Archive for the ‘Soccer’ Category

Bill Shankly (the former Liverpool manager) once said

“Soccer is a simple game based on the giving and taking of passes, on controlling the ball and making yourself available to receive a pass”

It sounds quite simple really doesn’t, but:

• What are the rules of soccer?
• How do the rules of soccer influence how to play soccer?
• What specific skills are required?
• What tactics should be employed?
• What are the physical attributes needed by soccer players?
• Do soccer players need specific fitness requirements?
• What should I learn first?
• What formation is the best one for a team to use?

What to do First

When you are learning how to play soccer, then the very first thing that you should do is ensure that you develop great technical skill.  Getting technical skill can only be done through a lot of practise and repetition of various soccer drills.  Whilst teamwork and tactics play a huge part in the way a team plays, the teams performance will be limited based on the technical ability of the players and the level of skill that players have.

The basic skills that are required for soccer player are:

• Ball Control
• Dribbling
• Passing
• Shooting
• Heading
• Defending
• Goalkeeping

To ensure that you have good soccer skills, a great deal of practice is required to develop good soccer skills a great deal of practice and commitment is required. The key to developing great soccer skills is repetition.  I recommend that players do at least 30 minutes a day of solid practice to develop these skills, including juggling a soccer ball to ensure that their technical ability is of an adequate standard.

Tactics and formations

Teamwork is vital in playing soccer and having a good understanding of how to get into goal scoring positions and conversely how a team can defend against the opposition requires an intimate knowledge of the game and of how to get players to play using different soccer formations.

Soccer Fitness

Being Fit for Soccer does have a major impact on how to play soccer.  I was in a team once that had limited technical ability compared with the majority of teams in our league, but guess what we were runners up in the league purely because we were the fittest team in the league and often won games in the dying minutes, because we were fit enough to “run the opposition off their legs”.  So never underestimate the impact that fitness will have on your game.

Rules of Soccer

There are various forms of soccer, ranging from micro soccer (3 a side) to the standard game of 11 a side. FIFA are the worldwide governing body for soccer, and it is FIFA who control the laws of the game that dictate how to play soccer from a rules perspective.  Understanding the laws of the game does have a bearing on what you do, and all players should make sure they understand the laws of the game.

A combination of learning the soccer skills described here, team tactics and team formations, soccer fitness and an understanding of the laws of the game constitute the basics of how to play soccer.

See some more of Nigels articles, or his website for more details information on how to play soccer.

Nigel Reed has been involved in soccer during the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s as a player and has been coaching youth soccer in Australia since 2000. Nigels main soccer website has detailed information on How to play soccer as well as a number of Free Soccer Drills Good luck with your coaching

Author: Nigel Reed
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When it comes to soccer school programs, Scuola Calcio, Italian Soccer School has some of the best soccer programs available. Founded in 1996, Scuola Calcio, Italian Soccer School is the soccer school that has been actively promoting its Italian Soccer Coaching methods to all of its soccer students.

Whether you are an up coming player or already an elite player, or just someone who loves the game and wishes to attend a proven soccer program then Scuola Calcio, Italian Soccer School is what you are looking for.

Scuola Calcio offers Italian Soccer-Language Programs, Summer Soccer Camps and Year Long Academic Soccer Boarding Schools in Italy.

With soccer being the most popular sport in North America and around the world and the Italian National Soccer Team winning the World Cup in 2006, many soccer students can benefit from traveling abroad or simply just attend of our North American Soccer Programs.

“This program has the goal to enrich the youth soccer players with its technical and tactical training, and insert them into a system where they play soccer and study the language every day” said Antonio Saviano, Scuola Calcio North America Coordinator.
Scuola Calcio, Italian Soccer School offers international soccer development programs, Soccer “Schools” in Italy, Year-Long academic soccer development and also monthly and bi-weekly development programs for players 14 to 22.

The Italy “Year-Long” high school soccer boarding school program is only available for boys from 14 to 18 years old. Players are enrolled in our affiliated Italian High School, Convitto Nazionale, Principe di Napoli and train daily under the guidance of the Scuola Calcio technical coaching staff. For players from 18-23, Scuola Calcio provides a “University” option in Italy at the University of Perugia for Foreigners. Also available in Italy are one, two & three month “custom” soccer development program options.
The dates for the program are flexible, students may choose the date and decide when to travel.

What are you waiting for? Go online to find out which program is best for you and register today!

Check out also the same program offered here in the USA in the summer months.

For more information consult our web site at: http://www.soccerkix.com or email us at: info@soccerkix.com

Scuola Calcio, Italian Soccer School’s goal is to provide intensive soccer training programs that not only teach players the game of soccer but also also teach them about cultural diversity and foreign languages. With professionals Italian Soccer affiliations, Scuola Calcio, Italian Soccer School will help to develop players by experiencing international professional soccer training and give them an opportunity to travel to a structured professional environment.

Author: Gian Sarfin
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If you want to understand the history of soccer, you have to admit that for some reason, humans have a natural urge to kick things. Whether it’s to release frustration, or simply for fun, we do this even without noticing.

How many times have you not walked on the street as a kid (and not only), simply kicking that pebble or cone on the ground in front of you out of boredom. It’s this natural urge that stands at the basis of the history of soccer.

- When was soccer invented?

When speaking about the history of soccer a lot of people regard England as the place that soccer was born and although this could be a true statement in a particular context, the truth is that the English were the first to organize soccer around 1863, however they did not “invent” it per say. So if 1863 is the year the sport got “baptized”, then what year was soccer invented and where?

Since soccer or soccer-likesports can be traced way back to ancient times, it’s difficult to pin-point a specific year, but historians of the phenomenon usually chop it down into 3 periods of time.

- History of soccer during ancient times

They might not have had our modern commodities, but ancient people sure knew how to have their fun. And, you guessed, kicking a “ball” around (obviously, the balls were extremely rudimentary compared to what is used today) was considered a fun activity in many areas all around the globe, most of them developing at the same time, without interaction from one another.

In history of soccer the first written statement regarding the start of soccer comes from a Chinese military manual at around 300 BC, which describes a practice called “cuju” that involved the players kicking a leather ball through a hole in a silk cloth stretched between two poles. On the other side of the globe, in the Americas, the Aztecs were playing a similar sport, although some compare it to basketball more than soccer.

The purpose of the game was to kick the ball through a small stone circle that was placed high up on the arena’s walls, hence the relation to basketball.
Now I don’t know about you, but to me it sounds a lot more difficult to place a small leather ball exactly in the middle of a stone circle that’s well high above your head with your foot, than striking a modern “high-tech” ball in an 8 yard goal.

- History of soccer during the Middle Ages

We usually think of the medieval era as a time when war was viewed as a necessity and a “job” rather than a calamity. Despite being quite a serious, “dark” period of time, somehow the medieval people managed to take some time for some sports, including soccer.

The forms of soccer played during this time were obviously incomparable to our current definition of the sport; hence they are usually classified as “mob soccer”.

While their dads were off at war, children would often grab a patched up leather ball, hit the nearby field and start a “war” on the field. The lack of rules often lead to fights and serious injuries and the sport was regarded as dangerous in many locations.

A clear example of this can be found in the London British Museum, where an engraving shows a group of men struggling to win a leather ball, with a second image showing a man with a broken arm. You do the math.

- Modern-day soccer

As mentioned above, although we don’t know when soccer was invented, we do know when it was organized as a sport under a clear set of rules. Being a popular practice in England, soccer was played chaotically and oftentimes it would lead to the same on and off-pitch battles similar to the ones occurring during medieval soccer matches. On each match, the two teams would agree on a particular set of rules, but with the lack of a referee arguments would often spark up.

In order to keep things in order, a few English clubs met in London on October 26, 1863 in order to create a set of well-defined and universal rules for the game.

The Football Association was born and although their set of rules did not apply to all clubs immediately, in a few decades, as soccer clubs switched from amateurism to professionalism, their laws and conduct restrictions became standard for everyone.

As you can see, there’s really no “right” way to answer the “When was soccer invented?” question and you’ll have your fair share of arguments at hand regardless of what period you believe was the spark that caused the wildfire that soccer is today.

And you’ll probably agree with me on this: it’s not really that important to know when soccer was invented, but rather acknowledge that we are lucky to be able to enjoy this wonderful sport at its best, as we can in modern times.

Niv Orlian is the author and the owner of a Soccer Fans website that provides information on various topics related to soccer such as the history of soccer, soccer rules, famous soccer players , soccer fundamentals, soccer nutrition and soccer conditioning.

Author: Niv Orlian
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Having a collection of autographed soccer memorabilia has long been a way of proving your loyalty and passion to the sport. If you’re interested in starting your own collection, here are several tips to ensure that you’ll not only have an easy time collecting.

How to Obtain Autographed Soccer Memorabilia
There are two ways for you to obtain autographed soccer memorabilia: you can have the soccer gear or equipment signed by the athlete with your own effort, or you can purchase one that has already been autographed.

It’s certainly more affordable to work for your own autographed soccer memorabilia by yourself, but your main problem would be finding ample opportunity to approach your favorite soccer player and get his autograph. You will also have to work on getting a certificate of authenticity for your memorabilia in the event that you’d wish to sell it for a profit.

Purchasing autographed soccer memorabilia is easier, naturally, but more expensive as well. You also run the risk of buying from fraudulent sellers selling fake autographed soccer memorabilia.

Types of Autographed Soccer Memorabilia

Photographs – These can be photographs of the athlete himself or a scene from a particular soccer game containing the necessary signature. Photographs may be something you’ve taken by yourself, purchased, or won. If it’s a group photo, consider having it enlarged so that all the signatures of the members making up your favorite soccer team can easily fit its surface.

Soccer Ball – These can be either purchased or obtained at your own effort as well. If you’re going to have a soccer ball signed by your favorite players, invest in the best soccer ball you can purchase: one that has the words “FIFA approved” or “official size or weight” imprinted on them. Make sure to have a dark-colored soft tip marker ready for the signatures because it writes well on soccer balls and is easily visible. When you have completed the signatures, place it inside a glass or see-through container for safekeeping.

Soccer Shoes – Many sports brands nowadays produce clothing, gear, and equipment under the name of famous players; the same thing applies to soccer as well. If your favorite soccer player has his own line of shoes then it would be ideal to have him affix his signature on his own product. Since shoes don’t have much writing space in them, they are usually good for a maximum of three signatures.

Soccer Wear – These are what make up a complete soccer outfit: soccer top, shorts, and socks. A soccer shirt or uniform serves as one of the best types of autographed soccer memorabilia because it allows the players and coaches to write as long as they want.

Gloves – These are worn only by goalkeepers, so you can generally expect only signatures from popular goalkeepers to appear on gloves. Again, autographed soccer memorabilia of this type can be purchased or obtained through personal effort.

Shin Guards – While shoes, uniforms, and soccer balls make up the bulk of autographed soccer memorabilia, it’s very rare that you’ll find a famous signature written on shin guards. Thus, this type of memorabilia is usually obtained by personal effort.

As a last warning: make sure that you are truly purchasing from a trusted and reliable source especially if the transaction will be processed online. Be careful about using your credit card, and never allow payments to be handled by any website you haven’t checked the Better Business Bureau with.

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For more information about authentic autographed sports memorabilia and collectibles, visit [http://www.sportscollectionz.com] . Read articles from contributing writers in our blog site at http://sportscollectionz.wordpress.com

Author: Joseph Baylon
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