31 Fun Football Facts For Kids That You Won't Already Know

Sport is an integral part of many kids' upbringing.

Kicking a football around is a staple of family life and a great sport for all ages.

We have found some of the most interesting football facts on the internet. Whether you need answers or questions for a sporty quiz or just want to wow your friends and family with some new knowledge, one of these facts can help! Now is a great time to educate your kids all about the beautiful game.

Who invented football? One of the facts that may surprise you is that football was invented in 476 BC in China. It was first called Cuju and was played with two teams who played the match with a ball made from an animal bladder. The aim was to use your feet to get the ball through an opening and into a net and was a form of training for the military.

Highest match score: The highest score ever recorded in a professional football match was 149-0 when the team SO l'Emyrne purposely lost the game due to an argument with the referee.

The quickest hat-trick: The quickest hat-trick in a football game was scored by Sadio Mane in a Southampton vs Aston Villa game in 2015, he managed to score all 3 goals  in 2 minutes 56 seconds.

Image © Flickr

The win that lost a job: An international football player named Ahn Jung-hwan was kicked out of his club Perugia FC in Italy. They dropped him because, while he was playing for his national team Korea, he scored the winner in a game to knock the Italian national team out of the world cup.

SWE-DEN, DEN-MARK, CYP-RUS, RUS-SIA: If Sweden plays against Denmark then they can be abbreviated to either SWE-DEN or DEN-MARK. The same for Cyprus and Russia which is CYP-RUS or RUS-SIA.

Player of the year...six times: Marta Vieira da Silva has won the FIFA World Player of the Year six times.

Image © Allen Patrick

The basketball-football collaboration: The first ever game of basketball was actually played with a football.

A goal for every minute: Cristiano Ronaldo has scored a goal for every minute of a football game. He has scored most frequently in the 23rd minute of games.

Image © Ludovic Péron

World success at 17: Pele won the world cup in 1958 at only 17 years old.

To the moon and back: Neil Armstrong wanted to take a football to the moon with him but NASA didn't allow it because they thought it was un-American.

A ban that changed football: Women's Football was banned in 1921 and only reinstated officially in 1971. The Women's football league is now known as the FA Women's National League.

Around the world: Nylon twine is used to stitch the grass together on the football field at White Heart Lane, Tottemham Hotspurs former stadium. There is enough twine in the stadium to stretch all around the world!

The most substitutions: Ryan Giggs has been substituted 134 times which is more than any other football player.

Image © Flickr

An eventful match: Gareth Bale has scored, assisted, scored an own goal and got a yellow card all in one single Premier League football game: Tottenham vs. Liverpool in 2013.

Hat-trick of headers: Two players have scored a hat-trick by heading the ball into the net in a Premier League match: Duncan Ferguson for Everton in a game against Bolton in 1997 and Salomon Rondon for West Bromwich Albion in a game against Swansea in 2016.

Hat-tricks from youngsters: Three players who were born after the Premier League began in 1992 have scored a hat-trick in a Premier league game: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku.

Image © Brad Tutterow

Started from the top now we're... relegated! Three Football teams have made it to the top of the premier league and been relegated in the same season: Hull, Bolton and Charlton.

A busy day: Mark Hughes once played for Wales and Bayern Munic on the same day. With players running just under 10km per day on average, that was a big workout for Hughes!

One player, three countries: László Kubala is the only player to play for three countries and be recognised by FIFA, Argentina, Spain and Columbia.

The longest name: The football team with the longest name in the world is a Dutch one known as Nooit opgeven altijd doorgan, Aangenaam door vermaak en nuttig door ontspanning, Combinatie Breda. They are commonly referred to as NAC Breda.

A nasty injury: Bert Trautman broke his neck during the 1956 Cup Final, between Manchester City and Birmingham City. He was knocked out, but was woken up and played on! None of the players or officials realised he had broken anything at the time and he was very lucky that such a severe neck injury did not kill him.

Youngest ever player: The youngest person to play in the Premier League is Harvey Elliot. He had just turned 16 (one month before) he played his debut alongside seasoned players for Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2019.

Big Champions League winners: Real Madrid has won the most Champions League Finals at a whopping 13.

Who won the Premier League in 2020? Liverpool FC!

A popular sport: An estimated 265 million people play football around the world.

A huge audience: An estimated four billion people watch football around the world. An estimated 3.5 billion people watched the 2018 FIFA World Cup Final.

Where do footballs come from? Most of the footballs in Britain are made in Pakistan, in a place called Sialkot. They have made the FIFA world cup balls since 1982.

Image © Flickr

Oldest living player: The oldest living football player is Kazuyoshi Miura, he plays in the Japanese League for Yokohama FC. He is currently 53 years old and has been playing since he was only 15.

Undefeated non-losers: Norway is the only team who has never lost a football match to Brazil.

The oldest professional team: Sheffield FC is the oldest professional football team, they were formed in 24th October 1857.

Most valuable player: There are many high-value players in the premier league but Mbappé  has a transfer value of $423 million. He currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain and if Mbappé transfers, the next football club will have to pay up!