If there is one thing that all Italians love, then it would be calcio, the Italian soccer sport. Calcio is the Italian word for ?kick?, even if the original version dos not only include kicking bu also punching, elbowing and head-butting. If you get to be in Italy and would want to start a positive conversation, then be sure to speak good about this old Italian sport. If you want to capture an Italian by heart, make sure that you learn how to play it. It is no big wonder why Italians as well as many people in the world love the Italian version of football as the games exude hours of energy, teamwork, and sportsmanship.

This Italian soccer game is originally named Calcio Florentino. It started sometime during the sixteenth century in Italy. In Florence, the Piazza Santa Croce became this particular sports center. These days, however, there are other areas where this game is officially played each year. Because of its origin in Florence, the game was also called as giuoco del calcio fiorentino or the Florentine kick game. In the original time of play, the sport was only played by the aristocrats and for this reason, it widely became an enjoyable pastime for the upper society. In fact, the first set of calcio rules was made and written by an Italian count named Giovanni de Bardi.

Surprisingly, this Italian soccer game stopped to be a major sport among the aristocrats for almost two hundred years. However, it was easily revived in the twentieth century, particularly in 1930. Since then, the game was widely played not only by upper society but also by common people. The sports was loved by all classes and by all ages. In the present times, the game is still played yearly in the Piaza Santa Croce. The common calcio teams are also classified in the colors red, blue, white and green.

The calcio was loved by Italians in the old days and are still being loved by those from the present generations. Italians in Italy and in many countries show their recognition for this sports by even having calcio or soccer academies where young athletes and coaches train for the sport. Looking at it at a worldwide perspective, the different forms of football or soccer remain to be the most popular sports in the world because it is deeply embedded in many cultures and nations as proven with the Italian calcio.

Italian soccer is deeply embedded not only in the country's culture but in the hearts of Italians as well. One clear proof of this is the Serie A which is a professional league competition for football in Italy. It is not only highly recognized within the country but also deemed as one of the highly respected professional football leagues in the whole world. For this reason, Italy's teams were also among those who formed the G-14, a European football club. Whether as an official sport or a great pastime for the young, calcio will always be part of Italy's history and the present.