Great Britain
The United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland is situated on the British Isles. It consists of four parts: England, Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland. London is the capital of the U.K., Great Britain & England. Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland. The capital of Wales is Cardiff & the capital of Northern Ireland is Belfast. English is the official language of the country.
The climate of Great Britain is mild. It is not very hot in summer & it is not very cold in winter. It often rains in England. Besides, English climate is famous for its fogs. The weather in Great Britain changes very often because the Atlantic Ocean & the warm waters of the Gulf Stream influence the climate of Great Britain.
The surface of Great Britain varies greatly. England & Ireland are flat but Scotland & Wales are mountainous. The mountains are not very high, the rivers are not very long in Great Britain. The longest river is the Severn & the deepest one is the Thames.
The U.K. has some mineral resources. Coal & oil are the most important of them. Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. It is known as one of the largest producers & exporters of iron & steel products, machinery & electronics, chemicals & textile, aircraft & navigation equipment. One of the chief industries of the country is shipbuilding. The main industrial centers are Sheffield, Birmingham, Nottingham, Coventry & Leeds.
There are many universities, colleges, libraries in the country. Oxford & Cambridge are the two Great Universities known all over the world.
The U.K. is a constitutional monarchy. The head of the country is the Queen but her power is limited by the Parliament. It consists of two Houses: the House of Lords & the House of Commons. There are four main political parties in Great Britain: the Conservative, the Labour, the Liberal, the Social-Democratic Party.
Football
Football - the most popular command game in the world. It is a lot of centuries back it was forbade, as it was a game without rules. Modern football has begun the way in XII century in medieval England.
16 commands participate in the Olympic tournament: 14 vacancies are played in selection competitions. The champion of the previous Olympic games and a command of the country-organizer of the Olympic Games are supposed to competitions without elimination matches. Sinse 1996 female tournament is included in the program of the Olympic games. Sinse 1930 the World championships on football are held. In them professional football players take part basically. Also such competitions, as the Cup of Europe, the Cup of the European champions, an UEFA Cup and others are held.
To Russia football has been delivered by Englishmen in the end of 19 century.
The most popular football players in the world are Zidan, Maradona, Platini, Ronaldo, Pele, Lev Yashin. Football is the one most ancient games which is very popular in all countries of the world.