Portal:Football in Africa

Football was first introduced to Africa in the early 1860s by Europeans,^[1] due to the colonisation of Africa. The first recorded games were played in South Africa in 1862 between soldiers and civil servants and there were no established rules for the game at this time;^[2]" Initially, there were various forms of playing the game, which included elements of both rugby and soccer. It was not until October 26, 1863 that the "rules of association football were codified."^[2] The first official football organization in Africa, Pietermaritzburg County Football Association, was established in 1880.Teams were being established in South Africa before 1900, Egypt and in Algeria during a similar time period. Savages FC (Pietermaritzburg, South Africa), L'Oranaise Club (Oran, Algeria) and Gezira SC (Alexandria, Egypt) are the oldest African football clubs that remain in existence. The tree clubs began play in 1882, followed by Alexandria SC (1890), CDJ Oran from Algeria in 1894 and CAL Oran from Algeria too in 1897. By the 1930s, football was being played in Central Africa. In 1882, the first national governing body on the continent was formed, South African Football Association (SAFA). SAFA was a whites-only association that became the first member of FIFA in South Africa in 1910.^[2]As Africa is a highly superstitious continent many African teams depend on witch doctors for success.^{[3][4][5][6][7]} Activities that witch doctors have performed for teams include cutting players, placing potions on equipment, and sacrificing animals.^[8]