Noun

Singular football

Plural countable and uncountable; plural footballs

football (countable and uncountable; plural footballs)

1. (not North America, uncountable) association football: a game in which two teams each contend to get a round ball into the other team's goal primarily by kicking the ball.

   Each team scored three goals when they played football.

2. (US, uncountable) American football: a game in which two teams attempt to get an ovoid ball to the end of each other's territory.

   Each team scored two touchdowns when they played football.

3. (Canadian, uncountable) Canadian football: a game played on a wide field in which two teams attempt to get an ovoid ball to the end of each other's territory.

   They played football in the snow.

4. (Australian, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory, uncountable) Australian rules football.
5. (Australian, New South Wales, Queensland, uncountable) rugby league.
6. (countable) The ball used in any game called "football".

   The player kicked the football.

7. (uncountable) Practise of these particular games, or techniques used in them.
8. (metaphorical, countable) An item of discussion, particularly in a back-and-forth manner

   That budget item became a political football.

9. (Irish, uncountable) A field game played with similar rules to hurling, but using hands and feet rather than a stick, and a ball, similar to, yet smaller than a soccer ball.
10. (slang, countable) The nickname of the leather briefcase containing classified nuclear war plans, which is always near the US President.

Synonyms

• ("football" in Britain):
  • (all varieties of English): association football, soccer (all varieties of English), wogball (Australian racist slang)
  • (British slang): footie
• ("football" in the US): (British) American football, (Australian) gridiron, gridiron football
• ("football" in Canada): (outside Canada) Canadian football
• ("football" in Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia): footy, Aussie Rules, VFL (outdated), AFL
• ("football" in New South Wales and Queensland): footy, league
• (ball):
  • (in all varieties of English and in all games called "football"): ball
  • (Australia: in Aussie rules and rugby): footy, pill
  • (Australia: in football (soccer)): soccerball
  • (in US: American football): pigskin

Derived terms

• American football
• arena football
• Australian rules football
• Barbarian football
• blow football
• Canadian flag football
• Canadian football
• Gaelic football

• five-a-side football
• flag football
• football hooligan
• football match
• football player
• footballer
• footballing
• foosball
• futbolín
• gridiron football
• table football
• touch football
• tackle football

Football is the name of several similar team sports, all with similar origins which involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball with the foot in an attempt to score a goal. The most popular of these sports worldwide is association football, more commonly known as just "football" or "soccer". However, the word football is applied to whichever form of football is the most popular in each particular part of the world. Hence, the English language word "football" is applied to "gridiron football," a name associated with American football and Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, Rugby league, Rugby union and some related games. These variations are known as "codes".