FIFA President Claims Football Began In

China
August 17, 2014
Labels: Sports

Tutor Preparations
Useful Links:
FIFA finds a field of dreams in China video: https://sg.news.yahoo.com/video/fifa-finds-field-dreams-china080147858.html
Article on Blatters
announcement: http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200407/16/eng20040716_149849.html
Related Article:
http://gbtimes.com/china/kick-far-east-china-birthplace-football

Warm-up (2-3 minutes)

Use the questions to lead your student to the article topic.
What are the most popular sports in your country?
Do you like playing football? Why or why not?

Unlocking Word Meanings (5 minutes)

Let your student read the items below. Confirm that he/she understood each word. Use additional
info/definition/question only when necessary.
1. stick /stk/ [stik] (v.) to remain true to something
Example: After several meetings, the president still stuck with his initial decision.
Additional info: Stick by (phrasal v.) means to keep supporting and staying loyal to somebody.
to continue to support someone who is in a difficult situation
REMAIN: to stay
STUCK: the past tense and past participle of stick
2. raise eyebrows /rez abras/ [reyz AHY-brous] (idiom) to do something that shocks or
causes people to disagree
Example: The authors controversial book raised eyebrows in the history community.
Additional info: The term can be also constructed as raise some eyebrows or raise a few
eyebrows.
RAISE EYEBROWS: to shock or surprise people
SHOCK: the feeling of being very surprised by something bad that happens unexpectedly
CONTROVERSIAL: relating to or causing much discussion, disagreement, or argument

3. popularize /pp y lraz/ [POP-yuh-luh-rahyz] (v.) to cause something to be popular or wellknown

Example: Many historians claim that European countries popularized football.
Additional info: Popularity (n.) refers to the status or degree of fame of somebody or something.
POPULARIZE: to make something popular with many people
SYNONYM: well-known
CLAIM: to say that something is true, even though there is no definite proof
POPULAR PERSON IN JAPAN:
4. skeptical /skp t kl/ [SKEP-ti-kuh l] (adj.) having doubtful thoughts on somethings reliability
Example: Other experts were skeptical about the true motive of FIFAs president.
Additional info: Skeptic (n.) refers to people who are skeptical or doubtful.

SKEPTICAL: having doubts about something that other people think is true or right
SYNONYM: doubtful, suspicious, unconvinced
MOTIVE: the reason that you do something
SYNONYM: intention

5. corruption /krp n/ [kuh-RUHP-shuh n] (n.) refers to dishonest and illegal acts done to
gain something
Example: The football coach was accused of corruption.
Additional info: In sports, corruption usually involves fixing games to let a specific team win.
CORRUPTION: dishonest or illegal behavior by officials or people in positions of power,
especially when they accept money in exchange for doing things for someone
ILLEGAL: not allowed by the law
GAIN: to get or achieve something, usually as a result of a lot of effort
ACCUSED: to say that someone has done something wrong or committed a crime

Article (10 minutes)

Let the student read the article aloud. For the Comprehension Questions, you may:
(a) Ask the questions in between. Tell the student ahead of time when to pause from
reading.
(b) Ask the questions after he or she finishes reading everything.
For words difficult to pronounce, pronunciation guides are provided beside the word.

Despite criticisms, FIFA president sticks with his decision to back Chinas claim as the
birthplace of football or soccer.
Sepp Blatter, FIFAs president since 1998, announced in 2004 that the worlds most
popular sport originated in the Chinese city of Zibo. While the announcement raised
eyebrowsamong football experts, Chinas history agrees with Blatters claim.
Q: What did Sepp Blatter claim?
A: Sepp Blatter claims that football originated from China.

DESPITE: used for saying that something happens even though something else
might have prevented it

SYNONYM: even though, although,

CRITICISM: comments that show that you think something is wrong or bad
SYNONYM: critique, judgement
BACK: to give help or support to (someone)
Originated: to begin to exist or appear for the first time
where something began.

Though football was popularized in England in the 19th century, some experts believe
that Chinas game called cuju [soo-joo] is the origin of the famous
sport. Cujus gameplay is similar to football, except that the former does not allow the
ball to touch the ground. To score a point, the player must make the ball pass through a
hole above head level.
In Qi [chi] State History Museum located in Zibo, a map certified by FIFA shows the
history and development of football. The map displays China as the sports cradle. The
sport was then introduced to other countries such as Greece, Rome, and France until it
was finalized in England. Meanwhile, Zibo Football Museum shows Chinas love for
football and its good relationship with FIFA and Blatter.
Q: How is cuju different from football?
A: The ball is not allowed to touch the ground in cuju, while it is permitted in football or soccer.

EXCEPT: used for introducing the only person, thing, or fact that is not included in your
main statement
FORMER: used for introducing the only person, thing, or fact that is not included
in your main statement
Former - The first of two things or people that have been mentioned
Latter - The second of two things or people that have been mentioned
Gameplay: the story and structure of a computer game, and the way that it is
played
CERTIFIED: having met the official requirements that are needed to do particular
type of work
SYNONYM: authorized, official, licensed
DEVELOPMENT: change, growth, or improvement over a period of time
SYNONYM: improvement, advancement, progress
MEANWHILE: at or during the same time; in the meantime; at the same time
DISPLAYS: an arrangement of things for people to look at
CRADLE: the place where something begins
CRADLE: a small bed for a baby that you can move gently from side to side
BABYS CRADLE: http://www.babybill.co.uk/ekmps/shops/babybill/images/cradlepackage-leander-[2]-167-p.jpg
PHONE CRADLE: http://blog.tlmagazine.be/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/PunktDP01_red-seperated_72.jpg
FINALIZED: to make the final decisions or arrangements concerning something

On another note, many historians remain skeptical that the sport came from China,
mainly because the standard rules of football originated in England in 1863 before the
sport became popular worldwide. Critics also added that there were other ball sports
that existed around the same time as cuju started.
According to Ellis Cashmore [KASH-moor], professor at Britain's Staffordshire
University, FIFAs announcement is just an act to make more money out of football. He
suggested that Chinas huge economy and its citizens football obsession would highly
benefit FIFA. Cashmore elaborated on the corruption in football in his
book, Footballs Dark Side.
Q: Why do many historians remain skeptical that football came from China?
A: Many historians remain skeptical because they know that football rules originated in England
before the sport became popular worldwide.
ON ANOTHER NOTE: It's a phrase used to introduce a new topic.
MAINLY: [ADV] used for talking about the largest or most important part of something
ON A DIFFERENT NOTE: It just means that you are changing the subject from

whatever you have been discussing, to something else that is unrelated.

STANDARD: a level of quality or achievement, especially one that people generally
consider normal or acceptable
SYNONYM: basic, accepted
CRITICS: someone whose job is to write or broadcast their opinions about things
such as books, movies, or plays
someone who does not like something and states their opinion about it
OBSESSION: an emotional state in which someone or something is so important to
you that you are always thinking about them, in a way that seems extreme to other
people
SYNONYM: fascination, mania
BENEFIT: an advantage you get from a situation
SYNONYM: gain OR profit
ELABORATED: used about something that has a lot of extra details or features that
make it special
very detailed
SYNONYM: extensive, with all the extras

Follow-up (optional)
Use the question below to check if your student understood the article.
What is the article all about?

Viewpoint Discussion (7-8 minutes)

Lead the discussion using the questions below.

Discussion A

What is your reaction toward Chinas claim as the source of football? Why is that so?
What do you think is the importance of knowing the origin of football? Kindly discuss.
Discussion B

What sport originally came from your country? How popular is it nowadays?
Do you think your government should support that sport? Why or why not?