The British have a reputation for being mad about sports. In fact they like watching sports more than playing them. The British are spectators and the most popular spectator sports are cricket and football. Football is the most popular game. Football, or soccer, is an example of a professional game. The game of football was first played in Britain, and later people began to play football in other countries. There are many amateur soccer players in Britain who play the game on Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Amateur clubs often play against professionals. Almost every school has its football team and every boy in Britain knows a lot about the game. He can tell you the names of the players in the most important teams, he has pictures of them and knows the results of many matches. Rugby is another popular British sport which is played in other countries. It is also called rugby football. The story is told that in 1823 boys at Rugby school in England were playing football in the normal way, when suddenly one boy picked the ball up and ran with it. That was how a new game was born. There are two forms of rugby football: the amateur game and the professional game. The two games have different rules. Football is the favourite winter game in Britain and cricket is the favourite summer sport. 1 The British like watching sports more than playing them. 2 The most popular spectator sports are rugby and football. 3 The game of football was first played in the USA.