Cricket
This British sport can be traced back to Tudor times, in early 16th century England but it only became the national sport of England in the 18th century. Throughout the years, new rules and regulations were put into place. During the expansion of the British Empire in the 19th century, British ex-pats introduced their favourite sport to the natives. This explains why so many Commonwealth countries also count cricket as their national sport, such as India and Australia.
A cricket match is played between two teams (or sides) of eleven players each on a field of variable size and shape. The perimeter of this field is marked by a white rope or paint and is known as ‘the boundary'. The objective of each team is to score more runs than the other team and to completely dismiss the other team using a bat and ball. There are many ways of scoring runs which can make it hard to understand cricket. However this sport continues to be taught in British schools and matches like The Ashes are followed by thousands of people around the world.
Tennis at Wimbledon
Wimbledon is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in the London suburb of Wimbledon since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, and the only one still played on the game's original surface, grass, which gave the game of lawn tennis its name.
The tournament takes place over two weeks in late June and early July, culminating with the ladies' and gentlemen's singles final, scheduled respectively for the second Saturday and Sunday. Each year, five major events are contested, as well as four junior events and four invitational events.
Players have to wear white out of tradition and many of them have been wearing designer outfits in the last few tournaments. Spectators can queue up to buy tickets for Centre Court, Court 1 and 2 on the day itself.
Football
This simple sport based on kicking a ball into a net, was first officially established in 1863, when the rules were defined and differentiated football from rugby. The Football Association was formed on October 8th of that year and in 1872, the first FA Cup took place. Since then, football has grown and grown in popularity, mainly because anyone can play and watch it. Today, Great Britain counts some of the best football clubs in the world such as Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool. British football fans are notorious for their passion for the game and sometimes loutish behaviour, though they have become much less violent in recent years.