Introduction To Football

Modern football comes with a rich history and its origin can be traced through the medieval period, when it was played as “folk football”. It was in the late 18th century that the roots of this sport took the shape of modern-day football when it was adopted as a winter game in the schools of England. Before you ask how many players in soccer, you must know that a standard game of football requires 11 players on the field, and is played between two teams.


However, the sport has gone through a lot of updates of rules and augmentation into different types of other sports like:

  • Futsal: It is primarily played as a 5-a side football game, and it is played on a hard court, which is shorter than a football pitch.
  • Indoor Soccer: It is just like futsal but each team has 6 players and it is played on an indoor turf, and the boundary walls can be involved.
  • Beach Soccer: As the name suggests, it is played on sands and is famous across the island nations with great beaches.
  • Power Soccer: This was introduced for people with disabilities and has become an active part of the Paralympic initiative.

Table Of Contents

  1. A Brief Overview of Football
  2. How Many Players Are There In Football?
  3. The 11 Most Crucial Positions In Football
  4. The Different Rules Of Football
  5. What Are The Different Equipment Required?
  6. Frequently Asked Questions
  7. The Bottom Line

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A Brief Overview Of Football

Football is played by the most number of countries in the world, and this makes it the most popular sport in the world. The rules and regulations, along with the hosting of the World Cup and other prestigious international tournaments, maintenance of the refereeing body, etc. are taken care of by FIFA, which is known as Fédération Internationale de Football Association and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.


It formulates rules like how many players are in football with a substitute, offside, throw-in, etc. The six major continents each have a football association, which is a part of FIFA and the individual nations of the respective continents are a part of the respective associations.


How Many Players Are There In Football?

Although it is impossible to answer how many people play football and how many players in football, still, we can talk about the different kinds of players in general that are seen on the football field. There are 4 broad categories of positions, which is important in the football field:

  • Goalkeepers: The goalkeeper is the last line of defence on the football field, and they defend the goalposts. Their job is to use their hands and feet, together to save the ball from crossing the goal line.
  • Defenders: Usually employed in the bottom half of the pitch, the defender’s work is to assist the goalkeeper in saving goals by not letting opponent team players get past them and take shots on target.
  • Midfielders: The role of the midfielder is a simple one, as they have to keep the ball moving and pass it on to the strikers in the opponents’ half.‍
  • Strikers: Their primary role is to penetrate the backline of the opponent’s team and try to score goals to take their team to a lead.

The 11 Most Important Positions In Football

With the requirements of the game evolving from the 18th century and the heavy commercialization of sports, the strategies involved in the game have also changed exponentially. The different kinds of formations have changed with the influence of different kinds of coaches, national environments as well as different players of significance, over the decades.


The COVID-19 pandemic has also resulted in making changes to playing styles and rules, and hence, how many players in football with substitute players have a new definition for the past two years. So, let us look at some of the most authentic positions in the field of football:


Goalkeeper: As mentioned earlier, they are the last line of defence to save goals.

Defenders:
  • Center Back (CB): Also known as the central defender and conventionally wears the jersey numbers 4 & 5, centre fullback or stopper, this position plays in the middle of the rear defensive line.
  • Fullback (LB, RB): These are the rear defenders on the left and right sides of the field, also referred to as outside fullbacks. They usually play wide to protect the sides of the field, but they can also assist with protecting the centre and are seen wearing the numbers 2 & 3.
  • Wingback (LWB, RWB): This position defends like other defensive backs but is a more offensive position, as a winger. They play wide left and right, running up and down the field.
  • Sweeper (SW): This position isn’t as common nowadays. Their job is to sweep up any balls that get past the defensive backs and also take up a role in the frontal attack. They usually wear the number 5.

Midfielders:
  • Defensive Midfielder (DM): Also known as a holding midfielder, they keep the ball outside of their zone, intercepting and getting the ball away from the opponent and helping their offensive line bypassing forward. They usually wear 4 or 6.
  • Central Midfielder (CM): The most hardworking role and the general of the mid-field, they play defence and offence and they need to have exceptional ball-handling and passing skills.
  • Attacking Midfielder (AM): The attacking midfielder sits between the midfield and the offensive line. They must know how to score goals and dribble well to avoid the opponent’s defenders.
  • Left/Right Midfielder (LM, RM): Also known as wingers or outside midfielders, these players will stay wide, helping pull the opponent’s defence to the outside to create space for their offensive line with strong 1-on-1 skills and a lot of fast dribbling.

Attackers:
  • Center Forward (CF) and Striker (S): Center forwards and strikers mainly focus on scoring, whether this means dribbling past opponents when they have the ball or ensuring they stay open for a pass when they don’t.‍
  • Second Strikers (SS): Their job is to position themselves behind the striker and give them opportunities to strike and get goals on the sheet.

The Different Rules Of Football

Considered as one of the toughest contact sports in the world, the different rules, as maintained and governed by FIFA, keep the game clean and disciplined. There are different rules like how many players are in football, the number of substitutes available, offside, handball, penalties, etc. Although these keep getting updated as the sport moves on, still, there are some concrete rules.


Some of the basic rules are:
  • A match will have two halves of 45 minutes and a 15 minute rest period in between. The team with the maximum number of goals wins, and if there is a draw and there is no winner, then, the match gets drawn to an extra time of 30 minutes, which is divided into 15 minutes of each half. If the game remains undecided, the fate of the match is decided by a penalty shootout and there is a set of 5 penalties, where no shooter can repeat their attempt.
  • Each team can have a maximum of 11 players (with a goalkeeper who can handle the ball within the 18-yard box) and a minimum of 7 players are needed to constitute a match.
  • The size of pitches varies but must be within 100-130 yards long and 50-100 yards wide. The pitch must also be marked with a rectangular shape around the outside showing out of bounds, two six-yard boxes, two 18 yard boxes, and a centre circle. A spot for a penalty placed 12 yards out of both goals and centre circle must also be visible.
  • How many players in soccer is determined by the number of substitute players. Each team can name more than 7 substitute players and could make 3-5 substitutions depending on the league they are playing in since CoVid-19 has updated the rules.
  • There needs to be one referee and two linesmen, who will give their rulings on throw-ins, offsides and assist the referee in other decisions in the game like fouls, handballs, etc.
  • Fouls are usually constituted if a player gets in contact with another player, intentionally and does not have the ball in the presence or contact during the physical contact. You can get a warning through a Yellow Card and two yellow cards end up as a Red Card.

What Are The Different Equipment Required?

There are a lot of things, which form part of the football kit, which you need to buy to play football, professionally. So instead of looking for how many players are in American football, let us look at some of the best equipment of Football from Decathlon.


There are other things, which you also need to be equipped with, like a football. Decathlon has an amazing range of footballs, with different colours and types of stitching, which makes it the best place to buy training-grade football. If you are a goalkeeper, you would also be needing goalkeeping gloves like the F500 Resist Shielder Adult Football Goalkeeper Gloves, which is the best in the business.


‍Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is not allowed in football?

Players are not allowed to use their hands in any case whatsoever while playing football. However, the goalkeeper can handle the ball in the 18-yard box. This is different from how many players in American football and their style of playing and makes the game more interesting.


2. Who is the god of football?

Often, exemplary players are regarded as the “God of Football” and there have always been debates on this title. However, some people believe that Diego Maradona is the God of Football. However, other players like Pele, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Lionel Messi also deserve special mention.


3. Did England invent football?‍

This is a widely debated topic as various civilizations saw the technique of kicking around a rounded object to derive fun and satisfaction. Although modern-day football finds its roots in England, where a rounded pig’s bladder was inflated to make football, the Chinese also had a sport similar to football.


‍The Bottom Line

With so much information, there is only one thing left for you to do now. You have to get your football kit out, and start on the field, again. Football is not your average sport. It teaches you team-building, inculcates discipline and self-confidence, improves concentration and is also a great source of physical activity to keep your body and mind fit. In case you're still wondering if you need to look for reasons to get out on the field and play football, this is your sign! Shop the best football gear you’ll ever need at Decathlon and plan an exciting match of football with your friends.

Checkout the Football range in Decathlon
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