How has football developed over time?

Answer 1

In many ways, yes. In terms of rules there aren't many changes, but in terms of equipment technique and profile - massively. The ball used to be a leather sack which became incredibly heavy when it got wet, whereas it is not largely plastic. The shin pads have evolved from folded newspapers to plastic and polymer plastic. The shorts alone have evolved tremendously - in length and shape. The kit as a whole is much changed - they were traditionally made of cotton and, while the England national kit is not quite old fashioned, most kits are now synthetic. As of the beginning of the 2013/14 English Premiership, hawk-eye technology will be used to decide whether the ball has fully crossed the goal line, as this has often caused controversy. Just by watching re-runs of football games form the 1960s, many changed in terms of technique can be seen; the players of today have much more control of the ball, even at non-league level. When football first became a professional sport, players were not paid much more than the average person of the time, where as now professionals are paid vast amounts.