Soccer for Starters Trivia Quiz

Answer: 11

The number of players was limited to 11 by the English Football Association (FA) in 1870. The first rules, called "Cambridge Rules", written by students of the University of Cambridge allowed 15 to 20 players.

Answer: 17

That's right, only 17! The official FIFA rules were established in 1938 and have since then only undergone minor changes.

Answer: 90

A soccer match lasts two halves with 45 minutes each. There's a break in between those two halves. However, most youth leagues tend to play shorter matches, e.g. 2 x 20 minutes for kids.

Answer: True

You count the goals each teams scores and the team which scored more goals wins. If both teams scored an equal number, it's a draw. In a league, you are awarded points -- a win means 3 points, a draw means 1 point. When you lose, you get zero pts.

Answer: The player has to leave the field

The yellow and red cards were first used in the World Cup tournament in Mexico in 1970. They were invented by the English referee Ken Aston who suggested the cards to avoid understanding problems between referees and players. He based his idea on the traffic light system.
A yellow card is a warning to stop the rough playing, a red card means that a player is sent off the field. You can't replace that player and your team has to play with 10 players after that.

Answer: Helmet

You must wear a shirt, shoes, and shinpads but you wouldn't wear a helmet for playing soccer. An exception is Petr Cech who is allowed to wear a helmet during matches after he has suffered a skull fracture.

Answer: Once every four years

The first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930. Prior to that, the football tournament at the Olympic Games was considered as a kind of replacement for holding a World Cup tournament. Due to the "amateurs only" rule at the Olympic Games, the World Cup was finally introduced. 13 teams took part in the first World Cup. Today 32 teams qualify.

Answer: Hands

The Football Association of England (FA) established in their football rules and standards from 1863 that the ball may be played with your feet.
In 1871, playing the ball with your hands was no longer allowed by the FA. The only exception was the keeper, but he had to release the ball again after holding it for two steps.
Today, the goalkeeper can take as many steps as he wants to, but he is not allowed to hold the ball longer than six seconds.
A field player can only operate the ball with his hands when doing a throw-in.

Answer: England

The first set of rules and standards was written in Cambridge, England in 1848 by students of the University of Cambridge. It was called the "Cambridge Rules".
In 1863, the newly founded FA (Football Association) published a revised version of those rules as the first official rules of football.

Answer: 5

Substitutions were first allowed in the season 1967-68, but only one substitution for each team and only when a player was injured. Due to players faking injuries, this limitation was abolished again, and in 1968 you could substitute two players without a special reason. From 1995, a team can substitute three players during a match and, from July 2022, five substitutes were allowed.
A player who was taken out cannot join the match again.