A Brief History of Foosball

Foosball is popular around the world, from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean and all points north and south.  You'll find foosball tables in some of the most surprising places so it's natural to wonder where exactly the game began.

Origins

There can be only one true originating point for foosball, but it is difficult to say where the exact spot is.  It's probable that the game was developed in different areas in the same time period. Western Europe gets the founding credit because it was there that soccer as we know it today emerged in the 1860s.  Foosball wasn't far behind.

Name of the game

The Belgian magazine Le Soir Illustre gives French inventor Lucien Rosengart credit for inventing the first foosball table. His original name for foosball was "Baby-foot," which is still the term used in France and French speaking provinces all over the world.

"Kicker" is one name European players associate with the game of foosball due to a popular early brand of table, while the actual word "foosball" is derived directly from the German "fussball", literally "football."  The formal name, table soccer, was adopted by the European Table Soccer Union in 1976.

Now that you know the history of foosball...

The foosball boom

The 1940s saw the first major surge in popularity in the game of foosball.  The boom is often associated with World War II, as soldiers from all across the continent and the US served together and built the games popularity. The game spread around the world as soldiers headed back home.

Contemporary foosball

Today's foosball has come a long way, if only in equipment. Some foosball tables are quick, hard surfaces, while others are soft and even sticky. Different table styles play to different players strengths and many brands have devoted followings. If there ever is a single standard foosball tournament table, it will likely be the American table because of the amount of prize money up for grabs on the American pro tour.

The future

Foosball is the fad once again, as people around the world surge to the tables.  Tours are cropping up both in the USA and Europe with many players traveling overseas just to play the game.  With cash prizes come more interest, so foosball popularity looks to remain on the rise. The history of foosball is still being written!

More information on foosball