London in October 1863. England’s Football Association was established at this meeting, with the aim of establishing a single unifying code for football. Ebenezer Cobb Morley was elected as the secretary of the Football Association and was later president.
When did soccer and rugby become separate sports?
When England’s Football Association was established in 1863, they published the first set of rules, which expressly forbade carrying, passing, or otherwise handling the ball. Prior to this, the various codes of soccer used by clubs allowed players to use their hands to move the ball, often in a manner that resembled today’s rugby. It is felt that the establishment of the first FA rules marked the break between soccer and rugby.
When did the FA Cup begin?
The 12 Founding Clubs of England’s Football Association
• Barnes
• Blackheath
• Forest of Leytonstone
• Perceval House
• Kensington School
• The War Office
• Crystal Palace
• Epping Forest
• Crusaders
• Surbiton
• No Names of Kilburn
• Blackheath Proprietary School
In 1871, Charles W. Alcock, then FA secretary, announced the introduction of the Football Association Challenge Cup. It was the first knockout competition of its type in the world. Only 15 clubs took part in the first staging of the tournament. It included two clubs based in Scotland: Donington School and Queen’s Park. In the 1872 final, the Wanderers beat the Royal Engineers 1–0 at the Kennington Oval. The FA Cup is the oldest association football competition in the world.
Who was the first professional soccer player on the international stage?
James Henry Forrest was an English soccer player whose career spanned the transition from amateur to professional in the 1880s and 1890s. He played most of his career for Blackburn Rovers, who were paying him £1 per week in 1885 when he was chosen to play for England in the Home Championship against Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. Despite complaints from Scottish officials that Forrest was a professional, he was allowed to play but he had to wear a different jersey from the rest of the team. Blackburn Rovers also had to agree not to pay him his wages in the week that he played for England.
Chronology of the Formation of the United Kingdom's Football Associations
• England: The Football
Association (FA) — 1863
• Scotland: The Scottish Football
Association (SFA) — 1873
• Wales: The Football Association
of Wales (FAW) —1876
• Northern Ireland: Irish Football
Association (IFA) — 1880
What England player was first to score against Scotland?
William Stanley-Kenyon of the Wanderers became England’s first-ever goal scorer during their 4–2 win over Scotland on March 8, 1873. He scored two goals, and is therefore also the first player to score twice for England.
What was the Football Act of 1424?
Quickies
Did you know …
• England’s longest unbeaten run stands at 20 matches played between a 3–2 loss to Scotland on April 13, 1889, and a 2–1 home defeat against Scotland on April 4, 1896? England’s record during this seven-year period was 16 wins and 4 draws.
The Football Act of 1424 was passed by the Parliament of Scotland during the reign of James I. It became law on May 26, 1424. The Act stated that “the king forbiddis that na man play at the fut ball under the payne of iiij d,” which meant that playing football was made illegal, and punishable by a fine of four pence. The Act remained in force for several centuries, and was not repealed until the passing of the Statute Law Revision (Scotland) Act 1906. Obviously, it was one statute that did not take root.
Quickies
Did you know …
• the earliest historical reference to “fute-ball” in Scotland was in 1424 when King James I outlawed the playing of the game in the Football Act 1424?
When was the Scottish Football Association founded?
On March 13, 1873, representatives of seven Scottish soccer teams gathered at a meeting in Glasgow in response to an advertisement in the newspaper. The purpose of the gathering was to form the Scottish Football Association. At the meeting it was resolved that, “The clubs here represented form themselves into an association for the promotion of football according to the rules of The Football Association and that the clubs connected with this association subscribe for a challenge cup to be played for annually, the committee to propose the laws of the competition.” An eighth club, Kilmarnock, did not attend the meeting, but expressed its wish to join by letter.
Founding
