In Britain, the top spectator sport is football. This sport was seriously【1】_____ as an organized game in 1848Later, the Foo

Spectator Sports
   In spite of their reputation for sportsmanship, the British tend to be spectators rather than players: the top spectator sport is, of course, football. This sport has been played in some form since the Middle Ages but was not seriously adopted as an organized game until 1848; later, in 1863, the Football Association was formed to draw up rules and promote the interests of the game. Over 360 clubs are registered with the FA and about 37, 000 local clubs are members of regional associations.
   Strong national interest is focused on the top professional teams 92 in England and Wales, 38 in Scotland that are controlled by the Football League and the Scottish Football League. During the season, from September to April, some 23 million spectators attend the professional matches played by League teams; matches take place every Saturday afternoon and occasionally on weekday evenings and bank holidays. Teams often play international matches and when an England team is required, players are selected from different League teams. Some of the country’s most famous football teams are known world-wide.
   Another kind of football invented in England is rugby. It started at the famous Rugby public school in 1823 when one of the pupils, during an ordinary football game picked up the ball and ran with it. Rugby is generally a much tougher game than football and for a long time has had upper class associations, as until recently it was generally only played in public schools, not in state schools. Now, both kinds of football are played in most schools. There are about 1, 700 Rugby Union clubs in Britain which play against each other on a purely amateur basis. Rugby League has slightly different rules and is played by professional teams mostly in north England. International matches of the amateur Rugby Football Association are played between England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France; Rugby League international matches are played against professional teams from countries like New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.
   The sport most associated with England and known as the English game is cricket. There are records of it having been played as early as 1550 and it became so popular that by the late 1700s several famous clubs had been founded. During the summers cricket is played in schools, colleges and universities and most towns and villages have their own cricket clubs. Every English county has its official team and during the season these teams played against each other; the 17 counties ranked "First Class compete in three-day matches for the First Class County Championship. The highlights of the Cricketing year are the Test Matches played between the professional English team and teams from India, Pakistan, the West Indies, Australia and New Zealand. The English team also goes on tour in these countries.
   Another popular spectator sport, known as the sport of kings is horse-racing, which is controlled by the Jockey Club. There are 56 race courses in England and Wales, 6 in Scotland and 2 in Northern Ireland, and licensed by the Jockey Club. Put together, these courses provide over 900 days racing annually—watched by some 4 million people; 11, 000 horses are in training at various places, many of them in the Newmarket areas which is the center of racing in Britain.
The most fashionable of all race meetings is held in early June at Ascot, a short distance from Windsor Castle. It lasts four days and is always attended by the Queen, who is a very keen racegoer. Ticket applications for the Royal Enclosure have to be made months in advance and are only granted after careful scrutiny. Gentlemen must wear morning dress and ladies must wear formal day dresses with hats. Very often the ladies fashions at Royal Ascot attract more attention than the horses! There are, of course, plenty of other areas round the course where members of the public can watch the race, dressed as they please.