Soccer Facts For Kids – Fun Facts About Soccer For Kids

♦ It’s believed that soccer was invented in England around 1863. The sport soccer was supposedly derived from rugby.  Kicking a ball has been around for a very long time, but the first rules were established in 1863.

♦ The main organization behind soccer is FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football). FIFA was found in Paris way back in May 1904. The reason they established FIFA was to create clear and fair rules of play. They help make soccer popular around the world and host the Football World Cup.

World Cup Trophie

♦ FIFA is pretty big around the world, they actually have more members than the United Nations.

♦ The US Open Cup is the oldest American soccer championship. The first year it was contested was back in 1914 as the National Challenge Cup. There are 3 tiers of teams that contend as part of professional soccer.

♦ The reward for having the best season record in Major League Soccer is the Supporters’ Shield. LA Galaxy and DC United have each won the award four times.

♦ The longest winning streak was 15 games in a row back in the1997 – 1998 season.  The LA Galaxy hold this record in the MLS, they also hold the second longest winning streak at 12 games in the previous year.

♦ The most goals scored in a year is 27. This record is not held by 1 individual, but 3! Bradley Wright-Phillips in 2014, Chris Wondolowski in 2012 and Roy Lassiter in 1996.

♦ Landon Donovan holds the record in the MLS for the most goals scored. He played for the LA Galaxy during 4 of their Major League Soccer Cup wins. He had 144 goals, with Jamaican Jeff Cunningham in second place with 134 goals.

♦ The team that has  won the MLS Cup the most, has won it 5 times from 1996 – 2014. Landon Donovan played for 4 of the championships, and David Beckham played for 2 of them. Do you

Landon Donovan

know what team it is? Los Angeles Galaxy!

♦ The team with the most Olympic soccer wins is the US women’s soccer team. They have won it 4 out of 5 possible gold medals. In 2000, Norway beat the US. The US won silver that year. I would say that 4 golds and one silver is not too shabby!

♦ The only player to ever score in three different world cups is David Beckham. David Beckham became famous when he played with Manchester United. Back then he married Posh Spice from the popular group Spice Girls. He then came over to the states to play for the LA Galaxy, helping popularize soccer in the U.S.

♦ The Brazilian soccer legend Pelé has the most World Cup Championships. He was part of the teams that won the World Cup back in 1958, 1962 and 1970. He helped Brazil with 3 of their 5 World Cup championships. He was voted the 20th century’s best soccer player.

♦ The World Cup is an amazing world wide competition, over 200 teams attempt to qualify to play. Teams are playing 2 years in advance to qualify for the World Cup

♦ The World Cup is the most watched television event across the globe. The final match in the 2006 World Cup, about 1 out of 9 people across the world watched on television. It is believed that the viewership in 2018 could double.

♦ The first soccer balls in China were made from sewn clothing filled with rubble. Inflated pig bladders were used in Europe during the Middle Ages.

♦ The grassy soccer playing field is called a pitch. It’s rectangular in shape and must be around 100 and 130 yards long and 50 and 100 yards wide.

♦ An international soccer game is split into two 45 minute halves making a game 90 minutes long.

♦ Ronaldo has the record for most World Cup Goals, he currently has 15. Gerd Muller held that record before Ronaldo, he played for West Germany in the 1970 and 1974 World Cups.

♦ Oliver Kahn was the first goalkeeper to be the Most Valuable Player of the World Cup in 2002.

♦ In 30% American homes there is a soccer player.

♦ Over 33 million Americans claim to be avid soccer fans.

What a soccer field looks like.

♦ Since 1990 the amount of American high school soccer players have doubled

♦ U.S. youth soccer has more than 3 million members between 5-19.

♦ The Golden Ball is given to the best player. The Golden Boot is awarded to the top goal scorer. The Golden Glove Award is given to the best goalkeeper. The best player under 21 receives the best young player award. During the final tournament the team that is the most entertaining also gets an award.

♦ The term “soccer” originated in England. It’s a nickname for the word “association”.

♦ The only  country to host the World Cup twice is Mexico.

♦ The first live broadcast of a soccer match was in 1937.

♦ On average, a soccer player runs about 7 miles per match.

♦ Carolos Caszely of Chile was the first player to get a red card in the World Cup, back in 1974.