 Football is not a difficult sport to understand if you have a good grasp of the basics – and these can be easily learned simply by watching matches on television or at your local football ground. In essence, it is a game played between two opposing teams, whose main aim is to score goals by kicking or heading the football into the net (or goal) being defended by the opposing team. Of course in reality it is far more complex than this, and there are many rules and intricacies which make the game more a matter of skill than sheer physicality. This is perhaps why people enjoy watching the game so much – it is as much about the abilities of the players tactically and strategically as it is about their skills as athletes.
Most football games (unless they are park games or casual kick-arounds with friends) follow the same format. They are made up of two forty-five minute halves which may be extended by a few minutes by the referee if he or she deems it necessary to make up time lost to injuries, substitutions or time-wasting. The half-time rest period usually lasts for fifteen minutes, allowing the teams to regroup and discuss strategy with their coach or manager. Out of fairness, each team will play one half into the wind and one half with the wind (meaning that the teams swap sides at half time). At the end of the game, the team with the most goals wins. If it is a draw, it is unusual that the game will go on to extra time and penalties unless the game is a final.
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