Football Association
From TheChels.info - The Chelsea Football Club Wiki
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association.
The FA is based at Wembley Stadium and, in addition to being the controller of the English national team, is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the game of football in England, both professional and amateur.
It was founded in 1863 by twelve clubs to standardise a common set of laws for the "Association" (corrupted to soccer) version of the game:
- Barnes (formed in 1862)
- W.O Club (The War Office)
- Crusaders
- Forest (of Leytonstone. Old Harrovians that later became The Wanderers)
- No Names (of Kilburn)
- Crystal Palace (not the current team of this name)
- Blackheath
- Kensington School
- Percival House (Blackheath),
- Surbiton
- Blackheath Proprietary School
- Charterhouse
The first game played under Football Association rules, and thus the first official game of association football was played at Mortlake, south west London, on 19 December 1863 between Barnes and their neighbours Richmond (who were not members of the FA), ending in a goalless draw.
