1. Read and translate text a.

The British and sport.

Britain does not often produce sportsmen or sportswomen who are successful in world sporting championships, but it has been good at inventing sports and writing the rules of games.

Golf was first played in Scotland in the fifteenth century and the most famous golf club, Saint Andrews in Scotland, is still the most respected authority on golf in the world. Cricket was first played in England in the sixteenth century and its rules were written in the eighteenth century.

Nineteenth-century team sports, such as football, rugby and hockey, were first played in British public schools. The rules for all of these games were written between 1870 and 1890. The rules for lawn tennis were first written in 1875.

Football crazy

About 20 million people go to football matches every year, making it the most popular spectator sport.

Britain's national sport is football. During the football season (August to May) most professional footballers play two matches every week. Many people say this is too many because the players cannot devote enough time and energy to international games.

The 22 best English teams play in the Premier League, run by the Football Association (the FA). The other professional teams play in three divisions run by the Football League. Liverpool is the most successful team and have won the most games and tournaments.

The most exciting games are often between teams from the same city: Manchester Unite­d and Manchester City; Arsenal and Chelsea from London; Celtic and Rangers from Glasgow. The highlight of the football season -is the FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium in London. Eighty thousand fans fill the stadium and there is usually a very good atmosphere. The most successful FA Cup Team is Tottenham Hotspur. They have won the cup eight times.

Cricket

Most people think of cricket as a slow sport, but the ball can be bowled at speeds of 85 miles per hour.

Cricket is a popular summer sport in England. It is not played much in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, but it is played in the Commonwealth countries of Australia, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and the West Indies.

Every year there are Test Matches between all these countries. A Test Match can last for up to five days. Usually the Commonwealth countries play much better and faster cricket than England.

Rugby

Rugby takes its name from Rugby School in the Midlands. In 1823, a boy playing football at the school picked up the ball and ran with it.

Rugby is a type of football. It is played with an oval ball and players can both kick or run with it. There are two types of rugby: in Rugby Union there are teams of 15 players, who are amateurs, and it is played by England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland (a joint team from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland), France, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. There are regular matches between these countries. In Rugby League there are 13 players in a team, the players are all professionals and it is mostly played in the north of England and Australia.

Most popular sports played by

women	men
cycling 9%	cycling 13%
walking 50%	walking 47%
swimming 20%	swimming 15%
aerobics 21%	snooker 25%