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Culture
Traditions :
France is noted for its cosmopolitan, civilized approach to life, combined with great concern for style, fashion and appearances. French people are sometimes perceived as taking a great pride in the national identity and positive achievements of France, although many French people would argue that people of all nations tend to do that. Most of France's population used to be Catholic, and this is reflected in the calendar of holidays, which mark several major Catholic celebrations. With the waning importance of religious practice, many of those holidays have lost their religious meaning in the general population.Out of 10 national celebrations in France 5 are Christian celebrations. The legal drinking age for alcohol beverages is 16, even though the age to buy spirits (with more than 21% vol. alcohol) is officially 18. French "national" sport, is football (soccer). The most-watched sports in France are football (soccer), basketball, rugby union, cycling, sailing and tennis. France is notable for holding the football World Cup in 1998, for holding the annual cycling race Tour de France, and the tennis Grand Slam tournament Roland Garros, or the French Open. Sport is encouraged in school, and local sports clubs receive financial support from the local governments. While football is definitely the most popular, rugby takes dominance in the southwest, especially around the city of Toulouse. Professional sailing in France is centred on singlehanded/shorthanded ocean racing with the pinnacle of this branch of the sport being the Vendee Globe singlehanded around the world race which starts every 4 years from the French Atlantic coast. Other significant events include the Solitaire du Figaro, Mini Transat 6.50, Tour de France a Voile and Route de Rhum transatlantic race. France has been a regular competitor in the Americas Cup since the 1970s. The most played sport in France is Pétanque. The social form of the sport of Pétanque is played by about 17 million people in France. The category Sport Competition of Pétanque is played by about 480,000 persons licenced with the Federation Française de Pétanque et Jeu Provençal (FFPJP). The FFPJP is the 4th largest sports féderation in France. Professional players play the very competitive form of Pétanque which is called Pétanque Sport, under precise rules. It has to be noted that Pétanque is mostly played in the southern part of the country, while almost unknown in the northern part. Pétanque is not considered as a sport by many northern Frenchmen. Babyfoot (table football) is a very popular pastime in bars and in homes in France, and the French are the predominant winners of worldwide table football competitions. General Info General Area info: Population | Climate | Relief ... |