The British like sport very much. They are fond of all kinds of sports. Many sports were invented in Great Britain and then spread throughout the world. Many of the games we play now have come from Britain. The national British sports are: football, golf, cricket, tennis, racing, squash.

The national British sports football, golf tennis racing Squash cricket

Like everyone else the British adore football. Moreover, the Englishmen invented it. Nobody can say for sure when people started playing football on the British Isles. It is important however, that current uniform rules of the game were settled only in the 19-th century. At that time there was a great debate, whether one could use his hand to kick the ball or not. Like everyone else the British adore football. Moreover, the Englishmen invented it. Nobody can say for sure when people started playing football on the British Isles. It is important however, that current uniform rules of the game were settled only in the 19-th century. At that time there was a great debate, whether one could use his hand to kick the ball or not.

Association Football (Soccer) Football has been called the most popular game in the world. But do you know the English terminology?

A team is composed of a goalkeeper, two backs, three half-backs and five forwards. In Great Britain and more often in the United States football is called soccer to distinguish the game from American football, the game that has much in common with rugby.

Famous football players. Sir Robert Charlton, or Bobby Charlton, is the living legend of English football. His career began in 1953 in Manchester United.

David Beckham is one of the most prominent British football players of our time. He started playing for Manchester United in 1993 and in the next 10 years became both the main figure of the team and one of the most successful English players.

There is another game called rugby football, so called because it originated at Rugby, a well-known English public school. In this game the Players may carry the ball.

Rugby and football became two separate sports when rules laid down by the Football Association said that only the goalkeeper could handle the ball.

Famous rugby player. Martin Johnson is considered the best contemporary English rugby player. He led the national team as a captain to its last World Cup and Grand Slam victories in Martin Johnson is widely known for his leadership skills. He is also recognized as one of the best locks of all times.

CRICKET Another traditional British game is cricket. Unlike football cricket is not widely spread outside the British Isles. Cricket is a summer game, it is played in schools, colleges, universities. Cricket is a very long and a very slow game.

Do you know how to play cricket? Even if you do not understand the rules, it is attractive to watch the players dressed in white playing on the beautiful green cricket fields..

There are two teams. Each team consists of eleven men. The "bowler" throws the ball, and a "batsman" hits it with his bat.

When the English say: "that's not cricket" it means "that's not fair", "to play the game" means "to be fair". When the English say: "that's not cricket" it means "that's not fair", "to play the game" means "to be fair".

The English Cricket Team The English cricket team is one of the oldest and best cricket teams in the world. England is regarded as the inventor of the sport of cricket England was one of the first nations to play in the first Test match against Australia in Melbourne in The team has done reasonably well in all cricket world cups, and reached to finals on three occassions in 1979, 1989 and 1992 but missed the cup by little margins. The England cricket team has played some of the world's most outstanding players like Jim Laker, Mike Denness, Tony Greig, David Gower, Ian Botham, Graham Gooch, Alec Stewart, Graeme Hick, Allan Lamb, Michael Atherton, Nasser Hussian to name a few.

RACING There are all kinds of racing in England – horse racing, motor-car- racing, boat racing, dog-racing.

On sports days at school boys and girls run races, and even train for them. There is usually a mile race for older boys, and one who wins it is certainly a good runner. Usually those who run a race go as fast as possible, but there are some races in which everybody has to go very carefully in order to avoid falling. On sports days at school boys and girls run races, and even train for them. There is usually a mile race for older boys, and one who wins it is certainly a good runner. Usually those who run a race go as fast as possible, but there are some races in which everybody has to go very carefully in order to avoid falling.

Nigel Mansell is one of the most remarkable figures in the history of Formula One, the most famous racing championship on the planet. During his 15-years-long career Mansell won 31 races.

During his 15-years-long career Mansell won 31 races. In 1992 he finally won the championship and moved to the American CART series, today called Champ Car. There Mansell won the title in his first season in 1993 and became the first rookie to boast of such an achievement.

The most famous boat-race in England is between Oxford and Cambridge. It is rowed over a course on the River Thames, and thousands of people go to watch it. The eight rowers in each boat have great struggle, and at the end there is usually only a short distance between the winners and the losers. The University boat-race started in 1820 and has been rowed on the Thames almost every spring.

GOLF Golf was probably invented in Holland, but has been played in Scotland for at least 400 years.

Squash Squash is one of the fastest games in the world. Two people play in a small confined space surrounded by high walls with no net to keep them apart. The aim is to get to the point at the centre of the court and to stay there. Squash is one of the fastest games in the world. Two people play in a small confined space surrounded by high walls with no net to keep them apart. The aim is to get to the point at the centre of the court and to stay there. Squash players hope that the game will make them stronger and fitter, but like many sports, squash can be very dangerous. The most obvious danger is the small ball that shoots through the air extremely fast.

Tennis Tennis is also very popular in Britain. Two different games that do not have much in common bear the name of tennis - lawn tennis and table tennis. Both games first appeared in England, but today the British prefer lawn tennis to table tennis.

Every summer, in June, the biggest tournament in the world takes place at Wimbledon. This world centre of lawn tennis is located in a suburb of London. Millions of people watch the Wimbledon Championship on TV.

Famous tennis players. Fred Perry is a very English icon. The tennis player is one of Wimbledons most famous figures and one of Englands most successful tennis players. He was ranked World Number 1 Player for five years, and was the first player to win all four Grand Slam titles.

Timothy Henry Henman was born on September 6, 1974, in Oxford. Both his grandfather and great grandfather were previous Wimbledon competitors. Henman was once ranked 4th in the world and has won 11 titles. He has made six Grand Slam semis and a Masters Series title.

Various forms of athletics, such as running, boxing, jumping, swimming are wide-spread in England. Indeed sport in one form another forms an essential part of daily life in Britain.

Can you answer these questions? 1. Which kinds of sport can you name in English? 2. Which game can be called the most popular game in the world? 3. How many players are there in a football team? 4. Which place in Britain is associated with lawn tennis championships? 5. What kind of racing do you know? 6. How do you understand the English idiom Its not cricket?

Which description fits which game? 1) Soccer 2) Lawn tennis 3) Table tennis 4) Cricket A) The most popular English summer game, played on a green field, very slow and long by two teams of 11 players each. B) One of the most popular English games, played from late August until the beginning of May on a large field with a round leather ball, by two teams of 11 players each. C) A very popular outdoor game, played on a court with rackets in which the ball must pass back and forth over a net. D) A game played by two of teams of two players on a rectangular table using wood paddles and a small plastic ball.