High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Athlete`s foot (also known as ringworm of the foot and tinea pedis) is a fungal infection of the skin that causes scaling, flaking, and itch of affected areas, is caused by fungi in the genus Trichophyton. While it is typically transmitted in moist communal areas where people walk barefoot, such as showers or bathhouses, the disease requires a warm moist environment, such as the inside of a shoe, in order to incubate. Because of this the fungus only affects approximately 0.75% of habitually (frequently) barefoot people.