Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal.

Unqualified, the word football normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the
word is used. Sports commonly called football include association football (known as soccer in some
countries); gridiron football (specifically American football or Canadian football); Australian rules
football; rugby football (either rugby league or rugby union); and Gaelic football.[1][2] These various
forms of football are known as football codes.
There are a number of references to traditional, ancient, or prehistoric ball games played in many
different parts of the world.[3][4][5] Contemporary codes of football can be traced back to the codification
of these games at English public schools during the 19th century.[6][7] The expansion of the British
Empire allowed these rules of football to spread to areas of British influence outside the directly
controlled Empire.[8] By the end of the 19th century, distinct regional codes were already developing:
Gaelic football, for example, deliberately incorporated the rules of local traditional football games in
order to maintain their heritage.[9] In 1888, The Football League was founded in England, becoming
the first of many professional football competitions. During the 20th century, several of the various
kinds of football grew to become some of the most popular team sports in the world.[10]

Cricket
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This article is about the sport. For the insect, see Cricket (insect). For other uses, see Cricket
(disambiguation).
"Cricketer" redirects here. For other uses, see Cricketer (disambiguation).

Cricket

Eden Gardens, India under floodlights during 2016 ICC World

Highest governing body International Cricket Council

Characteristics

Contact no

Team members 11 players per side

Mixed gender yes, separate competitions

Type Team sport, Bat-and-Ball

Equipment Cricket Ball, Cricket

Venue Cricket field

Glossary Glossary of cricket terms

Presence

Country or region Commonwealth

Olympic (1900 Summer Olympics only)

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre
of which is a 20-metre (22-yard) pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced
on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striking the ball bowled at the wicket with the bat,
while the bowling and fielding side tries to prevent this and dismiss each player (so they are "out").
Means of dismissal include being bowled, when the ball hits the stumps and dislodges the bails, and
by the fielding side catching the ball after it is hit by the bat, but before it hits the ground. When ten
players have been dismissed, the innings ends and the teams swap roles. The game is adjudicated
by two umpires, aided by a third umpire and match referee in international matches. They
communicate with two off-field scorers who record the match's statistical information.
There are various formats ranging from Twenty20, played over a few hours with each team batting
for a single innings of 20 overs, to Test matches, played over five days with unlimited overs and the
teams each batting for two innings of unlimited length. Traditionally cricketers play in all-white kit, but
in limited overs cricket they wear club or team colours. In addition to the basic kit, some players
wear protective gear to prevent injury caused by the ball, which is a hard, solid spheroid made of
compressed leather with a slightly raised sewn seam enclosing a cork core which is layered with
tightly wound string.
Historically, cricket's origins are uncertain and the earliest definite reference is in south-east
England in the middle of the 16th century. It spread globally with the expansion of the British Empire,
leading to the first international matches in the second half of the 19th century. The game's
governing body is the International Cricket Council (ICC), which has over 100 members, twelve of
which are full members who play Test matches. The game's rules are held in a code called the Laws
of Cricket which is owned and maintained by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in London. The sport
is followed primarily in the Indian subcontinent, Australasia, the United Kingdom, southern Africa and
the West Indies, its globalisation occurring during the expansion of the British Empire and remaining
popular into the 21st century.[1] Women's cricket, which is organised and played separately, has also
achieved international standard. The most successful side playing international cricket is Australia,
which has won seven One Day International trophies, including five World Cups, more than any
other country and has been the top-rated Test side more than any other country.