[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"exercise-167":3},{"payload":4,"id":7,"user":8,"level":14,"course":15,"activity":16,"activity_slug":17,"title":6,"topic":18,"tone":19,"stats":20,"created":23,"score":24,"is_favorite":25,"public":26,"is_external":25},{"text":5,"title":6},"Modern football is often described as a (0) GLOBAL (GLOBE) game, but its roots are far older and more complex than many fans realise. In ancient China, for example, a ball game called *cuju* was played for military (1) .......... (TRAIN), while similar games existed in Greece and Rome.\n\nHowever, the sport only began to take a recognisable form in England, where different schools had their own rules and there was little (2) .......... (AGREE) about what was allowed. This changed in 1863, when the Football Association was founded and a set of (3) .......... (OFFICE) rules was written down.\n\nAs the game spread, it became increasingly (4) .......... (PROFESSION), with players being paid and clubs attracting large crowds. The growth of rail travel also made (5) .......... (NATION) competitions possible, because teams could finally travel to play each other more easily.\n\nIn the 20th century, international tournaments helped football gain even greater (6) .......... (POPULAR), and the World Cup became a major (7) .......... (CELEBRATE) of national identity. Today, new technology has improved (8) .......... (FAIR) in decision-making, but debates about the “spirit of the game” continue.","A Brief History of Football",167,{"id":9,"username":10,"first_name":11,"last_name":12,"image":13},20253,"james-ford","James","Ford","https://storage.googleapis.com/uoepro_files/prod/useofenglish_ai/users/avatar/20253-b2rl4g.jpg","B2","Reading","Word Formation","word-formation","Create an exercise explaining the history of football.","Standard",{"times_played":21,"num_favorites":22},1,0,"2026-03-25T01:03:34",null,false,true]