Soccer and Its Greatest Players

Soccer and Its Greatest Players — page 7 — SoCCER AND ITS GREATEST PLAYERS the greatest player the sport has ever known called soccer the beautiful game Rules established by the Fédération Internationale de Association Football FIFA the worldwide governing body of soccer require that soccer be played on a rectangular field between 100 and 130 yards 90 and 120 meters long and between 50 and 100 yards 45 and 90 meters wide For inter national matches the field is 110 to 120 yards 100 to 110 meters long and 70 to 80 yards 64 World renown goalkeeper Petr Cech of the Czech Republic slides into action during the FIFA 2010 World Cup qualifier match against Northern Ireland on Oct 14 2009 Having sustained a near fatal bead injury in 2006 Cech wears not only the standard goalie garb but protective headgear as well Alexander Hassenstein Getty Images I2

Soccer and Its Greatest Players — page 8 — THE GAME OF SoCCER to 73 meters wide A goal 8 yards 17 3 meters wide and 8 feet 2 4 meters high is placed at each end of the field The lines marking the sides of the field are the touchlines those on either end are the goal lines The field has distinctive markings for the halfway line the goal areas the penalty areas the corners and the center circle The uniforms usually consist of shorts a shirt with a number socks shoes with cleats and shin guards Goalkeepers typically wear padded shorts and gloves and must wear a shirt that is noticeably different from the other players The ball is a round inflated rubber blad der covered with leather or some other approved material It measures between 27 and 28 inches 68 and 70 centimeters in cir cumference and weighs between 14 and 16 ounces 4IO and 450 grams How THE GAME Is PLAED The purpose of the game is to propel the ball into the opponents goal using only the feet head or body Only the goalkeepers can touch the ball with their hands The team scoring the most goals wins There are 11 players to a team a goalkeeper and ten field players 13

Soccer and Its Greatest Players — page 9 — SoCCER AND ITS GREATEST PLAYERS divided into defenders fullbacks midfield ers halfbacks and forwards Players advance the ball by passing kicking or heading the ball to a teammate or dribbling the ball downfield In dribbling the player controls the ball with the feet The ball may also be kept moving by juggling using one s thighs chest or shoulders as well as the feet or head Toni Calvo of Aris Thessaloniki FC football club stands back as Bayer Leverkusen's Arturo Vidal juggles the ball during a match on Nov 4 2010 Christof Koepsel Bongarts Getty Images 14

Soccer and Its Greatest Players — page 10 — THE GAME OF SoCCER Defensive players will try to stop the opposi tion by intercepting passes or by tackling In soccer a tackle occurs when a player steals the ball from the feet of another player Players run as many as 6 or 7 miles 10 or 1 kilometers during the course of a game The game is officiated by a referee who enforces the rules and keeps track of the time and two linesmen who patrol the touchlines and determine possession A game lasts 90 minutes and is divided into halves the half time interval lasts 15 minutes during which the teams change ends Additional time may be added by the referee to compensate for stoppages in play for example player inju ries If neither side wins and if a victor must be established extra time is played and then if required a series of penalty kicks may be taken The offside rule and fouling are two of the most common and important calls made by game officials The offside rule requires that an offensive player not pass the two defend ers closest to the goal until the ball is played to him the last defender being the goalie The rule prevents players from lurking about the goal all game but it can be difficult to judge When offside is called a free kick is awarded to the defensive team 15

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