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The need for a single body to oversee the worldwide game became apparent at the beginning of the 20th century with the increasing popularity of international fixtures. The English Football Association had chaired many discussions on setting up an international body, but was perceived as making no progress. It fell to seven other European countries to band together to form this association. FIFA was founded in Paris on May 21, 1904 - the French name and acronym persist to this day, even in English-speaking countries. Its first president was Robert Gu鲩n.

FIFA presided over its first international competition in 1906, however it met with little approval or success. This, in combination with economic factors, led to the swift replacement of Gu鲩n with Daniel Burley Woolfall from England, by now a member association. The next tournament staged, the football competition for the 1908 Olympics in London was more successful, despite the presence of professional footballers, contrary to the founding principles of FIFA.
Membership of FIFA expanded beyond Europe with the application of South Africa in 1909, Argentina in 1912 and the United States in 1913.
FIFA however floundered during World War I with many players sent off to war and the possibility of travel for international fixtures severely limited. Post-war, following the death of Woolfall, the organisation fell into the hands of Dutchman Carl Hirschmann. It was saved from extinction, but at the cost of the withdrawal of the Home Nations, who cited an unwillingness to participate in international competitions with their recent World War enemies.
The World CupFIFA World Cup Trophy on a German StampMain article: Football World Cup Jules Rimet became the third President of FIFA in 1921. He presided over another two successful Olympic competitions despite the absence of England and Scotland. The success of the competitions, combined with the rising profile of the game, allowed FIFA to seriously consider, for the first time, staging its own regular World Championship. Talks on the matter began in 1928, and the first World Cup took place in Uruguay in 1930 and was won by the home nation. Despite the reluctance of participation from European nations (due to the travel time required and the ongoing economic depression), the tournament was considered a success and plans were laid for the next World Cup in 1934, in Italy.
Excluding a break for World War II, the World Cup continues to be held once every four years, with the most recent tournament in 2002 held in South Korea and Japan. The next World Cup will be held in Germany in 2006.
Other tournamentsAside from the World Cup and Olympic competitions, FIFA organises World Championships for players at under-17 level and youth level. In addition to this, it has introduced the Confederations Cup, a competition for the champions from each confederation (plus the hosts and World Cup Winners), every two years; in the year before a World Cup, it serves as a dry run for that competition, with the World Cup host staging the tournament as a test of facilities.
With the development of the women's game, FIFA introduced the Women's World Cup in 1991 and the Women's Under-20 World Championship in 2002 (started as U-19, will become U-20 in 2006). A U-17 women's championship will start in 2008.
FIFA's only major club competition is the FIFA Club World Championship. It was slated as the natural progression of the European/South American Cup (which itself ran under a variety of names) to include clubs from all confederations. The tournament was not warmly received on its debut in 2000 and its 2002 edition was cancelled. The tournament, with a shorter revised format, returned in Japan in 2005.
FIFA also presides over World Cups in modified forms of the game including beach football (the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup and futsal (the FIFA Futsal World Championship).