Stories one to five
The first goal in World Cup history was scored by a French player. It came in the opening match of the inaugural tournament in Uruguay in 1930 and was scored by Lucien Laurent against Mexico. The French went on to win the game 4-1.
This is not the first time that the French league season has been interrupted. In 1972, the country's professional players and their union (the UNFP) went on strike in protest at the suspension of several Olympique Lyonnais players after they took action in defence of the "contract of limited duration", which allowed footballers to change clubs freely. On 2 and 3 December the players refused to play. They eventually won the day, with a collective agreement known as the "Charte du football professionnel" (professional football chart) being introduced in 1973.
The origins of football are the subject of debate. It can nevertheless be said that the game we know today essentially originates from rules drawn up by students at Cambridge University in 1848. There were ten of these rules in total.
Do you know which club is the oldest in France? It's Le Havre AC. Le Havre Athletic Club was founded in 1894, on the basis of Le Havre Football Club, which was created in 1872.
The first football match to be shown on television was a game between Arsenal first and reserve teams, broadcast by the BBC in 1937.
