Giovanni 'Cocò' Roccotelli is credited with popularising the rabona in Italy during the 1970s at the time, this move was simply called a 'crossed-kick' ( incrociata, in Italian). The first filmed rabona was performed by Brazilian footballer Pelé in the São Paulo state championship in 1957. In Brazil, the move is also known as the chaleira ( kettle) or letra ( letter).

Another supposed origin for the name is that Rabona is derived from the Spanish word rabo for tail, and that the move resembled the swishing of a cow's tail between or around its legs. The football magazine El Gráfico published a front cover showing Infante dressed as a schoolboy with the caption 'El infante que se hizo la rabona' (In English: 'The kid who plays hooky'). The name derives from its first documented performance by Ricardo Infante in a game between Estudiantes de la Plata and Rosario Central in 1948. Rabona in Spanish means to play hooky, to skip school. Another reason why a player could perform a rabona might be to confuse a defending player, or simply to show off their own ability, as it is considered a skillful trick at any level. Another scenario could be a right-footed winger sending a cross while playing on the left side of the pitch without having to turn first. There are several reasons why a player might opt to strike the ball this way: for example, a right-footed striker advancing towards the goal slightly on the left side rather than having the goal straight in front may feel that his shot power or accuracy with his left foot is inadequate (more colloquially, the player has 'no left'), so will perform a rabona in order to take a better shot. In association football, the rabona is the technique of kicking the football where the kicking leg is crossed behind the back of the standing leg. Association football tactic Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain performing a rabona while warming up for Arsenal in 2013

La rabona