Futebol / Futbol: The Beautiful Game:
Futbol or futebol or soccer: whatever you call it, it's a grand passion in South America.
From kids kicking a ball around the streets to world-contender players, South Americans love their futbol.
Futbol, or futebol in Brazil, came to the South American continent from Europe, first from Great Britain as British influence spread throughout the world, then with successives waves of European immigration. Football associations were formed in Argentina in 1893, Chile in 1895, Uruguay in 1900 with other countries following. When Uruguay won the Gold Medal and Argentina the Silver at the 1928 Olympics, futbol fever soared.
When Uruguay won the first FIFA (International Federation of Football Associations) World Cup in 1930, with Argentina as the runner up, South American passion for the game knew no bounds. The Beautiful Game is today the world's most popular sport, the only one universally organized and played by the same rules. Over 200 countries and 30 million players are registered with FIFA.
And lots of them are in South America!
In the seventeen World Cup games since 1930, the South American nations have been predominant winners. Brazil has the highest number of wins: in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002, plus runner up in 1950 and 1998. Uruguay has two wins: 1930 and 1950, and Argentina also has two wins, 1978 and 1986, with runner up in 1930 and 1990. Uruguay, Chile, Brazil and Argentina have hosted World Cup games. Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Colombia are seemingly unstoppable forces in current Latin American futbol.
The Centennial World Cup, in 2030, is scheduled to be in Uruguay and already plans are underway with a plea for help from the fans at Uruguay 2020.
You can keep current with all the futbol / futebol news with the resources in Soccer / Futbol / Futebol, where you'll also find schedules, leagues, results, interviews, player profiles, photos and much more information.
What's your favorite team?
