Football was developed as a game and became popular in England, in the 19th century. The game was very popular even then, and by the middle of the 19th century, almost every town had a semi-professional team playing football.
These teams were not what we would call professional teams, because they were usually composed of associations of workers from the same factory or institution or even students at a local University. So, in fact, they were what we would call amateur players.
However, they were very dedicated to the game and they also had supporters, which helped this great sport become more and more famous. This sport was played occasionally, with very little or no prize at all.
The first football games were played without any rules established and with no referee, and that usually lead to arguments between the two teams, which lead to clashes and fights between the teams or even their supporters.
In 1863, several football clubs from all over the country, but predominantly from London, met there and decided to establish a system called the Laws of the Game, a sort of list of rules for the teams to follow during the actual game.
They were not as complex as they are today, of course, but it was the beginning of what would become the greatest system of play ever invented. This is the way in which the Football Association was born, which is still ruling over English football today.
English football is what started it all, so this country has the longest football history in the world. Its clubs are famous worldwide, and throughout time, the English have managed to give some top football performers.
However, despite the fact that the English clubs have always been famous all over the world and some of their players were and still are great performers, the English national team has not done such a fantastic performance and they have achieved few performances; they took home few trophies and they are not as famous as they should be, considering their rich football history.
The most important performance the English national football team managed to achieve was obtaining the World Cup in 1966, when this prestigious competition was held in London, which helped them get enough energy from their fans to finally get the desired trophy.
The team in 1966 had the support of the legendary Bobby Moore, but also some other great players such as Jackie Charlton or Geoff Hurst, and this team still remains the best English football team. Their success has not been matched yet, and English supporters are still waiting for a team that would manage to equal that performance.
