Gary Fixter The name FA football was coined to distinguish the game from other forms of football played at the time, in particular rugby football. In England, the FA codified the FA's rules in 1863, but before that it was called "Rugby Football," earning him the nickname "just football" (which he also calls "simple football").
Other countries where the word "football" is used are the United States, where competing forms of football exist. Australia is famous for its rugby-based regular football, Ireland is the home of Gaelic football, Canada has its own version of Gridiron football and Australia is rugby. In the English-speaking world, FA football is called "football" because of its association with football.