Soccer

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball. Atthe turn of the 21st century, the game was played by over 250 million players in over 200 countries, making it the world's most popularsport.[1][2][3][4] The game is played on a rectangular field of grass or green artificial turf, with a goal in the middle of each of the short ends. Theobject of the game is to score by driving the ball into the opposing goal.
In general play, the goalkeepers are the only players allowed to touchthe ball with their hands or arms (unless the ball is carried out of play, where the field players are required to restart by a throw-in of the gameball), while the field players typically use their feet to kick the ball, occasionally using other parts of their legs, their torso or head. Theteam that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins. If the score is tied at the end of the game, either a draw is declared or the gamegoes into extra time and/or a penalty shootout, depending on the format of the competition. The Laws of the Game were originally codified inEngland by the Football Association in 1863 and have evolved since then. Association football is governed internationally by FIFA—FédérationInternationale de Football Association (English: International Federation of Association Football)—which organises the FIFA World Cup every four years.[5]