The International soccer governing body FIFA was formed in 1904 to host championship matches between different nations. The idea of a World cup was first thought up in 1926 but it wasn't until 1930 that the first one was held.
The first World Cup, played on 13th July 1930, did not have qualifying rounds. There were 13 teams including France, Belgium, Yugoslavia, Romania, Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Mexico and the USA. France was the winner defeating Mexico 4-1.
The championship has been played every 4 years since the first game, except in 1942 and 1946 when it was not held because of the Second World War.
The First women's soccer World Cup was held in China in 1991.
The current format of the competition has a qualifying phase which takes place over the 3 years before the World Cup. This determines which teams qualify for the tournament. There are 32 teams in the finals.
Since 1930 there has only been 8 different winners in the 16 tournaments held so far.
Brazil has won 5 times and they are the only team to have played at every World Cup. Other Cup winners are:
Germany-4
Italy-4
Argentina-2
Uruguay-2
England-1
France-1
Spain-1
The current champion is Germany who won against Argentina 1-0 in Brazil this year.
The World Cup is the most widely viewed sporting event in the world, even more then the Olympic Games. It is estimated that 715.1 million people watched the final match in 2014, a ninth of the entire population of the planet.
Cleary this shows that Soccer is the most popular sport in the World.