146 Fun Facts About Football

In American football, how many points is a touchdown worth?

A touchdown earns 6 points today, but until 1898 it was worth only four, one fewer than a kicked field goal. It reached six in 1912, after the field goal had been cut to three.

Through the 2025 NFL season, which two franchises were tied for the most Super Bowl wins?

The Patriots and Steelers each had six. Pittsburgh won four in six seasons in the 1970s, before New England had won any, and the Patriots then took all of theirs between the 2001 and 2018 seasons.

Which quarterback holds the NFL record for most career regular season passing yards?

Tom Brady was the 199th pick of the 2000 draft and began as a fourth-string quarterback. He got his chance when Drew Bledsoe was injured in 2001 and finished with 89,214 regular-season passing yards.

Which NFL franchise, founded as the Morgan Athletic Club, is America's oldest continuously run pro football team?

The Arizona Cardinals took their name from the cardinal-red jerseys of their early years, not from the bird. They have moved home twice since, reaching the desert in 1988.

In American football, what is a defense that swaps one linebacker for an extra defensive back called?

Nickel is the five-cent coin, so the fifth defensive back is the nickelback. Add a sixth and the package becomes a dime, named simply as the next coin up.

Which nation hosted and won the inaugural World Cup in 1930?

Uruguay won the final 4-2 at Montevideo's Estadio Centenario, a stadium built for the tournament and named for the national centenary the country was celebrating that year.

Including the goalkeeper, how many players does one team field in a standard association football match?

11 is the maximum, and one of them must be the goalkeeper. A match cannot start or continue once a side has fewer than seven, so a fifth red card ends the game.

Which player holds the record for the most Ballon d'Or awards, with eight to his name?

Lionel Messi has eight to Cristiano Ronaldo's five. Barcelona committed to signing him at 13 on a paper napkin, agreeing to pay for the daily growth-hormone injections his family could no longer afford.

In association football, which restart follows when a defender puts the ball behind their own goal line, wide of the posts?

A corner kick could not legally be scored from directly until a law change in 1924. One scored that way months later against the reigning Olympic champions is why Spanish speakers still call it an 'Olympic goal'.

In association football, which piece of protective kit is compulsory for every player under the Laws?

Shin guards are credited to Nottingham Forest's Sam Weller Widdowson, who in 1874 cut down a pair of cricket pads and strapped them outside his stockings.

Which quarterback led the Kansas City Chiefs to three Super Bowl wins between 2020 and 2024?

Patrick Mahomes was named MVP of all three games. His father pitched for 11 seasons in baseball's major leagues, and the Detroit Tigers drafted the son in 2014, but he chose football.

What rule penalizes an attacker who is nearer the goal line than both the ball and the second-to-last opponent?

Offside once required three opponents between an attacker and the goal line. When the law was cut to two in 1925, defences were caught out and goals in the English league jumped the very next season.

Whose extra-time volley won the 2014 World Cup final for Germany?

Mario Götze came off the bench shortly before the end of normal time, then chested down André Schürrle's cross and volleyed in the only goal of the final.

What name did Diego Maradona give the goal he punched in against England at the 1986 World Cup?

The Hand of God was Maradona's own name for the punched goal; four minutes later in the same quarter-final he scored the 'Goal of the Century', dribbling past five England players.

Which club, founded in October 1857, is the world's oldest existing independent football club?

Sheffield F.C. at first played only among its own members, splitting into sides such as Married v Singles. Its own rules of 1858 came five years before the Football Association existed.

Ottorino Barassi hid the World Cup trophy during World War II in what, kept under his bed?

A shoebox kept the trophy out of sight after Barassi smuggled it from a Rome bank to stop occupying troops seizing it. The war still cost football its 1942 and 1946 tournaments.

A week after the World Cup trophy was stolen in London in 1966, who found it wrapped in newspaper?

A pet dog called Pickles sniffed out the parcel beside a parked car while out with his owner in south London. The same trophy was stolen again in 1983 and has never been recovered.

Whose €222 million move to PSG in 2017 more than doubled the world transfer record?

Neymar's fee was the release clause written into his Barcelona contract. His lawyers simply paid it in full, and eight years later it was still the world record.

World Cup Willie, the first World Cup mascot in 1966, was which animal in a Union Jack shirt?

A lion, Willie was one of the first mascots tied to any major sporting event, and he started a habit: every World Cup since has had a mascot of its own.

Pelé was 17 when he scored twice in the 1958 World Cup final against which host nation?

Sweden lost 5-2 at home. Pelé had arrived with a knee injury and sat out the first two matches, yet he left as the youngest World Cup winner and went on to be the only player with three titles.

Pelé's real first name was chosen in honour of which American inventor?

Thomas Edison was the inspiration, and the boy was proud of it. By his own account he wanted to be called Edson, and once punched a classmate for calling him Pelé, earning a two-day suspension.

Which AFL team owner coined the term 'Super Bowl', reportedly inspired by his children's Super Ball toy?

Lamar Hunt wrote to the NFL commissioner in 1966 that he had 'kiddingly' called it the Super Bowl, a name that 'obviously can be improved upon'. Nobody improved on it, and it became official with the third game.

The Super Bowl trophy is named after which coach, winner of the first two Super Bowls?

Vince Lombardi died of cancer in September 1970, and the league renamed its trophy in his memory. The first to carry his name went to the Baltimore Colts a few months later.

The Super Bowl ranks second for American food consumption behind which holiday?

Thanksgiving dinner is the biggest eating occasion in the United States; Super Bowl Sunday ranks second, when Americans eat well over a billion chicken wings.

The first American football game, in November 1869, pitted Princeton against which college?

Rutgers won 6-4 in a game that looked far more like soccer: 25 players a side kicked a round ball, and carrying or throwing it was against the rules.

Which Yale figure, 'Father of American Football', created the snap, line of scrimmage and downs?

Walter Camp's scrimmage let a team keep the ball as long as it liked, and Princeton duly held it for a whole half against Yale. He answered with downs: gain five yards in three tries or hand the ball over.

Jerry Rice, the NFL's all-time leading receiver, played his college football at which small school?

Mississippi Valley State was little known when the 49ers drafted him in 1985. Rice grew up helping his bricklayer father, catching bricks on top of the scaffolding, work he said taught him the meaning of hard work.

Jay Berwanger, the first Heisman Trophy winner in 1935, starred for which university's original 'Monsters of the Midway'?

The University of Chicago's star was also the first player ever picked in an NFL draft, yet never played a down: he asked for $25,000 over two years, was refused, and sold foam rubber instead.

Through 2024, which university had produced the most Heisman Trophy winners, with eight?

USC had eight through 2024, from Mike Garrett in 1965 to Caleb Williams in 2022. Reggie Bush gave up his 2005 trophy in 2010 over gifts from agents, and the Heisman Trust handed it back in 2024.

The Champions League anthem, written in 1992, adapts a coronation anthem by which composer?

Handel's Zadok the Priest, sung at British coronations, was reworked by the composer Tony Britten. He was asked for something classical because the Three Tenors had been such a hit at the 1990 World Cup.

Which club, bankrolled by local steel magnate Jack Walker, won the Premier League in 1994–95?

Blackburn Rovers were a second-tier club when Walker took over in 1991, and champions four years later. They were one of only seven clubs to win the Premier League in its first 30 seasons.

Which country hosted the first FIFA Women's World Cup in 1991?

China staged it in Guangdong province, but FIFA was still reluctant to lend its 'World Cup' brand. The event was officially a world championship 'for the M&M's Cup', named after its sponsor.

Goalkeeper William McCrum, credited with inventing the penalty kick in 1890, was from where?

County Armagh, Ireland, was home to McCrum, whose father built the mill village of Milford. He wanted to stop defenders deliberately fouling an attacker to prevent a certain goal, and the Irish FA carried his idea to the rule-makers.

Which English winger won the first Ballon d'Or in 1956 and remains its oldest recipient at 41?

Stanley Matthews edged Alfredo Di Stéfano by 47 points to 44, and he was far from finished. He went on playing in England's top division until five days after his 50th birthday.

Which tournament, first held in 1916, is the oldest continental football championship still played?

The Copa América began as a four-team event staged by its hosts to mark a centenary of independence. While it was being played, the four associations met and founded South America's confederation.

Cristiano Ronaldo was born in Funchal on which Atlantic island?

Madeira renamed its airport after him in 2017 and unveiled a bust of him at the ceremony. A new bust by a different sculptor took its place the following year.

The 1920 meeting that founded what became the NFL took place in a Hupmobile showroom in which Ohio city?

Canton car dealer Ralph Hay hosted the meeting in his showroom, and with too few chairs some team owners sat on the running boards of his cars. The city now houses the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Which current NFL franchise began as the Decatur Staleys, one of two 1920 founding teams still in the league?

The Chicago Bears began as the works team of the Staley starch company. When a recession hit in 1921, Staley handed the team to George Halas and paid him $5,000 to keep the Staleys name for one more season.

Which NFL team is the only non-profit, community-owned major league franchise in the US?

The Green Bay Packers belong to more than half a million fans, whose shares pay no dividend. No one may hold more than 200,000 shares, a cap written in so that nobody can take control of the team.

Cristiano Ronaldo's then world-record €94 million transfer in 2009 took him to which club?

Real Madrid unveiled him to 80,000 fans at the Bernabéu, where he called the move his childhood dream. He left nine years later as the club's all-time leading scorer.

In American football, how many yards must the offense gain within four downs for a fresh set?

Ten yards in four downs earns a new first down; fall short and the ball goes to the other side. The yard lines painted across the field to measure it are what gave the 'gridiron' its name.

How far from the goal line is the penalty spot in association football?

The penalty spot is 12 yards (11 m) from the goal line; the original 1891 law allowed the kick from anywhere along a 12-yard line, and the spot and penalty area arrived in 1902.

Which country became the first in the Middle East to host the men's World Cup, in 2022?

Qatar's summer heat pushed the tournament to November and December for the first time. On the pitch the hosts became the first ever to lose their opening match, and were out after two games.

The Football Association held its founding meeting in October 1863 at which London venue?

The Freemasons' Tavern saw the first of six meetings it took to agree the laws. The sticking point was hacking, kicking an opponent on the leg, which the Blackheath club wanted to keep and the others voted out.

On football's law-making board, FIFA's four votes are matched by England, Scotland, Wales and which other association?

Northern Ireland's Irish FA helped found the board in 1886, long before FIFA existed, and the four British associations kept their seats when FIFA joined in 1913. Each still has one vote to FIFA's four.

Which piece of football equipment did Liverpool city engineer John Brodie invent in 1889?

Goal nets were his cure for arguments over whether a shot had passed between the posts. Brodie later worked on the Mersey Tunnel, yet said the net was the invention he was proudest of.

Old boys of Eton, Harrow and Rugby met in 1848 to agree football rules at which university?

Cambridge students arrived from schools that each had its own rules, some allowing handling and some not, so they could hardly play together. Graduates carried the compromise code into the clubs they went on to form.

Which team did Spain beat 1–0 after extra time in the 2026 World Cup final?

Argentina, the holders, had a man sent off and did not manage a shot in normal time before Ferran Torres settled it in extra time. Spain conceded only one goal all tournament, a first for a World Cup winner.

Who became the World Cup's all-time leading scorer in 2026, with 22 goals?

Kylian Mbappé scored 10 of his 22 at the 2026 tournament alone. Four years earlier he had hit a hat-trick in the 2022 final and still finished on the losing side.

Who scored a record 13 goals at a single World Cup, in 1958?

Just Fontaine needed only six matches for his 13, four of them against defending champions West Germany. He never played another World Cup: a recurring leg injury forced him to retire at 28.

Australia set the record international score of 31–0 in 2001 against which team?

American Samoa had only just joined FIFA and were playing their first World Cup qualifiers. Archie Thompson scored 13, and the mismatch led FIFA to bring back a preliminary round for Oceania's weakest teams.

Which Italian missed the decisive penalty in the 1994 World Cup final shoot-out?

Roberto Baggio had carried Italy to the final with five goals in the knockout rounds, then sent the last kick over the bar. It was the first World Cup final to end goalless and the first settled on penalties.

What odds did bookmakers give Leicester City to win the 2015–16 Premier League?

5,000–1 was the bookmakers' price for a club that had almost been relegated the season before. Nine months later Leicester were champions of England for the first time in their history.

Which club ended Arsenal's 49-match unbeaten league run in October 2004?

Manchester United won 2-0 at Old Trafford, and tempers boiled over in the tunnel afterwards, where a slice of pizza was thrown at their manager, Sir Alex Ferguson.

Which Brazilian holds the record for most Women's World Cup goals, with 17?

Marta learned the game in the streets of Dois Riachos, playing with the boys, and left home at 14 to turn professional. Her 17 goals came across five World Cups, something no player had done before.

Referee Ken Aston said the yellow and red card system was inspired by what?

Ken Aston said the idea of yellow and red cards came to him from traffic lights at a junction on Kensington High Street, after confusion over bookings at the 1966 World Cup; cards debuted in 1970.

The Glasgow derby known as the 'Old Firm' pits Celtic against which club?

Rangers and Celtic have won well over a hundred Scottish league titles between them. After their fans rioted on the pitch at the 1980 Scottish Cup final, alcohol was banned at every football ground in Scotland.

Who was the first player to score a hat-trick in a men's World Cup final?

Geoff Hurst began the 1966 tournament as a reserve and got in only when Jimmy Greaves gashed his leg. In the final he scored three as England beat West Germany 4-2, a feat no man matched until 2022.

Who is the only goalkeeper ever to win the Ballon d'Or?

Lev Yashin won it in 1963. He was called the Black Spider because he dressed head to toe in what looked like black, in truth very dark blue, and FIFA credits him with saving more than 150 penalties.

What name is given to the 1950 World Cup decider, lost by the hosts in Rio?

The Maracanazo is named after the Maracanã stadium. The hosts needed only a draw to be champions and scored first, but Alcides Ghiggia's goal eleven minutes from time silenced the ground.

Liverpool came from 3–0 down to win the 2005 Champions League final against whom?

AC Milan led 3-0 at half-time in Istanbul before three Liverpool goals in six second-half minutes levelled it; Liverpool then won 3-2 on penalties, the 'Miracle of Istanbul'.

Which country beat hosts Portugal in the final of Euro 2004?

Greece beat Portugal 1-0 in Lisbon with an Angelos Charisteas header; the same two sides had met in the tournament's opening match, which Greece won 2-1.

Denmark won Euro 1992 after being drafted in to replace which disqualified country?

Yugoslavia had qualified but were barred as war broke the country apart. Denmark, runners-up in the same qualifying group, were called in late and beat the newly reunified Germany 2-0 in the final.

Which Italian player did Zinedine Zidane headbutt in the 2006 World Cup final?

Zidane headbutted Marco Materazzi in extra time after an exchange of words; both men had scored their side's goal in the 1-1 draw, it was Zidane's final match, and he still won the Golden Ball.

Which nation has won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times?

Egypt won the very first tournament in 1957, when only three teams played: South Africa had been thrown out for refusing to field a multi-racial side. Three of the seven came in a row from 2006 to 2010.

Who is the Premier League's all-time record goalscorer, with 260 goals?

Alan Shearer had bigger clubs chasing him in 1996 but chose Newcastle, his hometown club, for a then world-record £15 million. He scored the rest of his 260 there.

Who scored a record 36 goals in the 2022–23 Premier League season?

Erling Haaland did it in his first season in England, beating a record of 34 that had stood since the 1990s. His 52 goals in all competitions carried City to the treble.

Who scored the fastest World Cup goal on record, about 11 seconds into a 2002 match?

Hakan Şükür struck within seconds of the kick-off in the third-place play-off against co-hosts South Korea, which Turkey won 3-2. It was his only goal in seven matches at that World Cup.

Which Dutch forward gave his name to a drag-back turn he unveiled at the 1974 World Cup?

Johan Cruyff shaped to pass, dragged the ball behind his standing leg and spun away from the defender Jan Olsson. For all his fame, it was the only World Cup he ever played in.

Antonín Panenka's famous chipped penalty won which final for Czechoslovakia?

Panenka's chip beat Sepp Maier to win the Euro 1976 final shoot-out 5-3 against West Germany in Belgrade; any softly chipped penalty down the middle has carried his name since.

Who won the first Ballon d'Or Féminin in 2018?

Ada Hegerberg won it while refusing to play for Norway, in protest at how its federation treated the women's game. On stage the host asked whether she knew how to twerk, and she answered no.

Which was the first African nation to reach a men's World Cup semi-final?

Morocco got there in 2022 by beating Belgium in the group and knocking out Spain on penalties, before France stopped them 2-0. They were also the first Arab side to reach a World Cup semi-final.

Who scored the winning penalty for the USA in the 1999 Women's World Cup final?

Brandi Chastain had missed a penalty against the same opponents only months earlier, yet took the deciding kick and scored. Her shirt-off celebration made the covers of Sports Illustrated, Time and Newsweek.

Oliver Bierhoff's winner in the Euro 1996 final ended the match at once under which rule?

Golden goal meant the first score in extra time ended the game on the spot. The rule arrived in 1993, so named because 'sudden death' sounded too grim, and was abolished in 2004.

In Italian football, what does the word 'scudetto' literally mean?

Scudetto means 'little shield': the tricolour shield patch is worn by the reigning champions the following season, an idea credited to the poet Gabriele D'Annunzio.

Who holds the all-time record for international goals by any player, with 190?

Christine Sinclair scored her 190 in 331 games for Canada between 2000 and 2023, more than any man or woman. As captain she took Olympic bronze twice before finally leading the team to gold in Tokyo.

La Liga's top-scorer award, the Pichichi, is named after a striker from which club?

Athletic Bilbao's Rafael 'Pichichi' Moreno scored the first goal at San Mamés and died of typhus at 29. The club put up a bust of him, and teams visiting the ground for the first time left flowers at its base.

Who is the only player to have won the Heisman Trophy twice?

Archie Griffin won in 1974 and 1975 for Ohio State. At 5ft 9in he was small even for his day, yet in only the second game of his freshman year he ran for a school-record 239 yards.

Which team finished 17–0 in 1972, the only perfect season in NFL history?

The Miami Dolphins lost quarterback Bob Griese to a broken ankle in their fifth game. Earl Morrall, a 38-year-old backup, kept the streak alive until Griese returned in the play-offs and started the Super Bowl.

'The Catch' that won the 1981 NFC Championship for the 49ers was made by which receiver?

Dwight Clark leapt to grab Joe Montana's 6-yard pass with 58 seconds left, capping an 89-yard drive that beat Dallas 28-27 in January 1982.

Which Steeler scored on the 1972 play known as the 'Immaculate Reception'?

Franco Harris scooped up Terry Bradshaw's deflected fourth-down pass inches from the turf and ran it in with 22 seconds left to beat Oakland 13-7 in the 1972 play-offs.

Which Jacksonville kicker set an NFL record with a 68-yard field goal in November 2025?

Cam Little beat Justin Tucker's 66-yard mark from 2021 at the end of the first half in Las Vegas. He had already made one from 70 that summer, but preseason kicks do not count.

Who holds the NFL career rushing record with 18,355 yards?

Emmitt Smith was once written off by recruiting analysts as too small and slow even for major college football. Taken 17th in the 1990 draft, he ran for 18,355 yards and passed Walter Payton's record in 2002.

Which star player was the first president of the league that became the NFL?

Jim Thorpe, a double gold medallist at the 1912 Olympics, was elected in 1920 because the owners hoped to cash in on his fame. Still a player himself, he gave way to Joe Carr after one season.

Which college postseason game, first played in 1902, is 'The Granddaddy of Them All'?

The Rose Bowl began in 1902 with Michigan beating Stanford 49-0. It was so lopsided that for the next thirteen years the organisers ran chariot and ostrich races instead of a football game.

In 1968, NBC cut away from a Jets–Raiders game with a minute left to air which film?

NBC switched to the film Heidi at 7 pm Eastern; viewers missed Oakland scoring two touchdowns in the final minute to win 43-32, and networks have shown games to the end ever since.

Monday Night Football debuted in 1970 on which network?

ABC got the series because the other two big networks were reluctant to disturb their regular prime-time schedules. It stayed on ABC for 36 seasons before moving to sister network ESPN in 2006.

Who is the only athlete to have played in both a Super Bowl and a World Series?

Deion Sanders reached the 1992 World Series, then won back-to-back Super Bowls with San Francisco and Dallas. In 1989 he had hit a home run and scored an NFL touchdown in the same week, another feat nobody has matched.

Which quarterback's sneak with 16 seconds left beat Dallas in the 1967 'Ice Bowl', played at −13 °F?

Bart Starr had watched his running back slip twice on the frozen field, so he kept the ball and dived in himself. The stadium's new turf-heating system had failed before kick-off.

Who in 1901 became the first sitting US president to attend the Army–Navy Game?

Theodore Roosevelt attended the 1901 game in Philadelphia; as Assistant Secretary of the Navy he had helped revive the suspended series in 1899, and in 1905 he summoned coaches to the White House to make football safer.

Giants players made the Gatorade shower famous by dousing which head coach?

Bill Parcells was first drenched by nose tackle Jim Burt after a mid-1980s win over Washington, payback for a brutal week of practice. Harry Carson kept it up through the Giants' 1986 title season.

Which two networks both televised Super Bowl I in January 1967?

NBC and CBS each held one league's television rights, the AFL's and the NFL's, so both were allowed to show the first game. It remains the only Super Bowl shown by two of the big rival networks at once.

Which stadium has been home to the same NFL team since 1957, longer than any other?

Lambeau Field opened in 1957 as City Stadium and was renamed in 1965 for Curly Lambeau, the club's founder, who had died two months earlier. Soldier Field is older, but the Bears only moved in in 1971.

Which AFC champion did the Seattle Seahawks beat 29–13 in Super Bowl LX in February 2026?

The New England Patriots had beaten Seattle 28-24 in Super Bowl XLIX eleven years earlier. This time Seattle won comfortably, and running back Kenneth Walker III was MVP with 135 rushing yards.

Which football code fields 18 players a side?

Australian rules began in Melbourne in 1858, after cricketer Tom Wills called for a winter game to keep cricketers fit. It is still played on an oval field rather than a rectangle.

The All-Ireland Senior Gaelic football final is played every year at which stadium?

Croke Park in Dublin holds 82,300 and is the headquarters of Gaelic games. From 2007 to 2010 it also took in the national rugby and soccer teams while their own stadium was rebuilt.

Which England captain's curling free kicks inspired the title of a 2002 film about a girl footballer in London?

David Beckham's film even reached North Korea: an edited Bend It Like Beckham aired on state television there in 2010, reportedly the first Western-made film it had shown.

Which Apple TV+ comedy follows an American football coach hired to manage English soccer club AFC Richmond?

Ted Lasso first appeared in 2013 television adverts for Premier League coverage, with Jason Sudeikis playing him as the baffled new coach of Tottenham Hotspur.

Which striker, the first Ballon d'Or winner to represent an African nation, was elected president of Liberia in 2017?

George Weah played one last international for Liberia aged 51, while serving as the country's president. He had won the Ballon d'Or in 1995 and took office in January 2018.

Which name for a last-second long pass did Dallas quarterback Roger Staubach popularize after a 1975 playoff win?

Hail Mary was the prayer Staubach, a devout Catholic, said he offered as he threw the winning touchdown to Drew Pearson: "I closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary."

Which singer's Super Bowl halftime 'wardrobe malfunction' with Justin Timberlake drew about 540,000 FCC complaints?

Janet Jackson was exposed for less than a second, yet networks responded by adding delays of up to five minutes to live broadcasts. The phrase "wardrobe malfunction" later entered the dictionary.

Which Super Bowl-winning Oakland Raiders coach gave his name to EA Sports' long-running NFL video game series?

John Madden would not put his name on the game until it felt realistic, so the first edition did not arrive until 1988. The series has since sold more than 150 million copies.

Which 2009 film won Sandra Bullock an Oscar for playing the woman who takes in future NFL tackle Michael Oher?

The Blind Side is named for the area behind a right-handed quarterback's back, which the left tackle must protect. Oher later sued, alleging the family had never actually adopted him.

Which Welsh club did actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney buy while it played in English football's fifth tier?

Wrexham then won three promotions in three seasons, reaching the Championship in 2025. No club in the top five tiers of English football had managed three in a row before.

Which nation hosted the 2010 men's World Cup, where fans' vuvuzela horns droned through every match?

South Africa made unwanted history at its own tournament, becoming the first host nation ever knocked out in the opening round despite beating France.

Which team did quarterback Patrick Mahomes lead to back-to-back Super Bowl wins in February 2023 and 2024?

The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Eagles and then the 49ers, and reached a third straight Super Bowl a year later. Philadelphia won that one 40–22 to stop a third title in a row.

Which English club plays home games at Old Trafford, a ground Bobby Charlton nicknamed the 'Theatre of Dreams'?

Manchester United have called it home since 1910, but wartime bombing wrecked the ground and the club had to share rival Manchester City's Maine Road until 1949.

Which club faces Real Madrid in the Spanish fixture known as El Clásico, meaning 'The Classic'?

Barcelona fans pelted Luís Figo with missiles, including a pig's head, when he returned to the Camp Nou in a Real Madrid shirt after his 2000 transfer.

Which quarterback was the first to win Super Bowls with two franchises, the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos?

Peyton Manning won the second of them, Super Bowl 50, in the last game of his career, and announced his retirement a month later.

What nickname is commonly given to an American football, even though the balls are made from cow leather?

Pigskin recalls the earliest footballs, which were inflated pig bladders later wrapped in a leather cover. Modern balls hold a rubber or polyurethane bladder instead.

In football, what name is given to playing the ball through an opponent's legs, a trick Spanish speakers call a 'caño'?

Nutmeg has a murky origin: one theory says exporters hid wooden fakes among shipments of the real spice, so being 'nutmegged' came to mean being duped.

In football, what do the letters VAR stand for, a system written into the Laws of the Game in 2018?

Video assistant referee reviews are limited to goals, penalty decisions, direct red cards and cases of mistaken identity, under a philosophy of minimum interference for maximum benefit.

Which London venue, rebuilt in 2007 beneath a giant steel arch, hosts the England national team's home matches?

Wembley Stadium's arch is more than a landmark: it carries over 75% of the roof load above the 90,000 seats, the most of any stadium in the UK.

In American football, which two-point score is awarded when a ball carrier is tackled in his own end zone?

Safety is the one score that also hands possession to the scoring team: the side that conceded must then kick the ball away from its own 20-yard line.

In American football, which specialist comes on at fourth down to drop the ball and kick it downfield?

Punter was long a thankless job: Ray Guy, a first-round draft pick in 1973, had to wait decades to become the first pure one in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Which Catholic university's football stadium is overlooked by a library mural nicknamed 'Touchdown Jesus'?

Notre Dame fans coined the name because the mural's Christ has both arms raised, just like a referee signalling a score.

Which Dutch forward, a three-time Ballon d'Or winner, unveiled his famous 'turn' against Sweden at the 1974 World Cup?

Johan Cruyff also made the number 14 shirt famous, keeping it at a time when a team's starters were expected to wear the lowest numbers.

Which Swedish striker scored a 35-yard bicycle kick against England in 2012, widely rated among the best goals ever?

Zlatan Ibrahimović scored all of Sweden's goals in that 4–2 win, which was the first match ever played at the Friends Arena.

Which forward became the world's most expensive footballer in 2017 when PSG paid his €222 million release clause?

Neymar's fee more than doubled the previous record of €105 million, which had stood for only a year.

Which French striker, a World Cup winner in 1998, became Arsenal's record goalscorer under manager Arsène Wenger?

Thierry Henry finished with 228 goals for the club, which unveiled a bronze statue of him outside its stadium in 2011.

Which Scottish manager won 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League finals during 26 years at one club?

Alex Ferguson first made his name at Aberdeen, whom he led to victory over Real Madrid in the 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup final.

Which university's football team, the Crimson Tide, won six national championships under head coach Nick Saban?

Alabama's title in January 2021 was Saban's seventh overall, counting one at LSU, which took him past Bear Bryant for the most by any coach in the poll era.

Which university's football stadium, nicknamed 'The Big House', is the largest stadium in the United States?

Michigan built it in 1927 for 72,000 fans, but athletic director Fielding Yost had footings installed so that it could one day grow past 100,000.

Which team lost a record run of consecutive Super Bowls in the early 1990s with Jim Kelly at quarterback?

The Buffalo Bills came closest in the first, when Scott Norwood's 47-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right as time ran out against the Giants.

Which New York Jets quarterback publicly guaranteed victory over the favored Baltimore Colts before Super Bowl III?

Joe Namath made the boast at a Touchdown Club event days before kickoff, then led the underdogs to a 16–7 win, the first Super Bowl taken by an AFL team.

Which San Francisco 49ers quarterback began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016 to protest police brutality?

Colin Kaepernick first sat through the anthem, then took a knee after a conversation with army veteran Nate Boyer, to show more respect to the military.

Which American forward retired in 2004 with 158 international goals, then a record for any player, male or female?

Mia Hamm won the Women's World Cup in 1991 and 1999, and her fame was such that Nike named a building on its corporate campus after her.

Which Nordic nation reached the Euro 2016 quarter-finals at its first major tournament, cheered by a 'Viking clap'?

Iceland knocked out England in the round of 16 before losing 5–2 to hosts France, and rival fans across Europe soon borrowed the slow, booming chant.

Which country co-hosted the 2002 World Cup with Japan, the first finals to be staged in Asia?

South Korea went further than any Asian team before it, beating Portugal, Italy and Spain on a run to the semi-finals in front of its own crowds.

In American football, which term for tackling the quarterback behind the line was popularized by Deacon Jones?

Sack was Jones's image for a play that wrecks an offense the way a sacked city is wrecked. The NFL did not officially credit defenders with them until 1982.

Which artificial playing surface, first sold as 'ChemGrass', took its new name from a domed stadium in Houston?

AstroTurf went down in the Astrodome after the natural grass died from lack of sunlight, which had left the Astros playing on green-painted dirt.

Which Turin club, nicknamed 'the Old Lady', has won the most Italian league titles?

Juventus is Latin for 'youth', an odd fit for a club called the Old Lady. Its black-and-white stripes earned it another nickname, the Zebras.

Which New Orleans stadium, a shelter of last resort during Hurricane Katrina, has staged the most Super Bowls?

The Superdome stayed shut for more than a year after the storm, reopening for the Saints' first home game of 2006 with a pre-game set by U2 and Green Day.

Which trophy, commissioned in 1909 by Canada's governor general, goes to the champions of the Canadian Football League?

The Grey Cup was meant for hockey: Earl Grey hoped to give it to the senior amateur ice hockey champions, but another donor beat him to it, so football got it.

Which competition kicked off in 1996, founded as part of the United States' successful bid to host a men's World Cup?

Major League Soccer first tried to Americanize the game: the clock counted down to zero and drawn matches went to a running shootout, both scrapped after 1999.

Which English knockout competition, first played in 1871–72, is the oldest national football competition in the world?

The first FA Cup final, in 1872, drew only about 2,000 spectators to a London cricket ground, Kennington Oval, where Wanderers beat Royal Engineers.

Which nation won the 1954 World Cup final, the 'Miracle of Bern', by beating heavily favoured Hungary 3–2?

West Germany had lost 8–3 to the same opponents in the group stage, but reached the final with new Adidas boots whose screw-in studs suited the heavy rain.

Which Rio de Janeiro stadium held a World Cup record crowd for the deciding match of the 1950 tournament?

The Maracanã fell silent that day: the hosts' shock defeat became known as the Maracanazo. The official crowd was 173,850, and estimates put the true figure at 200,000 or more.

Which country's striker Roger Milla, aged 38, celebrated his 1990 World Cup goals by dancing at the corner flag?

Cameroon opened that tournament by beating the reigning world champions 1–0 and went on to the quarter-finals, further than any African team had gone before.

Which Cleveland running back retired at his peak to pursue acting, holding most of the NFL's major rushing records?

Jim Brown led the league in rushing in eight of his nine seasons, then quit while he was in England shooting the war film The Dirty Dozen.

Which Hungarian 'Galloping Major' starred for Real Madrid and has football's goal-of-the-year award named after him?

Ferenc Puskás got the nickname from his army rank, and scored four of Real Madrid's goals in their 7–3 win in the 1960 European Cup final.

Which 1995 European court decision, named after a Belgian player, lets out-of-contract footballers move clubs for free?

The Bosman ruling grew from one stalled move: Jean-Marc Bosman's contract at RFC Liège had expired, yet the club still demanded a fee that Dunkerque refused to pay.

Which Baltimore Colts quarterback won the 1958 NFL title in overtime, in what is called 'The Greatest Game Ever Played'?

Johnny Unitas was playing semi-pro football for the Bloomfield Rams at a few dollars a game when he tagged along to a team-mate's Colts tryout in 1956.

Which NFL commissioner, in charge from 1960 to 1989, oversaw the AFL merger and the creation of the Super Bowl?

Pete Rozelle was a surprise choice at just 33: the owners reportedly needed 23 ballots to settle on him, and he remains the youngest commissioner in NFL history.

Which Mozambique-born Benfica forward, nicknamed the 'Black Panther', won the Ballon d'Or in 1965?

Eusébio scored four goals in one World Cup quarter-final the following year, as Portugal recovered from three down to beat North Korea.

Which English club, managed by Brian Clough, has won the European Cup more times than its own domestic league?

Nottingham Forest have been English champions just once, in 1977–78, but lifted the European Cup in both 1979 and 1980, feats marked by two stars above the club badge.