Early 19th century, football was very popular among the factory workers, citizens, schoolboys and many others.  Although, having survived various attempts to ban the game, football remained a fairly lawless and unruly game until the mid-1840's.  The real starting point of modern football came with the expansion of the public schools.  Most important schools were located in Charterhouse, Eton, Harrow, Shrewsbury, Westminster and Winchester.  Basically, the ball game was played without rules and each school used different playing techniques.  The purpose was to kick the ball far away with the foot, and the opposite team had to kick it back, some schools allowed to use hands to stop the ball in air.  On both sides, a goal was made with sticks but there was no goal keeper because everyone wanted to run after the ball.  Those games were based on order, discipline and team spirit, even it was a though game, the students were gentlemen in tradition of their school.  After many complaints and injuries, each school created his own law, most of them prohibited hard contacts, and they gave the name "dribbling game".

Until 1800, there is little mention of football at Rugby school (Warwickshire).  By the 1820's however the game was well established.  The students created their own rules : no one was allowed to run with the ball towards the opposite goal and the defending team was only allowed to advance to the person who caught the ball.  In 1823, during a "dribbling game" in public school of Rugby, the 16 year old schoolboy William Webb Ellis caught the ball and instead of standing still, he ran with the ball in his hands to the opposite side of the field where he dropped it behind the line.  Everyone was amazed about this action but they invalidated the goal, this was only "a nice try".

The desire of teams, particularly public schools, to play against each other made the lack of a generally set of rules an issue, which needed resolving.  However, each school had different ideas on the size of the field, the size and shape of the ball, the handling techniques and whether or not hacking (= a sharp kick to the shins) was permitted.  In 1846, one year after the first "rugby" rules, students of the Cambridge University were the first who made an attempt at unifying the "dribbling game" rules.  A second attempt was in October 1848, two players of the Cambridge University, Mr. H. de Winton and Mr. J.C. Thring, called a meeting with representatives from the major public schools.
The meeting was held in Trinity College, Cambridge, and produced the following rules :
1) This Club shall be called the University Foot Ball Club.
2) At the commencement of play, the ball shall be kicked off from the middle of the ground, after every goal there shall be a kick-off in the same way or manner.
3) After a goal, the losing side shall kick off, the sides changing goals unless a previous arrangement be made to the contrary.
4) The ball is out when it has passed the line of the flag-post on either side of the ground, in which case it shall be thrown in straight.
5) The ball is "behind" when it has passed the goal on either side of it.
6) When the ball is behind, it shall be brought forward at the place where it left the ground not more than ten paces, and kicked off.
7) Goal is when the ball is kicked through the flag-posts and under the string.
8) When a player catches the ball directly from the foot, he may kick it as he can without running with it.  In no other case may the ball be touched with the hands, except to stop it.
9) If the ball has passed a player and has come from the direction of his own goal, he may not touch it till the other side have kicked it, unless there are more than three of the other side before him.  No player is allowed to loiter between the ball and the adversaries' goal.
10) In no case is holding a player, pushing with the hands or tripping up allowed.  Any player may prevent another from getting to the ball by any means consistent with this rule.
11) Every match shall be decided by a majority of goals.

On 24 October 1857, "Sheffield Football Club" came into existence and became the world's oldest football club, as distinct from a university or a public school team.  The founders were Nathanial Creswick, a solicitor and chairman of a sliver-plate company, and William Prest, a wine merchant.  The team was originally based on various grounds in Sheffield, including "Bramall Lane", later home of "Sheffield Wednesday FC" and now "Sheffield United FC".

The Master at Uppingham School, the Rev. J.C. Thring (who was at Cambridge when the 1846 University Club was formed), issued a more specific set of rules entitled "The Simplest Game".
Those rules were:
1) A goal is scored whenever the ball is forced through the goal and under the bar, except it be thrown by the hand.
2) Hands may be used only to stop a ball and place it on round before the feet.
3) Kicks must be aimed only at the ball.
4) A player may not kick the ball whilst in the air.
5) No tripping up or heel kicking allowed.
6) Whenever a ball is kicked beyond the side flags, it must be returned by the player who kicked it, from the spot it passed the flag-line in a straight line towards the middle of the ground.
7) When a ball is kicked behind the line of goal, it shall be kicked off from that line by one of the side whose goal it is.
8) No player may stand within six places of the kicker when he is kicking off.
9) A player is out of play immediately he is in front of the ball and must return behind the ball as soon as possible. If the ball is kicked by his own side past a player, he may not touch it, or advance, until one of the other side has first kicked it, or one of his own side, having followed it up, has been able, when in front of him, to kick it.
10) No charging is allowed when a player is out of play.

On 26 October 1863, captains and representatives of several London teams and suburban clubs met at the Freemason's Tavern in Lincoln's Inn Fields, Great Queen Street in London, to codify the rules "for the regulation of the game of football".
The teams represented were : Barnes, Blackheath, Blackheath Proprietary School, Charterhouse, Crystal Palace, Forest (Leytonstone), Kensington Grammar School, No Names of Kilburn, Perceval House (Blackheath), Surbiton, The Crusaders, The War Office.
It took five meetings before the laws of the game could be agreed.  Shortly afterwards, "Blackheath" withdrew from membership because they opposed the law banning hacking (uncontrolled kicking).  Ebenezer Cobb Morley proposed the formation of the Football Association, which was carried by 11 votes to one.
The Football Association was born with Morley as its first secretary.

Captain Randulph Dacre and his family, who sailed up the Waitemata Harbour about 1827, were probably the first white people to set foot where Auckland stands today.  His son Charles Craven Dacre was born in Sydney in 1848 and came to Auckland in 1859 by the baroque City of Melbourne. Captain Dacre had his son do primary education at Lysnars and then sent him off to England where he entered the Royal Agricultural College.  Soon, Charles made friends, one of them was C. Nepean of Charterhouse who was the best "dribbler" of England.
At the time of the formation of the "Football Association" rules in 1863, the 16 year old Charles Craven Dacre played the football game for his school (Clapham Grammar) as well as for the London Athletic Club, and Clapham Rovers.  It was in one of these games he had a very severe injury playing on Clapham Common.  He was carried off the field to a doctor’s residence, where he was kept and only expected to linger through the night as he was injured internally.  But he did pull through and within the space of a short time a number of other accidents occurred, prompting the framing of the Association rules as mentioned.

Since the foundation of the Football Association (1863), new teams were created every year.  England's oldest professional club, Notts County FC (from Nottingham), was already founded in 1862.  The oldest Scottish club, Queen's Park (from Glasgow), was founded in 1867.  The F.A.'s early influence on the game was not dramatic or widespread and was mainly confined to organizing friendly games.  Students of Universities in and around the City of London made the football game popular in whole Britain.  Those days, the game was very attractive and the rules were easy.  The teams usually played without tactical plan, the only important thing was the final score.  Basically, a team consisted of a goalkeeper, who wasn't allowed to use his hands, one defender, one center and eight forward (1-1-8 system).  Since 1866, the F.A. adopted the previous Cambridge off-side ruling of three players and this remained until 1925.  The off-side rule said : "Any player between an opponents' goal and goalkeeper (unless he has followed the ball there) is off-side and out of play.  The goalkeeper is that player on the defending side, who, for the time being, is nearest to his goal".  This means, the player who received the ball, was not standing or running off-side when at least three opponents were in front of him, including the goalkeeper.  Since 1871, the goalkeeper may take the ball with his hands but this didn't change the tactictal plans.

Saturday 30 November 1872, again thanks to Charles William Alcock, the first international game between England and Scotland took place at the cricket ground Hamilton Crescent in Glasgow.  There was a distinct clash of styles, England lined up playing a 1-1-8 formation, in which whoever had the ball would dribble at the opponents and kick it up field before he was tackled.  One of the seven forwards, following behind, would then chase the ball.  Scotland played with a 2-2-6 system, with three banks of forwards divided into pairs.  Each pair of players, in defense, midfield and attack, knew who their partner was and their job was to pass to them when possible.  This revolutionary tactic of "passing and running" was known as the combination game, and the English had never seen anything like it.  Both styles reflected each team's different culture.  The England side's individualistic nature was summed up by their kit : they wore white shirts (with the three lions), but different-coloured knickerbockers and socks, depending on what public school they attended.  Scotland, whose team was made up of Queen's Park players, all wore blue shirts, white knickerbockers and blue-and-white hooped socks.  Below you'll find details about this historical moment.

The oldest Scottish club was Edinburgh Academicals, formed in 1857.  The first Scottish football team was Queen's Park from Glasgow, founded on 9 July 1867, their first competitive game against a team called Thistle was in August 1868.  As clubs began to form in the wake of Queen's Park, games were initially arranged on a friendly basis.  The spread of a national transport system throughout Britain meant an international meeting was unavoidable.  Queen's Park visited England many times and became member of the Football Association.  In 1871, the club also subscribed in the first edition of "The F.A. Challenge Cup".  The year before, in 1870, the Secretary of the Football Association, Charles William Alcock, wrote to the "Glasgow Herald" to suggest an international meeting between the two neighbors.  On 30 November 1872, on Saint Andrew's Day, the first official international game occurred when Queen's Park arranged a game at Hamilton Crescent cricket ground.  The whole Scottish team were all players of Queen's Park and wore their club colours (blue shirt, white short and white/blue socks), even now Scotland has the same outfit.  Queen's Park gave the West of Scotland cricket club £10 for the use of their field and promised to pay a further £10 if takings for the game were higher than £50.  In the event 4000 people paid £103 to watch the scoreless draw.  The success of the match ensured that the game would become a regular fixture and Scotland quickly established itself as the early pace-setter, winning eight and losing only two of the first twelve internationals with England.  The first confrontation resulted in a more competitive approach of the Scottish clubs that normally played friendly games.

After England (1863) and Scotland (1873), Wales has the third oldest football asscociation in the world.  On February 1876, in Ruabon nearby Wrexham, a group of businessmen wanted to have a team to play against Scotland and they formed the "Football Association of Wales".  One of those early pioneers, and first secretary, was solicitor Llewelyn Kenrick, member of Wales' oldest club side "Shropshire Wanderers".  Kenrick was charged with the responsibility of publishing the need for players to be considered for team selection.  The Welsh team was chosen and consisted of ten players from the North, one came from South Wales.  On 4 March 1876, at Hamilton Crescent in Glasgow, the Scottish team had beaten England (3-0) for 16000 spectators.  Three weeks later, on 25 March 1876, they won against the Welsh team (4-0) for 17000 spectators.  Football remained a North Wales sport with clubs as Wrexham (founded in 1873), Oswestry and Chirk.  In 1877, the Welsh Cup was introduced with the intention to test players for the next international games.  Wrexham won the first edition, South Wales was more interested in rugby but this changed with the creation of their own football association in 1893.  Workers of ports and coal mines came from Yorkshire, Lancashire or Scotland which resulted in the formation of the Welsh Football League in 1902.  But, many teams joined the English Leagues in search of a higher standard of football.

Although football was being played in Ireland since the 1860's, it was mainly based in Ulster and it was not until the 1880's that the game spread to other areas of the country.  On 24 October 1878, the Scottish team "Queen's Park" from Glasgow played an exhibition game against "Caledonians", the location was in Ballymafeigh at Ulster Cricket.  Two years later, on 18 November 1880, an historic meeting took place at Queens Hotel in Belfast.  "Cliftonville FC" had invited all teams settled in Belfast and district to speak about the rules of the Scottish Football Association and to form their own Irish Football Association.  It's aims were to promote and develop the game throughout Ireland.  The new Association elected its first President, Major Spencer Chichester, and agreed to organize an annual Challenge Cup.  In the first final of season 1880/81, Moyola Park defeated Cliftonville (1-0).  On 18 February 1882, the Irish F.A. played and lost their first international game against England (0-13) in Belfast at "Knock Ground", but the gate receipts amounted £9,19s which was a success.  The first club outside Ulster was Dublin Association Football Club, founded in 1883.  At the time, the Irish F.A. was based in Belfast and had it difficult to promote football throughout the country which led to the formation of the Leinster Football Association in 1892.  However, there was always a feeling among clubs from outside Belfast area that the Irish Football Association favored Ulster, protestant, teams, especially when selecting players for international matches.  Between 1916 and 1921, members of the Leister F.A. often threatened to break away from the Irish F.A., and early 1921, Bohemians, St. James Gate and Shelbourne withdrew from the Irish League.  On 1 June 1921, the southern part decided at a meeting in Dublin's Molesworth Hall to leave the Irish F.A. and they formed the "Football Association of the Irish Free State" (FAIFS).  Nowadays, we have the "Irish Football Association" (= Northern Ireland) and the "Football Association of Ireland" (= Republic of Ireland).

In 1880, "association football" was one of the most popular sports among students and hard working men.  Each college or factory started with their own team, sometimes they also played friendly games.  Cricket and law tennis were merely for the better classes, while rugby and soccer were for the common people.  Those days, the membership of the Football Association was up to 128 clubs including 80 from the south of England, 41 from the north of England, 6 from Scotland and 1 from Australia (note : soccer was brought to Australia by John Walter Fletcher who made his home in Sydney, probably in 1877 he founded the Wanderers Club, in 1880 he and J.A. Todd held a meeting at Aaron's Exchange Hotel to promote the "English Association Game" in New South Wales, on 14 August 1880 the club played their first match.  The oldest Australian rugby club, Sydney University Football Club, was already formed in 1863).  In 1882, the Football Association invited the association of Scotland, Wales and Ireland to discuss the formation of a board to settle their differences and to organize an international championship.  At a meeting in Manchester on 6 December 1882, the four football associations formed an International Football Board to look after the football rules.  Each association was given equal voting rights.  In the beginning the organization consisted of two representatives from each member.  Nowadays the Board consists of four representatives nominated by FIFA and one of each United Kingdom association.  The same year, the two-handed-throw-in was introduced.  In 1883, the British/Home International Championship was born, this was the world's first international football tournament which was contested annually until the 1983/1984 season.  In 1885, professionalism was legalized and "Arbroath" defeated "Bon Accord" (36-0) in the Scottish Cup which remains the largest score in a British first-class game.

In the beginning, our favorite sport was named "dribbling game", in 1863 it was called "association football" or simply "football" referring to the Football Association.  The other ballgame was "rugby rules" or simply "rugby" named after Rugby School and the rules set in 1871 by the Rugby Union.  In the early years of 1880's, students of Oxford University usually abbreviated words by adding "-er" to the end.  One of those students, Charles Wreford-Brown, was asked for a play of "rugger" meaning "rugby".  Charles refused because he preferred "soccer" or "association football".  It's hard to find when he said the word, some sources on internet mention the year "1863" but that's not possible.

In 1888, "soccer" was in desperate need of reorganization.  The F.A. Cup was a great success however the friendly games were often cancelled due to injuries or transport difficulties.  It was at this time that William McGregor, member of Aston Villa FC, took the initiative and wrote to the major English clubs suggesting a structured league with each team playing each other in a home and away game, with two points to the winning team and one point to both teams in the event of a draw.  On 22 March 1888 at "Anderton's Hotel" in Fleet Street, an initial meeting was held between the clubs of London.  On 17 April 1888 at "The Royal Hotel" in Manchester, a meeting with the twelve most prominent clubs of England decided to form the "Football League".  The twelve clubs were : Accrington FC, Aston Villa FC, Blackburn Rovers FC, Bolton Wanderers FC, Burnley FC, Derby County FC, Everton FC, Notts County FC, Preston North End FC, Stoke FC, West Bromwich Albion FC, Wolverhampton Wanderers FC.  On 8 September 1888, the first football league competition started with "Preston North End" scoring the first goal ever, made by Jack Gordon.  During the first season, "Preston North End" was also named "The Old Invincibles" because the club won this championship without losing any game and won the FA Cup without conceding a goal.  Since 1888, winning the championship and the cup is also known as "the double".  In 1891, the "Scottish League" was formed, also known as "Scottish Alliance", the members were : Airdrieonians, Ayr, East Stirlingshire, Morton, Kilmarnock, King's Park, Linthouse, Northern, Partick Thistle, Port Glasgow Athletic, St-Bernards, Thistle.  In 1892, England expanded with a new division.  The original league became "Division 1" with 16 clubs, the new league was "Division 2" with 12 clubs.  At the end of the competition, test matches (play-offs) decided promotion/relegation.  In 1893, "Division 2" expanded to 15 clubs with Arsenal FC, Liverpool FC, Middlesborough FC and Newcastle United FC being admitted to the league for the first time.  Thereafter, in 1894 "Division 2" counted 16 teams, in 1898 both divisions had 18 teams.

At the end of the 19th century, football was settled well in the United Kingdom.  The sport was organized in "Associations" which held league and cup competitions.  The federations were firstly created in England (1863), Scotland (1873), Wales (1876) and Ireland (1880).  Meanwhile, countries of the British Empire learnt soon the sports which were played in England.  Rugby and football were very popular among the students of public schools, while Universities played cricket.  When they left school/university, many of them were in army or went abroad for getting a job in the British colonies, from Australia over India and South Africa to the Caribbean's.  They introduced cricket and rugby rules, founded clubs and organized competitions.  Later, the grounds were also used for playing football, not "soccer".  The word "soccer" wasn't invented not before the 1880's.  In North America, the Irish colonists were settled on the eastern coast and brought their football game with them.  As we know, early 19th century, "football" was a mix of rugby and soccer, in England known as "dribbling game", which set the basics of "American Football".  Nowadays, New York is linked with "Celtic" referring the Irish and Scottish roots.  In Canada, the earliest "football" games were played from 1859 to 1865, the first game under "association" rules was in 1876 between the Toronto Lacrosse and the Carlton Cricket Club.  In 1877, the first Dominion Football Association was formed in Canada with teams in the Toronto area represented.  In 1880, the Western Football Association was formed in Ontario and from 1885, teams were send to play against teams from the American Football Association.  In South America, football was made popular by Britain soccer teams who planned exhibition tours in Argentina and Brazil.