THE PROBLEMS OF THE FORMATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF FOOTBALL IN THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE IN THE REFLECTION OF THE SPORTS PRESS OF THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

The author of the article analyzes sports magazines, constituent documents of sports organizations of the early 20th century in order to identify the main problems that football leagues and sports clubs faced at the stage of football formation in Russia. Using the example of one of the best teams of the Moscow Football League “Morozovtsev” (“ClubSport Orekhovo”), the conditions for joining a sports club are considered, the features of managing organizational processes and financial support for the club’s activities are identified. The author notes the facts of the inaccessibility of “league football” of the early 20th century to the broad masses. At the same time, football league competitions prompted spontaneously emerging non-league football teams to adopt the general principles of sports organization.