Soccer is maybe the most popular sport in the world. The history of soccer goes along, evidently, with the soccer ball history. When referring to the soccer ball history you should distinguish between some stages or ages in which changes in the soccer ball occurred. Thus we can talk about early ball history, the balls in the 1800s, balls in the 1900s, and modern models.
Early soccer ball history goes back to the times before Christ. Kicking a round object for fun was surely a pastime to many cultures. Indians in South America are known to have used a light elasticized ball, which is amazing since rubber started being produced only a few thousand years later. The early soccer balls consisted of different items from animal and human skulls to cow or pig bladders and stitched up cloth. The Chinese used to play a game that involved dribbling a ball through gaps in a net spread between two poles, and this happened as early as 255BC. Ancient Greeks and Romans also had a game which involved carrying and kicking a ball, whereas in certain ancient Egyptian rites soccer similarities have been discovered.
Pre-medieval and medieval stories and legends that can be considered as part of the soccer ball history, also talk about bladders and skulls used for game playing. An instance of the use of an animal bladder ball is presented in the legend about the ‘game’ between two villages. An entire village used to kick a skull along a path to a nearby village square. The other village would in turn try to kick the skull to the first village’s square. In medieval times they used the bladders from animals killed for winter sustenance. Once inflated they would try to keep the ‘ball’ in the air by by means of both feet and hands. In time people improvements to the shape and strength of the ball were brought by covering it with leather.
The soccer ball history of the 1800s bears the influence of the introduction of vulcanized rubber, Charles Goodyear’s invention. In 1855 the same Charles Goodyear designed and then built the first vulcanized rubber soccer balls. In 1862 H.J. Lindon developed one of the first inflatable bladders for soccer balls. Although he is the father of the rugby ball too, he did not patent the idea at the time because of the preference for the round ball. By the 1900s the soccer ball history had already enjoyed the use of stronger rubber balls that could withstand heavier and heavier pressure.
The author of this article love writing articles. Not only does this author specialize in dating and relationship, you can also check out the latest website on discount flat screen tvs, which reviews and lists the best toshiba flat screen tv for your needs.
