Vintage 1980s Princeton vs. Rutgers T-shirt. The 1869 Princeton vs. Rutgers football game was played between Princeton and Rutgers on November 6, 1869. The rules governing play were based on the London Football Association's 1863 rules that disallowed carrying or throwing the ball. For spectators, therefore, the game more closely resembled soccer than gridiron football. Moreover, the match was played with a soccer ball. As a result, it is considered the first collegiate soccer match and the birth of soccer in the United States.
Because gridiron football developed from the rules of association football and rugby football, many also consider the game played on November 6 to be the first gridiron game and the first collegiate football game. Rutgers won the game 6–4.
