The origins of modern soccer came from English and Scottish villages. Mob football probably started as a way of celebrating a military victory, as early as the Viking period. The game consisted of crowds madly attempting to get an inflated pig's bladder from one goal to the other, and apparently anything shy of actually murdering each other was permitted. The game was eventually outlawed, but it evolved into an only slightly less violent version for another five centuries.
In the 1820s, the game became popular at English boys's schools like Eton, Harrow, Rugby and Westminster, without the murderous intent. Each school developed its own rules, and the game was played in a field with no boundaries.

The Freemason's Arms pub was built in 1860 and is still open today. It began life as the Freemason's Tavern, which originally stood where the United Grand Lodge of England's New Connaught Rooms are today on Great Queen Street. London's Freemasons' Hall is literally right across the street.

The Switzerland-based FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) has a video on its website that commemorates the meeting.
(Photos by Christopher L. Hodapp)
No comments:
Post a Comment
ATTENTION!
SIGN YOUR NAME OR OTHERWISE IDENTIFY YOURSELF IN YOUR COMMENT POSTS IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A GOOGLE ACCOUNT.
Comments will not appear immediately, so be patient. I am forced to laboriously screen every post because I am constantly bombarded with spam. Anonymous postings on Masonic topics have the same status as cowans and eavesdroppers as far as I am concerned. If you post with an unknown or anonymous account, do not expect to see your comment appear.