How the game got here

What each lesson is

A short reading with the pages it comes from, a timeline, map or source to work with, a written answer, and one activity with a ball that ties the history to the game: playing by the rules of 1863, or lining up in a 2-3-5 against a WM. Each unit ends with a quiz, and every unit has its own practice round in the app’s history quiz.

For a homeschool family the lessons are social studies hours, never PE, and the finished course is half a credit on the transcript as SS-150, History of Soccer. For a school or club player it is the same course, without the paperwork.

Guess the year

Six days from the course’s timeline. Pick the year each one happened; the date and the page it comes from appear once you do. Nothing is kept.

The 15 units

From the first kicking games to the modern game, with two dated days from each unit’s timeline.

1. 1
   Unit 1

   Kicking Games Before Soccer

   The ball games people played long before soccer had written rules: cuju in China, kemari in Japan, episkyros and harpastum in Greece and Rome, mob football in medieval England and calcio storico in Florence. Taught through short readings, maps and charts, with one lesson in each played on the ball the old way.

   4 lessons

   1. Cuju: China's Ancient Kicking Game
   2. Greece and Rome: Episkyros and Harpastum
   3. Mob Football in Medieval England
   4. Calcio Storico and the Games That Survive

   • 131413 AprThe Lord Mayor of London, speaking for King Edward II, banned rowdy ball games in the city because they caused so much noise and trouble. Britannica: Football (soccer)
   • 153017 FebWhile an enemy army surrounded Florence, Italy, the city's young men played a game of calcio in the square of Santa Croce to show they were not afraid. Britannica: Calcio
2. 2
   Unit 2

   Schools Write the Rules

   How English schools, Cambridge students and the Sheffield club tried to agree rules, how the Football Association wrote the first Laws of the Game in 1863, and why rugby went its own way. Taught through readings, primary sources and a match played by the 1863 rules.

   4 lessons

   1. Every School Its Own Game
   2. Cambridge 1848 and Sheffield 1857
   3. The Football Association, 1863
   4. Rugby Splits Off, and the Name 'Soccer'

   • 185724 OctSheffield FC was founded in England. FIFA recognizes it as the oldest soccer club in the world, and it wrote its own rules a year later. Britannica: Football (soccer)
   • 186326 OctRepresentatives of London clubs and schools met at the Freemasons' Tavern in London and founded the Football Association, which went on to write one set of rules for everyone. Britannica: The Football Association
3. 3
   Unit 3

   First Internationals and the Professional Game

   How soccer became a competition: the first international match in 1872, the first FA Cup, the arrival of paid players in 1885 and the first league in 1888. Taught through readings, maps and match reports, with games on the ball played the way the early teams played.

   4 lessons

   1. Scotland v England, 1872
   2. The FA Cup, 1871-72
   3. Paying Players: Professionalism, 1885
   4. The Football League, 1888

   • 187216 MarWanderers beat the Royal Engineers 1-0 at the Kennington Oval in London to win the first FA Cup final, the world's oldest national soccer competition. Britannica: The Football Association
   • 187230 NovScotland and England played the first official international soccer match, a 0-0 tie at Hamilton Crescent in Glasgow. Britannica: The Football Association
4. 4
   Unit 4

   The Game Spreads

   How British sailors, railway workers, teachers and students carried soccer around the world, how local people made it their own in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and Europe, and why FIFA was founded in 1904. Taught through readings, map work and source work, with one ball activity per lesson.

   4 lessons

   1. Sailors, Railways and Schools
   2. Argentina and Uruguay
   3. Brazil and Charles Miller
   4. Europe Organizes: FIFA, 1904

   • 189514 AprCharles Miller, who brought soccer balls and a rulebook home to São Paulo from school in England, organized one of the first soccer matches in Brazil, between railway and gas company workers. Britannica: Football (soccer)
   • 18971 NovJuventus was founded in Turin, Italy, by high school students. The club's name is Latin for youth. Britannica: Juventus
5. 5
   Unit 5

   The Early Women's Game

   Women who played soccer from the 1880s onward: the British Ladies' Football Club, the factory teams of the First World War, Dick, Kerr Ladies and the 53,000 who watched them in 1920, and the FA's ban that lasted from 1921 to 1971. Taught through readings and primary sources, with a ball activity in every lesson.

   4 lessons

   1. Women Who Played First
   2. Munitionettes and Dick, Kerr Ladies
   3. Boxing Day 1920 at Goodison Park
   4. The FA's Ban: 1921 to 1971

   • 189523 MarThe British Ladies' Football Club played its first public match, North against South, at Crouch End in London, in front of a crowd of about 10,000. National Football Museum
   • 190526 AprLily Parr was born in St Helens, England. She scored hundreds of goals for Dick, Kerr Ladies and was the first woman inducted into England's National Football Museum Hall of Fame. National Football Museum
6. 6
   Unit 6

   The World Cup Begins

   How a world championship grew out of the Olympic soccer tournaments, from Uruguay in 1930 through Italy's titles in 1934 and 1938 to the shocks of 1950. Taught at the table with timelines, maps and newspaper writing, with one on-ball activity in each lesson.

   4 lessons

   1. From Olympic Gold to a World Cup
   2. Uruguay 1930
   3. Italy 1934, France 1938 and the War Years
   4. 1950: The Maracanazo and the Upset in Belo Horizonte

   • 19249 JunUruguay beat Switzerland 3-0 in Paris to win the Olympic soccer tournament. Its success at the 1924 and 1928 Olympics helped win it the first World Cup. Olympics.com: Football
   • 193013 JulThe first World Cup kicked off in Montevideo, Uruguay. France beat Mexico 4-1, with Lucien Laurent scoring the first World Cup goal, and the United States beat Belgium 3-0. Britannica: World Cup
7. 7
   Unit 7

   How the Laws Changed

   How soccer's Laws grew from the 1863 rules into the modern game: who makes them, and why nets, the penalty kick, offside, substitutes, cards, the back-pass rule and VAR arrived when they did. History at the table, each lesson tried on the ball and linked to the Laws in Referee HQ.

   4 lessons

   1. Who Makes the Laws
   2. The Penalty Kick and the Goalkeeper
   3. Offside Through the Years
   4. Substitutes, Cards, Shoot-outs and VAR

   • 18862 JunThe football associations of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland held the first meeting of the International Football Association Board, which still decides the Laws of the Game. IFAB: The International Football Association Board
   • 189114 SepJohn Heath of Wolverhampton Wanderers scored the first penalty kick in English league soccer, against Accrington, in the first season the penalty was in the Laws. IFAB: The International Football Association Board
8. 8
   Unit 8

   Tactics Through Time

   How teams have organized themselves on the field, from the dribbling game and the 2-3-5 through the WM, Hungary's 1953 win at Wembley and catenaccio to Total Football, pressing and tiki-taka. Formations are drawn at the table and then walked and played on the field.

   4 lessons

   1. From Dribbling to the 2-3-5
   2. The WM and the Magical Magyars
   3. Defending to Win: Catenaccio, 4-2-4 and 4-4-2
   4. Total Football, Pressing and Tiki-taka

   • 187819 JanHerbert Chapman was born in Yorkshire, England. As a manager he built the WM formation and pushed for ideas like floodlights and numbered shirts. Britannica: Herbert Chapman
   • 19346 JanHerbert Chapman, the Arsenal manager whose WM formation changed how teams lined up, died. He won the English league title twice with Huddersfield Town and twice with Arsenal. Britannica: Herbert Chapman
9. 9
   Unit 9

   Television and the Global Star

   How floodlit European nights, satellites and color television turned great players into stars known everywhere: the European Cup from 1955, Pele and Brazil, Johan Cruyff and Franz Beckenbauer, and Diego Maradona in 1986. Maps, media comparisons and writing at the table, with each star's signature skill tried on the ball.

   4 lessons

   1. The European Cup and Real Madrid
   2. Pele, Brazil and the 1970 World Cup in Color
   3. Cruyff, Beckenbauer and the 1974 Final
   4. Maradona and Mexico 1986

   • 19151 FebStanley Matthews was born in England. The dazzling winger played top-level soccer until he was 50 and was the first winner of the Ballon d'Or in 1956. Britannica: Stanley Matthews
   • 193711 OctBobby Charlton was born in Ashington, England. He survived the Munich air disaster and won the 1966 World Cup with England. Britannica: Bobby Charlton
10. 10
    Unit 10

    Soccer in the United States

    Soccer's long American story: the Oneida club and the mill towns, U.S. Soccer's founding in 1913, the 1930 semi-final and the long wait, the NASL and Pele's Cosmos, the youth boom, the 1994 World Cup and Major League Soccer. Maps, timelines and a family interview at the table, with history tried on the ball in every lesson.

    4 lessons

    1. Early Clubs and the First Federation
    2. From the 1930 Semi-final to the Long Wait
    3. The NASL, the Cosmos and Pele
    4. USA 1994 and the Birth of MLS

    • 19135 AprThe United States Football Association, today's U.S. Soccer, was founded. It joined FIFA the same year. U.S. Soccer
    • 193017 JulBert Patenaude of the United States scored three goals against Paraguay, a feat FIFA now records as the first hat trick in World Cup history. U.S. Soccer
11. 11
    Unit 11

    Title IX and the US Women

    How a 1972 law about schools opened soccer to American girls, and how the U.S. women's national team grew from its first game in 1985 to world titles and equal pay. Mostly at the table, with one on-the-ball activity in every lesson.

    4 lessons

    1. Title IX, 1972
    2. The First National Team and the 1991 World Cup
    3. 1996 and 1999: The Crowds Arrive
    4. Leagues, Titles and Equal Pay

    • 19661 FebMichelle Akers was born in Santa Clara, California. She scored ten goals at the 1991 Women's World Cup, including both in the final, as the US won the first title. Britannica: Michelle Akers
    • 197217 MarMia Hamm was born in Selma, Alabama. She grew up with Title IX and became the face of US women's soccer, winning two World Cups and two Olympic gold medals. Britannica: Mia Hamm
12. 12
    Unit 12

    World Cups Beyond Europe and the Americas

    How teams from Asia and Africa fought for places at the World Cup and then made history in it, from Egypt in 1934 to Morocco's semi-final in 2022, with the first tournaments hosted in Asia and Africa. Table work on maps and timelines, with one on-the-ball activity in every lesson.

    4 lessons

    1. First Steps: 1934 to 1966
    2. Breakthroughs: 1982 to 1990
    3. 2002: Korea and Japan
    4. Africa Hosts, and Morocco's Semi-final

    • 193427 MayEgypt became the first African team to play at a World Cup, losing 4-2 to Hungary in Naples, Italy. Britannica: World Cup
    • 19385 JunThe Dutch East Indies, today's Indonesia, became the first Asian team to play at a World Cup, losing 6-0 to Hungary in Reims, France. Britannica: World Cup
13. 13
    Unit 13

    Futsal and Street Soccer

    The small-sided games: futsal from its invention in Montevideo in 1930 to its world championships, its own laws, and the street soccer played everywhere without a referee. Table work with a small-sided or skill activity on the ball in every lesson.

    4 lessons

    1. Montevideo, 1930
    2. The Rules That Make Futsal
    3. Futsal World Championships
    4. Street Soccer and the Homeless World Cup

    • 198915 JanBrazil beat the Netherlands 2-1 to win the first FIFA Futsal World Championship, played in the Netherlands. FIFA
14. 14
    Unit 14

    The Modern Game

    How money, law, science and technology reshaped soccer from 1992 onward: the Premier League and Champions League, the Bosman ruling, match data and VAR, and the 48-team World Cup of 2026 across the United States, Canada and Mexico. Table work with one on-the-ball activity in every lesson.

    4 lessons

    1. The Money Game: 1992
    2. Bosman, 1995
    3. Science, Data and Technology
    4. 2026: Forty-Eight Teams Across North America

    • 19855 FebCristiano Ronaldo was born on the island of Madeira, Portugal. He went on to become the top scorer in the history of men's international soccer. Britannica: Cristiano Ronaldo
    • 198619 FebMarta was born in Dois Riachos, Brazil. She has scored more goals at Women's World Cups than any other player, man or woman. Britannica: Women's World Cup
15. 15
    Unit 15

    Your Game's History: A Research Project

    A research project on soccer close to home: primary and secondary sources, an oral-history interview with a coach or older player, a sourced timeline of a local club, team or field, and a short presentation. Mostly research and writing, with one on-the-ball activity in every lesson.

    4 lessons

    1. Primary and Secondary Sources
    2. The Oral-History Interview
    3. Building a Local Timeline
    4. Presenting Your History

How we know this is true

Every reading cites the pages it comes from: Britannica, FIFA, the IFAB, U.S. Soccer, the Library of Congress, Olympics.com, the National Football Museum and the like, never Wikipedia or a fan site. A date appears only where its day is known as well as its year.

Legend of the Week · A history question in the games · For referees · The curriculum