Soccer is a global sport, but this short article will show three international clubs that have historical ties to the UK.
Italian football has been at the center of the sport for a very long time, with a number of the greatest players and teams emerging from the country. However, one of the most well-known and effective clubs in the nation, was formed by British expats. The new AC Milan owner has taken over a club with a very long and vibrant history, and one that started out in England. English amateur sportsmen moved from the midlands in England to Italy and built a football and cricket team in the northern Italian city. Of course, the club no longer plays cricket, but it was an important factor in its conception, with the game being one of the most prevalent sports amongst Englishmen at the time. The team is now one of the well-known football clubs in Europe but owes its past to a sport that is barely played in the nation. The English heritage of the team is commemorated however by the Anglicised name of the team, rather than the normal Italian name.
One of the most famous Brazilian football clubs has a good link to English soccer. The club from the largest city in the country has one of the most popular fanbases too with the 2nd most supporters in the nation. With this fanbase comes considerable revenue, which makes it the most valuable team in the Americas. All this money for the Corinthian president actually began from an amateur English football team. In the beginning of the 20th century, an amateur English football team toured Brazil; they played so well in front of a team of locals that the locals agreed to form a soccer team under the same title. This is one of the most unconventional yet interesting football history facts, yet it is often forgotten or not known by fans. The history of football in England has a great effect on the historical past of international football, as shown by this case.
A nine-time Italian league winning side in Italy was established by a English expat from London who had relocated to the Italian port city. The club was originally created as an athletic and cricket club right back in the 19th century, but now it is of course only a football playing side. From these modest beginnings, the Genoa owner is now in control of a team valued at well over €100m. There is no doubt that the founders would have never dreamt of the team growing so big and famous 100 years later. The team claimed the first ever Italian championship and has helped develop the history of football; this is truly interesting considering the club wasn’t originally a soccer club. The name of the team still pays homage to this historical past, with the words ‘Cricket Football Club’ after the city name, as an alternative for just football.