Sport OVKY

All individuals should participate in some form of exercise each day, or at least every other day, in order to stay healthy. You can visit a gym and make use of exercise equipment, go for a run out of doors, or be part of a class or group that does a specific type of exercise together.

Cooperation helps people to have the motivation and support that it takes to constantly be improving and becoming healthier. Involving yourself in sports, a great way to increase cooperation and teamwork can have an immense effect on your level of fitness and the amount of workouts you are able to fit in each week.

Sports and events have a great effect on camaraderie and creating commonalities between individuals. If you have a favorite team, you are guaranteed to find another individual in close proximity that likes to watch them play also.

Even if you had not met this person, there is a good chance that you could have a great and interactive conversation regarding the players, different games or matches that were exciting or disappointing, and past success of the team.

This type of connection has created bonds between many nations and different types of people in the past. One of the most uniting sports in the entire world is soccer or football.

It is rumored that during World War I, enemy troops of the British and German armies united together on Christmas Day of 1914 to play soccer. In 1969, the Brazilian soccer star Pele took a trip to Nigeria, along with his team Santos, and caused a complete cease-fire in the Biafran War for three days.

The World Cup of 2002 was co-hosted by longtime enemies Japan and South Korea. American troops that have been in Iraq and Afghanistan have organized troops and clubs for people of all ages to play soccer, both with each other and with the troops.

Soccer is very well-known for its radical fans and loud sporting events. There have been a number of reported riots and gangs associated with different football teams and areas.

However, for the most part, this sport offers a great opportunity for many different types of individuals to come together. The World Cup of Soccer, held every four years, is always a great way for fans of all different countries of the world to come together in one place and converse and support one another.

Thought the tournament is very rigorous and competitive, and the World Cup title is wanted by every team there, the matches are played in a courteous manner and the players are always encouraged to be very respectful and supportive of one another. Teams that may have once been enemies play against each other in a genteel and sportsmanlike manner.

There have been a number of organizations created to encourage the cooperation of those from countries that are ridden with war or poverty to have soccer clubs and systems. The sport itself is so universal because anyone from any background can play it.

A soccer ball and goals can be made out of many different materials. Even those in poor countries or areas can find a way to play the game.

There have been pushes by different organizations like UNICEF and the United Nations to improve soccer clubs and the availability of the sport in all countries. If you wish to be part of a team and increase your fitness, try and find a club or community team you can play on!

Both children and adults can take part in this activity. If you are a college student, there are sure to be a number of intramural teams or school organizations you can join to play soccer and increase your health.

If you would rather play with those that you know, schedule a time each week that you and your close friends can play. Do so at a local park or field.

The cooperation of exercising with your friends plus the set time and place every week will ensure that you at least get a great cardiovascular workout that often. You can practice by yourself by running around the field while kicking the ball, or creating an obstacle course for yourself to maneuver while dribbling.

Soccer is a sport that anyone can enjoy. It helps increase your heart health, burn calories, and give you more strength and endurance.

It has long been a form of cooperation between groups and people. Integrate it into your workout!

Ronald Pedactor is a fitness trainer. He has been coaching athletes for more then 20 years. He recommends Exercise Equipment to achieve your highest athletic performance. Contact Info: Ronald Pedactor RonaldPedactor09@gmail.com (http://www.proform.com)

Point Spread and Money Line are two most common types of betting in soccer. To judge which one is a better play, let us look into details of both of them. Also known as 1X2, money line is an older system of soccer betting. In this type of betting, there are three options, Home Win, Away Win and Draw. Nearly 30 percent of soccer games end in a draw, so picks are to be made wisely. However, it is very disappointing to lose a bet when the game ends in a draw. This led to a new form of wagering known as hang cheng or Asian Handicap, which eliminated the draw option. This is what we know as point spread. In this, you have two betting options, home win and away win. The draw option is eliminated. If the game ends in a draw, the wager will be graded a ‘push’ and stakes refunded. However, since the risk is smaller, the rewards are also smaller. Since you dont lose with a draw, the odds on home and away teams are lessened. Recently, point spread betting has been gaining more and more popularity because of the matter of value. For a sportsbook, three-line European moneylines have bigger profit margins than two-line point spreads. Offering three options allows the bookmaker to extract more ‘juice’ from each line. When creating lines, a sportsbook will offer odds on each team that give it a slight edge, ensuring a profit no matter how the game turns out. This is called the Theoretical Hold and is expressed as a percentage. It represents the combined amount of customers’ bets that the bookmaker expects to keep. Compared to the North American sports, soccer moneylines give the bookmaker a much bigger theoretical hold making it the most lucrative betting format from a sportsbooks perspective. There is another drawback with moneylines. As the visiting teams often draw rather than winning outright, away wins are much rarer in soccer than in other sports. So, the general tendency is not to play on the away team. On the other hand, point spread offers much better value because of a lower theoretical hold. Intense competition among sportsbooks in recent years has also made it possible for the betters to secure even better odds. Most Asian books offer reduced juice on soccer. Pinnacle Sportsbook recently began posting lines as low as four-cents on soccer spreads (lay -102), with a theoretical hold of only 0.98 percent!
Just like puck lines in hockey, or run lines in baseball, the soccer point spread makes wagering more flexible than moneylines. Because of all these reasons. Point spread is becoming more popular these days than moneylines. About the author: Florian Koerner runs a popular free online football betting tips and a general online betting information website. Visit www.soccerbetting.info every week or subscribe to his free soccer betting tips by email. Related Articles – soccer, betting, online, Email this Article to a Friend!Receive Articles like this one direct to your email box!Subscribe for free today!

Soccer 7′s Working as a Team to Build Fitness and Friendships

Soccer is one of the world’s most exciting sports and is followed by millions of fans all across the globe. Now, a new variation on the world’s most popular game is aiming to make the sport more appealing to an even wider audience, while also providing people with the opportunity to meet like minded people and get fit while doing this. This game is known as soccer 7′s.

Soccer 7′s is almost identical to soccer except for two major rule differences. The first of these rules is pretty obvious and is where soccer 7′s gets its name from: instead of the usual 11 players per team, teams are limited to 7 players per team; thus the name soccer 7′s!

The other major rule change is that there is no offside rule in Soccer 7′s. The offside rule is often a tricky rule to understand and is probably the rule that cause the most trouble for newcomers to soccer to understand. Eliminating this rule from the game makes soccer 7′s a great way for those interested in learning about and playing soccer to have the opportunity to play the game without getting frustrated at trying to understand the offside rule.

Just like traditional soccer, there are a number of ways in which coaches organize their soccer 7′s teams. Many soccer 7′s coaches favor a 2-2-2 formation, placing an equal number of players in every position in order to have every part of the field covered. Others prefer to flood the midfield and control the game from the middle of the park, using a 2-3-1 formation.

Soccer 7′s is growing in popularity all over the world and tournaments are being held in all corners of the world, from China to the United Kingdom and America to Africa. These tournaments are held for people of all ages from 5 years old to 45 years and up!

While these tournaments are taken very seriously by those involved in them, soccer 7′s is not a professional sport and so is often played for fun and the love of the game. Since huge money is not involved in soccer 7′s, unlike traditional soccer, it is much easier for new and established players to get involved with the sport purely for the fun of it.

Soccer 7′s puts an emphasis on having fun and getting fit which makes it a very appealing sport for those who are looking for a fun way to get fit. Living in a image conscious world, everyone is concerned with discovering the latest fitness trends to help them shed pounds quickly. Soccer 7′s mightn’t be the fastest method to do this but it certainly is one of the most fun ways, as well as providing a great opportunity to meet new people and make new friends.

Want to get involved in this rapidly growing sport? Then grab a pair of boots, lace up and get out on that field! You’ll be glad you did!

> > Michel Gerard is an author based in Asia. Visit the Thailand Soccer 7s site to learn more about the Thai International Soccer 7′s tournaments in Phuket, Pattaya and Bangkok. => http://www.thai7s.com

By Earl Hunsinger

An athlete moves across a field, trying to keep a ball away from a team of opponents. His own teammates move with him, heading toward the goal. As he scores, the crowd cheers.

This contest might be taking place this year, or 2,000 years before the birth of Christ. The game might be soccer, American football, rugby, or perhaps Episkyros, an ancient game played by the Greeks. In fact, it seems that people the world over have been playing similar games for thousands of years.

For example, according to an article on the Chinese website Shanghai Star, the ancient Chinese game of Cuju was developed over 2,300 years ago in Shandong province. This game was originally played with a leather bag filled with hair. Later, during the Tang dynasty, a hollow ball made of eight pieces of leather began to be used, along with two goals made of netting, making it very similar to modern soccer. In fact, in 2004 the Federation of International Football Associations declared that it was the origin of modern soccer.

The Greek game of Episkyros began around 2000 B.C.E. It was played using a ball made of linen and hair, which were wrapped in string and sewn together. Later, a follis or inflated ball began to be used. These were made from inflated pig bladders wrapped in leather or sponges wrapped in string and cloth. The website Expert Football (www.expertfootball.com) has a picture of a carved relief from the National Museum of Archeology in Athens showing an athlete balancing this type of ancient ball on his leg. In fact, according to this website, this is the image used on the European Cup trophy today.

People have always taken football seriously. In the many versions of the game played down through the ages, it was often viewed as military training. The teamwork and athleticism involved helped prepare the players for war. The shame suffered today by a losing team is nothing compared to the consequences to the losing team in the ancient Aztec game of Tlachtli. It seems that this game was sacred to the Aztecs, with deep religious overtones. It was played in virtually every major city of the ancient Aztec world, often in a walled court near a temple. It was a mixture of volleyball, basketball, and football, with the players moving a hard rubber ball toward a goal without using their hands or allowing it to touch the ground. Spectators would place large bets on the outcome, but not as large as the players, since the losers were sacrificed to the gods.

Violence has also been a part of the game in Europe from the early days. According to the website Soccer Training Info (www.soccer-training-info.com) the modern game of soccer is Anglo-Saxon in origin and was first played using the severed head of a Danish prince as the ball. It was played at that time with very few rules and an unlimited number of players.

According to All Soccer Info, football became more organized in 1863 when two football associations went their separate ways (association football and rugby football). The popularity of football spread slowly, but because of the influence of the British Empire, eventually football (the soccer version) was to spread to virtually every country of the world. Other forms of football, such as rugby and American football, have still not spread very far, but are immensely popular in some countries.

So while you may never have heard of the ancient games of Cuju, Episkyros, and Tlachtli, they live on in the modern games being played today.

In a tearful announcement, Corinthians star striker Ronaldo Luiz Nazario de Lima, or merely Ronaldo, revealed his choice on Monday to retire being a certified soccer player. Surrounded by his children, the athlete declared that his center desires to continue, but his entire body is unable to proceed. The 34-year- old’s declaration arrived all of a sudden and with no warning. His choice arrives only two times right after teammate and buddy Roberto Carlos opted to leave Corinthians centered on passing away threats from Corinthians’ fans and dread for his family’s safety. Ronaldo wearing his stylish wholesale soccer jersey was anticipated to perform the whole 2011 period using the hopes of continuing in 2012 and also the possibility of actively playing while in the 2014 globe Cup in Brazil. Ronaldo claimed that he suffers from hyperthyroidism, a disorder that qualified prospects to continuous entire body pain, fat gain, a depressive disorder and tiredness. Unable to recover rapidly from injuries on account of his diagnosis and also the insufficient bodily hormones to combat the symptoms, the athlete declared that he required to carry extra hormones, but was prohibited on account of medicine regulations. The athlete openly stated that he holds no hatred in the direction of his critics who do not know about his diagnosis. He additional that he hopes his critics can be much more cautious while in the long term when judging the overall performance of other athletes, getting into concern their heath conditions, family, difficulties of protection and lifestyle. Ronaldo described that he "lost his job to his body." prior to leading to much more harm than currently accumulated, the athlete claimed that he cannot go up a airline flight of stairs with no sensation discomfort and additional that in his apartment building, there is no elevator.
Both Corinthians and Ronaldo wearing his stylish wholesale soccer jersey have loosely prepared for any farewell in June or July. Right after his certified career, Ronaldo programs on expanding long term job as an agent and previously expressed his awareness in representing Brazilian expertise just like 19- year-old Neymar. Regarding the latest failure that was Corinthians participation while in the preliminary circular within the 2011 Libertadores Cup, Ronaldo enquired for that fans forgiveness and comprehension. The team’s removal and resultant buff hostility is what cumulated in Roberto Carlos’ departure and absolutely facilitated Ronaldo’s earlier retirement. Ronaldo started his certified job in 1993 with Brazil’s Cruzeiro. Leaving Brazil, the athlete then performed for PSV Eindhoven, taken by Barcelona, Inter Milan, and actual Madrid after which returning to Brazil to perform for Corinthians. During his time using the above pointed out teams, the athlete scored 264 goals. Using the Brazilain countrywide team, Ronaldo scored 62 objectives and continues to be the major scorer throughout globe Cup competition, scoring a report 15 goals. After his goodbye, the coaching personnel and people within the Corinthians group applauded the striker and one-by-one hugged the athlete in his final morning being a certified soccer player. Ronaldo wearing his stylish wholesale soccer jersey closed his discourse by stating that he can be offered for just about any long term administrative assignments that Corinthians has obtained to offer. Looking for more FOOTBALL NEWS, you can visit: http://www.everyonestore.com/ Related Articles – soccer news, football news, Email this Article to a Friend!Receive Articles like this one direct to your email box!Subscribe for free today!

Soccer is one of the popular sports among the youth. It is a good form of exercise and fun activity. This game is full of energy and enthusiasm. Playing soccer is beneficial for physical fitness and overall health. Soccer ground is such a place that offers a lot of fun and excitement. But at the same time, it is a source of a number of playground injuries. Some of the injuries can really be very serious and the person has to face long-term consequences.

Common Soccer Injuries

Soccer injuries can be acute (traumatic) injuries or cumulative (overuse) injuries. Acute or traumatic injuries are due to sudden impact or force. Overuse soccer injuries result from stress on joints, muscles and soft tissues without proper time for healing. Such injuries start as a small, nagging pain and if left untreated, they result in a debilitating injury. Most soccer injuries involve knee, ankle and hip region. Soccer injuries are strains, sprains, bruises, fractures, abrasions and muscle-tendon injuries. Soccer players often get the injuries to upper leg, lower leg and head. Lower leg injury is due to the contact with other players. Knees and ankles are most commonly injured. Head injury results from heading the ball, head to head contact with another player or being struck by a ball kicked at high speed. Some other causes of soccer injuries are over-exertion, falls, being struck by the ball and overuse. Some of the common soccer injuries include knee ligament sprains, ankle sprains, Achilles tendonitis, concussion, muscular strains, Iliotibial Band syndrome and meniscus tears. Knee injuries are also very common in soccer players.

How to prevent soccer injuries?

Soccer injuries can be very severe and may leave serious, long-term consequences. Hence, its very important to take all the necessary precautions in order to prevent soccer injuries. Here are some useful tips for preventing soccer injuries:
Always take enough time to warm up and stretch. Stretching exercises are necessary especially for your knees, hips, calves and thighs. Research studies have proved that cold muscles are more vulnerable to injury. Warm up your muscles with stationery cycling, walking or running in place for about 3-5 minutes. Then gently and slowly stretch your muscles, holding each stretch for about 30 seconds.
Warm-up is very important for your body. It increases your body temperature and prepares it for physical activity. Kicking the ball without warm-up can cause certain injuries.
If you experience pain in any of your body part, then have a rest for some time. Pain can be a warning sign of injury and hence, it should not be neglected.
You need to be knowledgeable about basic first-aid. You should be able to manage some minor injuries such as minor sprains, strains, bruises, facial cuts or minor tendinitis/tendonitis.
There should be appropriate preparations for emergency situations at the soccer ground. Medical personnel should be there at the ground to treat the common soccer injuries.
Always wear shin guards in order to protect your lower legs. Select the shoes with molded cleats or ribbed soles. Shoes with screw-in cleats can lead to a greater risk of injury.
Dont crawl or sit on the goal. Avoid hanging from the net. Many soccer injuries are associated with falling the goals onto the players.
Always use nonabsorbent, synthetic balls on wet playing fields. Leather balls may get waterlogged and heavy and increase the risk of injury.
Keep the playing surface in good condition. Holes on the ground should be filled. Playing ground should be kept free from debris and obstructions.
So, next time before you go to the soccer ground, dont forget to take these precautions for preventing soccer injuries. After all, prevention is better than cure, isnt it?

In a Soccer team, the preparation of matches is essential, but not only in technical skills, soccer jerseys and tactics but also the physical plot is to get the Soccer player arrived in good condition to dispute it.

This preparation is made by the club’s medical staff, in agreement with the trainer and coach, and encompasses all measures of muscle recovery and adequate nutritional intake. Usually this is done with more than 48 hours before the match. If a match takes place on a Sunday afternoon on Friday will start the preparation.

Friday’s training session is very soft, as players have to recover from the hard work week. This usually involves sitting in bath and massage therapists to unload the muscles of each player and also performed contrast baths on alternate athletes a pool of ice at low temperature and a Jacuzzi, which is 40 . The purpose of this is to improve circulation and relax the muscles of the lower limbs.

That same day it is inadvisable to stay up late, since the effects of a bad break can last two days. On Saturday, apart from the players revisit the strategy and tactics of the game with the coach, the medical body nutritional menu plans they have to follow the players to prepare the body for the meeting.

Generally, this is based on providing vitamins, carbohydrates and proteins. For example, on Saturday you can eat salad, pasta, chicken, fruit and yogurt . For dinner, white rice, grilled fish or roasted. Also with salad and fruit. On Sunday you can have breakfast cereals, juices, coffee, toast, milk … and eat pasta and a steak or beef tenderloin. Always avoid fizzy drinks or alcohol.

This ensures a good load of nutrients to the player’s body responds the best possible way during the 90 minutes. Another thing to consider is the rest of Soccer. The night before should sleep 8 to 9 hours, and if the party is in the evening, should sleep an hour nap.

Just before starting the game, players in the locker room preparing to go out there and many of them require special bandages on ankles or heat certain muscles of the body to start better.

The practitioner is responsible for these last details for the athlete came on the best way possible. Finally, during the game, especially at halftime, you should give the player sports drink to replenish minerals and energy, and prepare a fruit smoothie to take half time.

As part of its centennial celebrations, FIFA, world soccer’s governing body, decided to publish a book of photographs of the 100 greatest living players. The task of compiling the list of players was given to the man widely regarded as the greatest of them all, Pele.

In some ways, Pele was the obvious choice. Not only did he have a spectacularly successful playing career, winning three World Cups with Brazil, the first at the age of 17, he also (unlike, say, Diego Maradona) conducted himself with grace and dignity, and was a superb ambassador for the game.

However, his list was greeted mainly with a mixture of derision and, especially in his homeland, cries of outrage.

For a start, he found himself unable to whittle it down to 100 names, and instead came up with 125. Here they are:

Argentina: Alfredo Di Stefano, Daniel Passarella, Diego Maradona, Gabriel Batistuta, Hernan Crespo, Javier Saviola, Javier Zanetti, Juan Sebastian Veron, Mario Kempes, Omar Sivori.

Belgium: Franky van der Elst, Jean-Marie Pfaff, Jan Ceulemans.

Brazil: Cafu, Carlos Alberto, Djalma Santos, Falcao, Milton Santos, Junior, Pele, Rivaldo, Rivelino, Roberto Carlos, Romario, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Socrates, Zico.

Bulgaria: Hristo Stoichkov.

Cameroon: Roger Milla.

Chile: Pablo Figueroa, Ivan Zamorano.

Colombia: Carlos Valderrama.

Croatia: Davor Suker.

Czech Republic (incl. former Czechoslovakia): Josef Masopust, Pavel Nedved.

Denmark: Brian Laudrup, Michael Laudrup, Peter Schmeichel.

England: Alan Shearer, Bobby Charlton, David Beckham, Gary Lineker, Gordon Banks, Kevin Keegan, Michael Owen.

France: David Trezeguet, Didier Deschamps, Eric Cantona, Jean-Pierre Papin, Just Fontaine, Lilian Thuram, Marcel Desailly, Marius Tresor, Michel Platini, Patrick Vieira, Raymond Kopa, Robert Pires, Thierry Henry, Zinedine Zidane.

Germany (incl. former West Germany): Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Mueller, Jurgen Klinsmann, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Lothar Matthaeus, Michael Ballack, Oliver Kahn, Paul Breitner, Sepp Maier, Uwe Seeler.

Ghana: Abedi Pele.

Holland: Clarence Seedorf, Dennis Bergkamp, Edgar Davids, Frank Rijkaard, Johan Neeskens, Johan Cruyff, Marco van Basten, Patrick Kluivert, Rene van de Kerkhof, Rob Rensenbrink, Ruud Gullit, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Willie van de Kerkhof.

Hungary: Ferenc Puskas.

Repubic of Ireland: Roy Keane.

Italy: Alessandro Del Piero, Alessandro Nesta, Christian Vieri, Dino Zoff, Francesco Totti, Franco Baresi, Giampiero Boniperti, Giacinto Fachetti, Gianluca Buffon, Gianni Rivera, Giuseppe Bergomi, Paolo Rossi, Paolo Maldini, Roberto Baggio.

Japan: Hidetoshi Nakata.

Liberia: George Weah.

Mexico: Hugo Sanchez.

Nigeria: Jay-Jay Okocha.

Northern Ireland: George Best.

Paraguay: Romerito.

Peru: Teofilo Cubillas.

Poland: Zbigniew Boniek.

Portugal: Eusebio, Luis Figo, Rui Costa.

Romania: Gheorghe Hagi.

Russia (incl. former Soviet Union): Rinat Disayev.

Scotland: Kenny Dalglish.

Senegal: El Hadji Diouf.

South Korea: Hong Myung-Bo.

Spain: Emilio Butragueno, Luis Enrique, Raul.

Turkey: Emre Belozoglu, Rustu Recber.

Ukraine: Andriy Shevchenko.

Uruguay: Enzo Francescoli.

United States: Michelle Akers, Mia Hamm.

Pele might well have spent an unhealthy amount of time watching tapes of the 2002 World Cup while thinking about this list. How else could he have included so many players who made a good impression in that tournament, but have achieved very little else?

A prime example is El Hadji Diouf, who made a bright contribution to Senegal’s surprise success, and then became something of a failure in his club career at Liverpool. The Turkish pair, Emre Belozoglu and Rustu Recber, and South Korea’s Hong Myung-Bo, fall into the same category.

He seems to have tried just a little too hard to pick players from as many countries as possible. A staggering 21 nations are represented by just one player each.

Along with the aforementioned El Hadji Diouf and Hong Myung-Bo, are even more dubious cases like Ghanaian underachiever Abedi Pele (no relation), Hidetoshi Nakata of Japan, and the erratic Croatian, Davor Suker.

The inclusion of Mia Hamm and Michelle Akers seems to be another token gesture — a clumsy attempt at showing some respect for women’s soccer. There’s no meaningful way of comparing them with male players, so why pretend to do so?

The omissions of some of Pele’s most revered teammates from Brazil’s legendary 1970 World Cup campaign, notably Gerson, Tostao and Jairzinho, provoked a furious reaction among his compatriots. Gerson himself showed his disapproval by tearing up a copy of the list on television.

A whole host of other players should surely have been in the list (Denis Law, Laurent Blanc, Tom Finney, …), at the expense of some of the sillier inclusions (Juan Sebastian Veron, Junior, Rui Costa, …).

These arguments could go on for ever.

In fairness, it’s difficult to compare players from different eras, and even more difficult to judge those who have never played in the final stages of the World Cup — such as Neville Southall and Ian Rush of Wales — against those who have had the opportunity to prove themselves on the biggest stage of them all.

In addtion, any subjective list such as this one, especially a global one, isn’t going to please everybody.

All in all, the list is basically just another of FIFA’s increasingly misguided publicity stunts. It probably would have been fairly similar if it had been compiled by the chairman Sepp Blatter himself. Maybe it was.

As for Pele himself, let’s be brutally honest. Despite his undoubted greatness as a player, he hasn’t achieved anything significant since his playing days ended. There have been plenty of reasons to question his judgment — even his sanity. In 1986, aged 45, and almost a decade into his (second) retirement, he offered to make a comeback in the World Cup. Should we really take anything this man says seriously?

He has a tendency to try to be all things to all people. Put him in front of an interviewer from almost any country, and he will reel off a few names of players from that country, and say that they’re among the best players in the world. The world’s greatest soccer player has found a new career as a world-class sycophant, and this is reflected to an embarrassing degree in his top 125 list.

In most sports, it has become clear that great players don’t often become great coaches, managers or administrators. The physical attributes that make up a great athlete aren’t of any use in these roles, and they obviously don’t help very much with list-making either.

Memo to FIFA: Please spend less of your time, money and energy on meaningless, attention-seeking gimmicks, and focus instead on looking after the best interests of the game. That’s what you’re there for.

Part 1

Why would you place a young soccer player on an exercise machine when they have their own body to use?

Machine exercise programs are a lazy way for outdated, uninformed dinosaur coaches to build strength so they don’t have to worry about supervising young soccer players. I make no apologies about anything I say or write about youth strength training for soccer because this is how I feel and what I’ve had to deal with from a therapists perspective.

So you will either like the message or not. It’s your choice and if anything may be you will learn something new..?

Is it any wonder that strength training for young soccer players has a bad a name. Perhaps we need to put this in perspective. Really, if you think about the goal of any type of strength training program is to overcome or control resistance. This may be in a form of weights, sand bags, medicine balls or tires. The key is performing the correct exercise that is appropriate for the age group.

Next let’s compare three sets of two exercises and decide which ones has a better value for athletic performance on soccer field. First let’s look at the leg extension (sitting with leg bent at knee) and the lunge.

Many high schools and gyms have some form of the universal leg extension machine. I know because I’ve seen it and used it in the past in both high school and at the gym. It is easy for some one to sit on a seat and hold handles at the side to straighten the leg (extension). B efore I move on to the lunge, ask your self this question ” at what point in a soccer game does a player sit on the ground and straighten his or her legs?”

Let’s talk about the lunge or more specific the reverse lunge. Let’s take a c lose at the action of the reverse lunge. We start with our legs shoulder width apart then take a step back. From that position we drive both he back leg forward and front leg up with as much force as possible. As we do this the back leg is moving into a straight position at the knee joint.

Ask yourself does this action or a form of it occur during a soccer game. I think the answer is straight forward.

So let’s look at positives of both exercises. The leg extension allows you to be seated so that your “core” is relaxed. The reverse lunge forces you to maintain balance, brace the core and drive the leg forward for soccer strength, soccer power and soccer speed. It closely resembles the action of running or sprinting and of course these actions occur during a soccer game.

The other thing with the reverse lunge is that there is a focus on single leg strength. This type of strength is overlooked in many machine type exercise program. Most machine type exercises have you seated or lying on your back using both legs. This not appropriate or ” functional”.

So there you have it. Part one of a three part series.

Part 2

Next let’s compare two more exercises and decide which one has a better value for athletic performance on the soccer field. Let’s look at the leg press (sitting with leg bent at knee) and the squat

Many high schools and gyms have some form of the universal leg press. I know because I’ve seen them and used them in the past in both high school and at the gym. It is easy for some one to lie on their back or sit on a seat and hold handles at the side to straighten the leg (extension).

Before I move on to the squat, ask your self at what point in a soccer game does a player sit or lie on the ground and push their feet forward in the air?

Let’s talk about the squat. Let’s take a close at the action of the squat. We start with our legs shoulder width apart then practically sit with out landing on a chair. There is bending at the hip knee and ankle. From that position we drive body up starting from the gluteus maximus muscles (buttocks or “butt”) with as much force as possible. As we do this the leg is moving into a straight position at the hip, knee and ankle joints.

Ask yourself does this action or a form of it occur during a soccer game. I think the answer is straight forward.

So let’s look at the positives of both exercises. The seated leg press allows you to be seated or lie on your back so that your “core” is relaxed.

The squat forces you to “brace” the deeper stomach muscles (core ) and drive the leg up forward for soccer strength, soccer power and soccer speed. It closely resembles the action of jumping for a 50 -50 ball for example or if you are keeper a jump to the top corner of the far post.

Again most machine type exercises have you either seated or lying on your back using both legs. This is not appropriate or “functional”.

So there you have it. Part two of a three part series.

Part 3

Next let’s compare these last two exercises and decide which one has a better value for athletic performance on the soccer field. Let’s look at the lying face down hamstring curl and the on your back hip raise.

Many high schools and gyms have some form of the universal leg curl for the hamstring muscle group. I know because I’ve seen them and used them in the past in both high school and at the gym. It is easy for some one to lie on their stomach, hold handles at the side and bend the leg at the knee joint (flexion).

Before I move on to the hip raise, ask your self at what point in a soccer game does a player lie on the ground and bend their legs at the knee joint? Perhaps if they are upset with missed opportunity and they are pounding the ground as well kicking themselves in the

Let’s talk about the on your back hip raise. Let’s take a close at the action of the hip raise. We start on our backs with our knee bent and feet flat. Next we raise the hip by contracting (tightening) the buttocks muscles and “bracing” the deeper stomach muscles until we’ve reached the point where there is a straight line from the knee joint to the shoulder blades.

Does this action or a form of it occur during a soccer game. I think the answer is maybe.

So let’s look at the positives of both exercises. The lying leg curl allows you to lie on your stomach so that your “core” is relaxed.

The lying hip raise forces you to “brace” the deeper stomach muscles (core) and contract the glutes which are the major lower body muscles for soccer strength, soccer power and soccer speed. This particular exercise is for beginners.

Note how much more than one muscle group must act together to perform this exercise effectively.

So there you have it. Part three of a three part series.

With millions of people on the planet going crazy watching a soccer match being played in some part of the world, there is absolutely no room to question its popularity. If Super Bowl is considered to be the most popular sporting event in the United States, Soccer World Cup final enjoys the same fame at the International level. At the same time, however, we can’t deny the fact that ignorance about this sport prevails to a significant extent. Numerous interesting facts about soccer continue to elude millions of people going crazy over this sport even today, and origin of soccer is just one of these facts.

Origin of Soccer Game

The simple sport that soccer is, it becomes very difficult to find out who invented soccer or when people actually began to play it. Some sources trace the history of soccer to Ancient Greece and Medieval England, while others suggest that a similar sport, referred to as the Cuju, was played in China, Kore and Japan way back in 2,500 BCE.

Various cultures across the world have documented evidence about people playing a sport resembling soccer. In 1848, the Trinity College at Cambridge came up with the first documented rules of soccer – the Cambridge Rules. Owing to this, many sports historians trace the origin of soccer to various educational institutions of Europe. Going though all this confusion makes the history of soccer even more complicated, but everything falls in place once we define soccer as it is played today.

Modern Soccer Origin

Modern soccer, more popular as the association football or simply football, began with the formation of the Football Association (FA) in England in 1863. Earlier, this sport was played in various forms in different parts of medieval Europe, with no standard rules of game play whatsoever.

The Football Association was formed in order to standardize this sport, and bring about some discipline in it. That being said, we can technically say that it was the Football Association who invented football in its modern form. Before the Association came into existence, the rules of a match were stipulated right before the match began, with both the teams agreeing to it.

Within a decade of its origin, the Football Association had 50 clubs under its governance and one prestigious tournament in form of the FA Cup to its credit. Yet another noteworthy moment in the history and timelime of soccer came in 1886, when the International Football Association Board (IFAB) was formed as the governing body for this sport at the International level with the sport spreading to more and more countries.

Origin of Soccer Name

The information about the origins of different names for this sport is as interesting as the sport in itself. Basically, the term ‘association football’ was coined to distinguish this sport from other forms of football, such as the American Football.

The use of word ‘soccer’ for this sport began in 1880s as a contraction of the word ‘association’. It began with the word ‘socca’, then changed to ‘socker’ and eventually became ‘soccer’ as we know it today. Even today, many English-speaking countries, wherein this sport is much popular than the American Football, refer to this sport as ‘football’.

That was brief information about the origin of soccer, with special emphasis on when and where did soccer originate and how its various names came into existence. Over the time, the sport has become one of the most popular sport in the world, and its world-wide viewership is the best evidence of its popularity. Believe it or not, estimates suggest that more than 500 million viewers watched the Soccer World Cup final between Spain and Netherlands earlier this year.