Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Newcastle United was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, has played at its current home ground, St James' Park since; the ground was developed into an all-seater stadium in the mid-1990s and has a capacity of 52,354. The club has been a member of the Premier League for all but three years of the competition's history, spending 85 seasons in the top tier as of May 2016, has never dropped below English football's second tier since joining the Football League in 1893, they have won four League Championship titles, six FA Cups and a Charity Shield, as well as the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup. Newcastle United has the ninth highest total of trophies won by an English club; the club's most successful period was between 1904 and 1910, when they won an FA Cup and three of their First Division titles.
The club were successful in the Premier League in the 1990s and early 2000s without winning any trophies, but have been struggling since the 2006–07 season, were relegated in 2009 and 2016. They returned to the Premier League for the 2017–18 season after winning the Championship title the preceding year. Newcastle has a fierce local rivalry with Sunderland, the two clubs have engaged in the Tyne–Wear derby since 1898; the club's traditional kit colours are black shorts and black socks. Their traditional crest takes elements of the city coat of arms. Prior to each home game the team enters the field to "Local Hero", written by Newcastle native Mark Knopfler, while "Blaydon Races" is invariably sung during games; the club has been owned by Mike Ashley since 2007, succeeding long term chairman and owner Sir John Hall. The club is the 17th-highest revenue producing club in the world in terms of annual revenue, generating €169.3 million in 2015. Newcastle's highest placing was in 1999, when they were the fifth-highest revenue producing football club in the world, second in England only behind Manchester United.
The first record of football being played on Tyneside dates from 3 March 1877 at Elswick Rugby Club. That year, Newcastle's first football club, Tyne Association, was formed; the origins of Newcastle United Football Club itself can be traced back to the formation of a football club by the Stanley Cricket Club of Byker in November 1881. This team was renamed Newcastle East End F. C. in October 1882, to avoid confusion with the cricket club in Stanley, County Durham. Rosewood F. C. of Byker merged with Newcastle East End a short time later. In 1886, Newcastle East End moved from Byker to Heaton. In August 1882, Newcastle West End F. C. formed from West End Cricket Club, in May 1886, the club moved into St James' Park. The two clubs became rivals in the Northern League. In 1889, Newcastle East End became a professional team, before becoming a limited company the following March. However, on the other hand, Newcastle West End were in serious financial trouble and approached East End with a view to a take over.
Newcastle West End were dissolved, a number of their players and backroom staff joined Newcastle East End merging the two clubs, with Newcastle East End taking over the lease on St James' Park in May 1892. With only one senior club in the city for fans to support, development of the club was much more rapid. Despite being refused entry to the Football League's First Division at the start of the 1892–93 season, they were invited to play in their new Second Division. However, with no big names playing in the Second Division, they turned down the offer and remained in the Northern League, stating "gates would not meet the heavy expenses incurred for travelling". In a bid to start drawing larger crowds, Newcastle East End decided to adopt a new name in recognition of the merger. Suggested names included Newcastle F. C. Newcastle Rangers, Newcastle City and City of Newcastle, but Newcastle United was decided upon on 9 December 1892, to signify the unification of the two teams; the name change was accepted by the Football Association on 22 December, but the club was not constituted as Newcastle United Football Club Co. Ltd. until 6 September 1895.
At the start of the 1893–94 season, Newcastle United were once again refused entry to the First Division and so joined the Second Division, along with Liverpool and Woolwich Arsenal. They played their first competitive match in the division that September against Woolwich Arsenal, with a score of 2–2. Turnstile numbers were still low, the incensed club published a statement stating, "The Newcastle public do not deserve to be catered for as far as professional football is concerned"; however figures picked up by 1895–96, when 14,000 fans watched the team play Bury. That season Frank Watt became secretary of the club, he was instrumental in promotion to the First Division for the 1898–99 season. However, they lost their first game 4–2 at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers and finished their first season in thirteenth place. In 1903–04, the club built up a promising squad of players, went on to dominate English football for a decade, the team known for their "artistic play, combining team-work and quick, short passing".
Long after his retirement, Peter McWilliam, the team's defender at the time, said, "The Newcastle team of the 1900s would give any modern side a two goal start and beat them, further more, beat them at a trot." Newcastle United went on to win the League on three occasions during the 1900s. In 1904 -- 05, they nearly did the double. The
Celtic F.C.
The Celtic Football Club is a professional football club based in Glasgow, which plays in the Scottish Premiership. The club was founded in 1887 with the purpose of alleviating poverty in the immigrant Irish population in the East End of Glasgow, they played their first match in May 1888, a friendly match against Rangers which Celtic won 5–2. Celtic established themselves within Scottish football, winning six successive league titles during the first decade of the 20th century; the club enjoyed their greatest successes during the 1960s and 70s under Jock Stein when they won nine consecutive league titles and the 1967 European Cup. Celtic have won the Scottish league championship 49 times, most in 2017–18, their seventh consecutive championship, they have won the Scottish League Cup 18 times. The club's greatest season was 1966–67, when Celtic became the first British team to win the European Cup winning the Scottish league championship, the Scottish Cup, the League Cup and the Glasgow Cup. Celtic reached the 1970 European Cup Final and the 2003 UEFA Cup Final, losing in both.
Celtic have a long-standing fierce rivalry with Rangers, the clubs are known as the Old Firm, seen by some as the world's biggest football derby. The club's fanbase was estimated in 2003 as being around nine million worldwide, there are more than 160 Celtic supporters clubs in over 20 countries. An estimated 80,000 fans travelled to Seville for the 2003 UEFA Cup Final. Celtic Football Club was formally constituted at a meeting in St. Mary's church hall in East Rose Street, Glasgow, by Irish Marist Brother Walfrid on 6 November 1887, with the purpose of alleviating poverty in the East End of Glasgow by raising money for the charity Walfrid had instituted, the Poor Children's Dinner Table. Walfrid's move to establish the club as a means of fund-raising was inspired by the example of Hibernian, formed out of the immigrant Irish population a few years earlier in Edinburgh. Walfrid's own suggestion of the name Celtic was intended to reflect the club's Irish and Scottish roots and was adopted at the same meeting.
The club has The Bhoys. However, according to the Celtic press office, the newly established club was known to many as "the bold boys". A postcard from the early 20th century that pictured the team and read "The Bould Bhoys" is the first known example of the unique spelling; the extra h imitates the spelling system of Gaelic, wherein the letter b is accompanied by the letter h. On 28 May 1888, Celtic played their first official match against Rangers and won 5–2 in what was described as a "friendly encounter". Neil McCallum scored Celtic's first goal. Celtic's first kit consisted of a white shirt with a green collar, black shorts, emerald green socks; the original club crest was a simple green cross on a red oval background. In 1889 Celtic reached the final of the Scottish Cup, this was their first season in the competition, but lost 2–1 in the final. Celtic again reached the final of the Scottish Cup in 1892, but this time were victorious after defeating Queen's Park 5–1 in the final, the club's first major honour.
Several months the club moved to its new ground, Celtic Park, in the following season won the Scottish League Championship for the first time. In 1895, Celtic set the League record for the highest home score when they beat Dundee 11–0. In 1897, the club became a Private limited company and Willie Maley was appointed as the first'secretary-manager'. Between 1905 and 1910, Celtic won the Scottish League Championship six times in a row. In both 1907 and 1908 Celtic won the Scottish Cup, this was the first time a Scottish club had won the double. During World War I, Celtic won the league four times in a row, including 62 matches unbeaten between November 1915 and April 1917; the mid-1920s saw the emergence of Jimmy McGrory as one of the most prolific goalscorers in British football history. Over a sixteen-year playing career, he scored 550 goals in 547 games, a British goal-scoring record to this day. In January 1940, Willie Maley's retirement was announced, he was 71 years old and had served the club in varying roles for nearly 52 years as a player and as secretary-manager.
Jimmy McStay became manager of the club in February 1940. He spent over five years in this role, although due to the Second World War no official competitive league football took place during this time; the Scottish Football League and Scottish Cup were suspended and in their place regional league competitions were set up. Celtic did not do well during the war years, but did win the Victory in Europe Cup held in May 1945 as a one-off football tournament to celebrate Victory in Europe Day. Ex-player and captain Jimmy McGrory took over as manager in 1945. Under McGrory, Celtic defeated Arsenal, Manchester United and Hibernian to win the Coronation Cup, a one-off tournament held in May 1953 to commemorate the coronation of Elizabeth II, he led them to a League and Cup double in 1954. On 19 October 1957, Celtic defeated Rangers a record 7–1 in the final of the Scottish League Cup at Hampden Park in Glasgow, retaining the trophy they had won for the first time the previous year; the scoreline remains a record win in a British domestic cup final.
The years that followed, saw Celtic struggle and the club won no more trophies under McGrory. Former Celtic captain Jock Stein succeeded McGrory in 1965, he won the Scottish Cup with Celtic in his first few months at the club, led them to the League title the following season.1967 was Celtic's annus mirabilis. The club won every competition they entered: the Scot
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed the Magpies or colloquially the Pies, is a professional Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League. Formed in 1892 in the then-working class Melbourne suburb of Collingwood, the club played in the Victorian Football Association before joining seven other teams in 1896 to found the breakaway Victorian Football League. Based at Victoria Park, Collingwood now plays its home games at the Melbourne Cricket Ground with its training and administrative headquarters located at Olympic Park Oval and the Holden Centre. Collingwood has played in a record 44 VFL/AFL Grand Finals, winning 15, drawing two and losing 27. Collingwood won a record-breaking four premierships in a row between 1927 and 1930. Collingwood is regarded as one of Australia's most popular sports clubs, attracting the highest attendance figures and television ratings of any professional team in the nation. In 2013, it became the first AFL club to reach 80,000 members.
Collingwood's iconic home guernsey consists of black and white stripes, matching the colours of an Australian magpie. Throughout its history, the club has developed rivalries with cross-town Melbourne based clubs Carlton and Essendon. More the club developed a rivalry with the Brisbane Lions, based in Queensland. Collingwood fields a reserves team in the Victorian Football League and a women's side in the AFL Women's competition, it owns and operates a netball team in the National Netball League. The Collingwood Football Club was established on 12 February 1892. Collingwood played its first game in the Victorian Football Association against Carlton on 7 May 1892; the club won the VFA Premiership in 1896. In 1897, along with fellow VFA clubs Fitzroy, Melbourne, St Kilda, Essendon, South Melbourne and Geelong split from the VFA and formed the Victorian Football League. Collingwood won its first premiership in 1902. Collingwood was the most successful club of the 1920s and 1930s, appearing in 13 out of a possible 20 Grand Finals during the period.
Collingwood were premiers six times during this time, including four consecutive premierships between 1927 and 1930, a VFL/AFL record, two consecutive premierships in 1935 and 1936. The club's coach during this period was Jock McHale, who served as coach from 1912 to 1949. Collingwood had three Brownlow Medallists during the period, with Syd Coventry winning in 1927, Albert Collier in 1929 and Harry Collier in 1930 In the 1950s, rival club Melbourne enjoyed an era of unprecedented success, winning five premierships in six years. Collingwood lost two Grand Finals to Melbourne in this decade, but bounced back to win premierships in 1953 and 1958. Collingwood's 1958 premiership is much cherished by the club as it prevented Melbourne from equalling Collingwood's record four premierships in a row; the 1958 premiership was however to be Collingwood's last for 32 years, as the club was to suffer a string of Grand Final defeats in coming decades. A string of eight Grand Final losses by narrow margins, between 1960 and 1981 gave rise to a perception that the club was prone to "choking", a phenomenon wittily dubbed "Colliwobbles".
Whether this perception is accurate remains a subject of debate. Lou Richards ceremoniously buried the Colliwobbles at Victoria Park after the club's 1990 premiership; the 1990 premiership team, coached by Leigh Matthews and captained by Tony Shaw, had a one-sided grand final win against Essendon, the Magpies recording a 48-point victory and ending a 32-year premiership drought which included eight grand final losses and one draw. After this, the club lapsed into a state of decline; the club received a second wooden spoon in 1999. Within a few years, with a change of coach, playing list and club president, Collingwood reached and lost consecutive grand finals in 2002 and 2003, both to the Brisbane Lions. Following those Grand Final losses, Collingwood struggled for the next two years, finishing 13th in 2004 and second-last in 2005. Collingwood made a return to the finals in 2006, finishing fifth, but were defeated by the Western Bulldogs by 41 points in its elimination final. A loss to Essendon late in the season was to cost them the double chance.
The 2007 season saw them finish sixth on the ladder at season's conclusion, in the finals they knocked out the grand finalists of the past two years, Sydney, in the elimination final and West Coast in overtime at Subiaco Oval in the semi-final. Having earned a preliminary final against Geelong, Collingwood lost to the eventual premiers, by five points. Nathan Buckley would announce his retirement at season's end after playing just five games in 2007 due to injury. Collingwood finished eighth in 2008 and were assigned an away final against Adelaide at AAMI Stadium. After at one point trailing in the match, Collingwood went on to end Adelaide's season and earn a semi-final meeting against St Kilda. Having defeated the Saints in both their regular season meetings, Collingwood lost convincingly, ending their 2008 season; the 2009 season saw Collingwood finish inside the top-four for the first time since 2003, but in the qualifying final were beaten by minor premiers St Kilda convincingly. Having won a second chance, Collingwood struggled against Adelaide for the second year in a row before John Anthony kicked the match-winning goal with a minute left to send them into ano
1930s
The 1930s was a decade of the Gregorian calendar that began on January 1, 1930, ended on December 31, 1939. After the Wall Street Crash of 1929, the largest stock market crash in American history, most of the decade was consumed by an economic downfall called the Great Depression that had a traumatic effect worldwide, leading to widespread unemployment and poverty in the United States, an economic superpower, Germany, who had to deal with the reparations regarding World War I; the Dust Bowl in the United States further emphasised the scarcity of wealth. Herbert Hoover worsened the situation with his failed attempt to balance the budget by raising taxes. Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected, as a response, in 1933, introduced the New Deal; the founding of the Civilian Conservation Corps and the funding of numerous projects helped restore prosperity in the US. Meanwhile, authoritarian regimes emerged in several countries in Europe and South America, in particular the Third Reich in Germany. Germany elected Adolf Hitler, who imposed the Nuremberg Laws, a series of laws which discriminated against Jews and other ethnic minorities.
Weaker states such as Ethiopia and Poland were invaded by expansionist world powers, the last of these attacks leading to the outbreak of the World War II on September 1, 1939, despite calls from the League of Nations for worldwide peace. World War II helped end the Great Depression; the 1930s saw a proliferation of new technologies in the fields of intercontinental aviation and film. Colombia -- Peru War -- fought between the Republic of Peru. Chaco War – the war was fought between Bolivia and Paraguay over the disputed territory of Gran Chaco resulting in an overall Paraguayan victory in 1935. An agreement dividing the territory was made in 1938 ending outstanding differences and bringing an official "peace" to the conflict. Saudi -- Yemeni War -- was the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen. Second Sino-Japanese War – fought between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan; the Second Sino-Japanese War was the largest Asian war in the 20th century. It made up more than 50% of the casualties in the Pacific War.
World War II breaks out on September 1, 1939 Chinese Civil War – The ruling Kuomintang and the rebel Communist Party of China fight a civil war for control of China. The Communists consolidated territory in the early 1930s and proclaimed a short-lived Chinese Soviet Republic that collapsed upon Kuomintang attacks, forcing a mass retreat known as the Long March; the Kuomintang and Communists attempted to put away their differences after 1937 to fight the Japanese occupation of China, but intermittent clashes continued through the remainder of the 1930s. Spanish Civil War – Germany and Italy back anti-communist Falange forces of Francisco Franco; the Soviet Union and international communist parties back the left-wing republican faction in the war. The war ends in April 1939 with Franco's nationalist forces defeating the republican forces. Franco becomes Head of State of President of Government and de facto dictator; the Republic gives way to an authoritarian dictatorship. Castellammarese War; the rise of Nazism Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party rise to power in Germany in 1933, forming a fascist regime committed to repudiating the Treaty of Versailles and removing Jews and other minorities from German society, expanding Germany's territory, opposing the spread of communism.
Hitler pulls Germany out of the League of Nations, but hosts the 1936 Summer Olympics to show his new Reich to the world as well as the supposed superior athleticism of his Aryan troops/athletes. Neville Chamberlain, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, attempts the appeasement of Hitler in hope of avoiding war by allowing the dictator to annex the Sudetenland signing the Munich Agreement and promising constituents "Peace for our time", he was ousted after the Invasion of Norway. The assassination of the German diplomat Ernst vom Rath by a German-born Polish Jew triggers the Kristallnacht which occurred between 9 and 10 November 1938, carried out by the Hitler Youth, the Gestapo, the SS, during which much of the Jewish population living in Nazi Germany and Austria was attacked – 91 Jews were murdered, between 25,000 and 30,000 more were arrested and sent to Nazi concentration camps; some 267 synagogues were destroyed, thousands of homes and businesses were ransacked. Kristallnacht served as the pretext for the wholesale confiscation of firearms from German Jews.
Germany and Italy pursue territorial expansionist agendas. Germany demands the annexation of the Federal State of Austria and of other German-speaking territories in Europe. Between 1935 and 1936, Germany re-militarizes the Rhineland. Italy opposes Germany's aims for Austria, but in 1936 the two countries resolve their differences in the aftermath of Italy's diplomatic isolation following the start of the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, Germany becoming Italy's only remaining ally. Germany and Italy improve relations by forming an alliance against communism in 1936 with the signing of the Anti-Comintern Pact. Germany annexes Austria in the event known as the Anschluss; the annexation of
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club known as Hearts, is a Scottish professional football club based in the Gorgie area of Edinburgh, that plays in the Scottish Premiership, the top tier in Scottish football. Hearts are the oldest football club in the Scottish capital, as they were formed in 1874 by a group of friends from the Heart of Midlothian Quadrille Assembly, whose name was influenced by Walter Scott's novel The Heart of Midlothian; the modern club crest is based on the Heart of Midlothian mosaic on the city's Royal Mile and the team's colours are predominantly maroon and white. Hearts play at Tynecastle Park, where home matches have been played since 1886. After renovating the ground into an all-seater stadium following the findings of the Taylor Report in 1990, the stadium now has a capacity of just over 20,000 following the completion of a newly rebuilt main stand in 2017, their current training facilities are based at the Oriam, Scotland's national performance centre for sport, where they run their youth academy.
Heart of Midlothian have won the Scottish league championship four times, most in 1959–60, when they retained the Scottish League Cup to complete a League and League Cup double – the only club outside of the Old Firm to achieve such a feat. The club's most successful period was under former player turned manager Tommy Walker from the early 1950s to mid 1960s. Between 1954 and 1962 they won two league titles, one Scottish Cup, four Scottish League Cups, finished inside the league's top four positions for 11 consecutive seasons between 1949–50 and 1959–60. Jimmy Wardhaugh, Willie Bauld and Alfie Conn Sr. known affectionately as the Terrible Trio, were famed forwards at the start of this period with wing half linchpins Dave Mackay and John Cumming. Wardhaugh was part of another notable Hearts attacking trinity in the 1957–58 league winning side. Along with Jimmy Murray and Alex Young, they set the record for the number of goals scored in a Scottish league winning campaign. In doing so, they became the only side to finish a season with a goal difference exceeding 100.
Hearts have won the Scottish Cup eight times, most in 2012 after a 5–1 victory over Hibernian, their local rivals. All four of Hearts' Scottish League Cup triumphs came under Walker, most a 1–0 victory against Kilmarnock in 1962, their most recent Scottish League Cup Final appearance was in 2013, where they lost 3–2 to St Mirren. In 1958, Heart of Midlothian became the third Scottish and fifth British team to compete in European competition at the time; the club reached the quarter-finals of the 1988–89 UEFA Cup, losing out to Bayern Munich 2–1 on aggregate. The club was formed by a group of friends from the Heart of Midlothian Quadrille Assembly Club; the group of friends bought a ball before playing local rules football at the Tron from where they were directed by a local policeman to The Meadows to play. Local rules football was a mix of association football. In December 1873 a match was held between XIs selected by Mr Thomson from Queens Park and Mr Gardner from Clydesdale at Raimes Park in Bonnington.
This was the first time. Members from the dance club viewed the match and in 1874 decided to adopt the association rules; the new side was Heart of Mid-Lothian Football Club. The exact date of the club's formation was never recorded; the earliest mention of Heart of Midlothian in a sporting context is a report in The Scotsman newspaper from 20 July 1864 of The Scotsman vs Heart of Mid-Lothian at cricket. It is not known if this was the same club who went on to form the football club, but it was common for football clubs in those days to play other sports as well; the club took its name from historic county Midlothian, dating from the Middle Ages, as well as the Heart of Midlothian mosaic on the Royal Mile, which marks the historic entrance to The Old Tolbooth jail, demolished in 1817 but was kept fresh in the mind by Walter Scott's novel The Heart of Midlothian. Led by captain Tom Purdie the club played its matches in the East Meadows and in 1875 Hearts became members of the Scottish Football Association and were founder members of the Edinburgh Football Association.
By becoming members of the SFA Hearts were able to play in the Scottish Cup for the first time. Hearts played against 3rd Edinburgh Rifle Volunteers on October 1875 at Craigmount Park in Edinburgh; the game ended in a scoreless draw. A replay was held at the Meadows which again finished 0–0. Under rules at the time both clubs progressed to the next round with Hearts losing out to Drumpellier in the next round. In the 1884–85 season, clubs in Scotland struggled to attract players, who were attracted to play in England, due to the games professional status there. After an 11–1 win in the Scottish Cup over Dunfermline a protest was raised against the club for fielding two professional players. Hearts were suspended by the SFA for two years; this was the first suspension of an SFA club. After a change of the clubs' committee the club was readmitted. Hearts had considerable success in the early years of the Scottish Football League, winning the league championship in 1895 and 1896, they won four Scottish Cups in a 15-year period from 1891 to 1906.
The team played against Sunderland in the 1894–95 World Championship, but lost with a 5–3 score. Hearts did win the World Championship title in 1902, beating Tottenham Hotspur 3–1 in Tynecastle Park, after a 0–0 in London few month earlier. In November 1914, Heart of Midlothian comfortably led the First Division, having started
Western Pennsylvania Professional Football Circuit
The Western Pennsylvania Professional Football Circuit was a loose association of American football clubs that operated from 1890 to 1940. Amateur, professionalism was introduced to the circuit in 1892. Existing in some form for 48 years, it was one of the longest-lived paying football loops to operate outside the auspices of the National Football League; the football clubs of the 1880s and 1890s were amateur teams. They were under the membership of an athletic club, which provided both sports and the ability to wager money on the sports. However, the prestige and increased membership that could come from a successful team, led these clubs to begin secretly hiring talented players; the amateur athletics that these clubs engaged in were policed by the Amateur Athletic Union. By the mid-1890s allegations of professionalism became known to the AAU; the Allegheny Athletic Association was found guilty of paying cash to players and was permanently barred from any kind of competition with other AAU members.
This punishment would end a team, because their opponents, whether other pros, amateur associations, or colleges, would have stopped playing them. Allegheny defied the AAU in 1896 and created an open professional team. A year the Latrobe Athletic Association, went professional; the misconception that these were amateur athletic club were held to in public when newspapers wrote of players being under contract. To get around this, the circuit teams played for local or regional championships, with the only recognized national champion being the best college football team. However, the winner of the circuit was able to lay claim to a national, but professional, football title from 1890-1903. By 1904, the exodus of pro football talent to the "Ohio League", diminished the region's level of play and the national professional champions, were then claimed by the teams from Ohio. Though a champion was declared by the media and clubs throughout this period, a formal league was not founded until 1920, when several teams from the "Ohio League" and the New York Pro Football League formed the American Professional Football Association.
In 1922 the APFA became the National Football League. The circuit did not die out and in fact experienced a slight renaissance in the 1920s as the Western Pennsylvania Senior Independent Football Conference. 1920s era blue laws in the state of Pennsylvania meant that while the NFL played its games on Sunday, Pennsylvania teams would have to play on Saturday. P. Rooneys were founded in 1921. Records of the Pirates playing other Western Pennsylvania teams continue up to at least 1940, after which point most teams dissolved due to World War II. Erie Veterans Glassport Odds Jeannette Athletic Club J. P. Rooneys McKeesport Olympics Oil City Athletic Club Pitcairn Quakers Pittsburgh Lyceum Several of the teams and individuals, in the circuit, pioneered several historic firsts for professional football; these accomplishments include: William "Pudge" Heffelfinger became the first known professional football player on November 12, 1892. Sport Donnelly became the first known professional football coach in 1893.
A player assumed to be Grant Dibert signed the first known pro football contract, which covered all of the clubs games for the 1893 season. John Brallier became the first professional football player on September 3, 1895 Allegheny Athletic Association fielded the first openly professional team in 1896. Latrobe Athletic Association became the first football team to play a full season with only professionals in 1897. William Chase Temple became the first individual owner of a professional football team in c.1898. The first professional football all-star game held between the Duquesne Country and Athletic Club and players from Western Pennsylvania All-Stars. Adam Martin Wyant was the first professional football player to get elected to the United States Congress in 1921. William "Pudge" Heffelfinger – Allegheny Athletic Association – $500 for one game on November 12, 1892. Ben "Sport" Donnelly – Allegheny Athletic Association – $250 for one game on November 19, 1892. Peter Wright – Allegheny Athletic Association – $50 per game for the entire 1893 season.
James Van Cleve – Allegheny Athletic Association – $50 per game for the entire 1893 season. Ollie Rafferty – Allegheny Athletic Association – $50 per game for the entire 1893 season. Unknown player – Pittsburgh Athletic Club – for the entire 1893 season. Lawson Fiscus – Greenburg Athletic Association – $20 per game for the entire 1894 season. John Brallier – Latrobe Athletic Association – $10 and expenses for one game on September 3, 1895. Peterson, Robert W.. Pigskin: The Early Years of Pro Football. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-511913-4. Riffenburgh, Beau & Bob Carroll. "The Birth of Pro Football". Coffin Cor
Association football
Association football, more known as football or soccer, is a team sport played with a spherical ball between two teams of eleven players. It is played by 250 million players in over 200 countries and dependencies, making it the world's most popular sport; the game is played on a rectangular field called a pitch with a goal at each end. The object of the game is to score by moving the ball beyond the goal line into the opposing goal. Association football is one of a family of football codes, which emerged from various ball games played worldwide since antiquity; the modern game traces its origins to 1863 when the Laws of the Game were codified in England by The Football Association. Players are not allowed to touch the ball with hands or arms while it is in play, except for the goalkeepers within the penalty area. Other players use their feet to strike or pass the ball, but may use any other part of their body except the hands and the arms; the team that scores most goals by the end of the match wins.
If the score is level at the end of the game, either a draw is declared or the game goes into extra time or a penalty shootout depending on the format of the competition. Association football is governed internationally by the International Federation of Association Football, which organises World Cups for both men and women every four years; the rules of association football were codified in England by the Football Association in 1863 and the name association football was coined to distinguish the game from the other forms of football played at the time rugby football. The first written "reference to the inflated ball used in the game" was in the mid-14th century: "Þe heued fro þe body went, Als it were a foteballe"; the Online Etymology Dictionary states that the "rules of the game" were made in 1848, before the "split off in 1863". The term soccer comes from a slang or jocular abbreviation of the word "association", with the suffix "-er" appended to it; the word soccer was first recorded in 1889 in the earlier form of socca.
Within the English-speaking world, association football is now called "football" in the United Kingdom and "soccer" in Canada and the United States. People in countries where other codes of football are prevalent may use either term, although national associations in Australia and New Zealand now use "football" for the formal name. According to FIFA, the Chinese competitive game cuju is the earliest form of football for which there is evidence. Cuju players could use any part of the body apart from hands and the intent was kicking a ball through an opening into a net, it was remarkably similar to modern football. During the Han Dynasty, cuju games were standardised and rules were established. Phaininda and episkyros were Greek ball games. An image of an episkyros player depicted in low relief on a vase at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens appears on the UEFA European Championship Cup. Athenaeus, writing in 228 AD, referenced the Roman ball game harpastum. Phaininda and harpastum were played involving hands and violence.
They all appear to have resembled rugby football and volleyball more than what is recognizable as modern football. As with pre-codified "mob football", the antecedent of all modern football codes, these three games involved more handling the ball than kicking. Other games included kemari in chuk-guk in Korea. Association football in itself does not have a classical history. Notwithstanding any similarities to other ball games played around the world FIFA has recognised that no historical connection exists with any game played in antiquity outside Europe; the modern rules of association football are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the varying forms of football played in the public schools of England. The history of football in England dates back to at least the eighth century AD; the Cambridge Rules, first drawn up at Cambridge University in 1848, were influential in the development of subsequent codes, including association football. The Cambridge Rules were written at Trinity College, Cambridge, at a meeting attended by representatives from Eton, Rugby and Shrewsbury schools.
They were not universally adopted. During the 1850s, many clubs unconnected to schools or universities were formed throughout the English-speaking world, to play various forms of football; some came up with their own distinct codes of rules, most notably the Sheffield Football Club, formed by former public school pupils in 1857, which led to formation of a Sheffield FA in 1867. In 1862, John Charles Thring of Uppingham School devised an influential set of rules; these ongoing efforts contributed to the formation of The Football Association in 1863, which first met on the morning of 26 October 1863 at the Freemasons' Tavern in Great Queen Street, London. The only school to be represented on this occasion was Charterhouse; the Freemason's Tavern was the setting for five more meetings between October and December, which produced the first comprehensive set of rules. At the final meeting, the first FA treasurer, the representative from Blackheath, withdrew his club from the FA over the removal of two draft rules at the previous meeting: the first allowed for running with the ball in hand.
Other English rugby clubs followed this lead and did not join the FA and instead in 1871 formed the Rugby Football Union. The eleven remaining clubs, under
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British Isles
