Football Banned

' Nay, prithee, bailie,' said the provost, ' put it off till thou hast eaten. Some complaint against the rascally jackmen and retainers of the nobles, for playing at football on the streets of the burgh, or some such goodly matter.'

From "The Fair Maid of Perth".

On May 26, 1424, James I'sts Parliament banned the playing of football.  James was not the first to try and control umruly football environments.  In 1314, King Edward II had done the same.   Aside from crowd control, one other common reason for banning footballe was that playing football interfered with the practice of archery; seasoned archers being a necessary resource for warfare.