Oldest football club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The title of the world's oldest football club, or the oldest club in a particular country, is often disputed, or is claimed by several different clubs, across several different codes of football.
Many early clubs did not use the word football in their name at all. Conversely, early rugby clubs sometimes referred to themselves, or continue to refer to themselves, as simply a "football club", or as a "Rugby football club". Similarly, most Australian rules football teams still refer to themselves as "_____ Football Club".
It is has been claimed that the Barnes Club (later Barnes Rugby Football Club), from Barnes in London, was formed in 1839.[1] However this has not been conclusively documented. It is also argued that Guy's Hospital Football Club, founded by staff at Guy's Hospital in London in 1843, is the oldest club. While a rugby club still exists at Guy's Hospital, the connection between the present club and the one formed in 1843 is poorly-documented.[2]
The oldest football club with a well-documented, continuous history is Dublin University Football Club, founded in 1854 at Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland, which is now a Rugby union club.
Sheffield Football Club, in Sheffield, England is the oldest documented non-university club, and was founded in 1857. It initially played a code of its own devising and later switched to Association football. FIFA officially acknowledges it as the oldest Association football club in the world.
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[edit] Timeline
The oldest known football clubs (excluding school teams), and the codes they initially played, are:
| Year | Date | Club | Original code | Current code | Location | Current status/league | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1839* | date unknown | Barnes Club | unknown code | Rugby union | Barnes, London, England | London Division 1 | Club claims formation in 1839, however others claim later formation in 1858 or 1862. First result was in 1862. Founding member of the Football Association in 1863. One of the first two clubs (with Richmond) to play a game of Association football (soccer). |
| 1843* | Guy's Hospital Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | Southwark, London, England | London League 4 South East | See above. No documentation of claim to continuous existence since 1843 and may have been inactive/in recess for one or more seasons. | |
| 1854 | Dublin University Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland | AIB League | Oldest documented football club and the oldest to later play Rugby union. Playing under the name of Galwegians. | |
| 1856/1857* | Cambridge University Football Club | Cambridge rules | Association football | Cambridge University, Cambridge, England | BUSA Midlands Division 2A | The above dates have been claimed by the university and the BBC, which would make it the oldest club now playing association football (soccer).[3] & [4] However, th is is still a matter of controversy and some sources state that the club was founded in 1866. | |
| 1857 | Sheffield Football Club | Sheffield rules | Association football | Sheffield, England | Northern Counties East Football League | ||
| 1857/58 | Edinburgh Academical Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | Edinburgh, Scotland | BT Premiership Division Two | Oldest football club in Scotland | |
| 1858 | August 7 | Melbourne Football Club | Australian rules football | Australian rules | Melbourne, Australia | Australian Football League | In 1859, members of the club codified Australian rules football. Have participated in the top league of their sport longer than any other football club. |
| 1858 | Blackheath Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | Blackheath, London, England | National Division Two | Foundation member of the Football Association. | |
| 1858 | Liverpool Football Club (later known as Liverpool St Helens F.C.) | Rugby football | Rugby union | Liverpool, England | |||
| 1859* | June 15 | Castlemaine Football Club | unknown | Australian rules | Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia | Ballarat Football League | Recently discovered to be older than the Geelong Football Club, but dormant for a period.[5] |
| 1859 | July 18 | Geelong Football Club | own code | Australian rules | Geelong, Australia | Australian Football League | |
| 1859* | * | Melbourne University Football Club | unknown | Australian rules | Melbourne, Australia | Victorian Amateur Football Association Section A | Disbanded during World War I, but later reformed. |
| 1860 | Cray Wanderers Football Club | unknown | Association football | Bromley, Kent, England | |||
| 1860 | Hallam Football Club | Sheffield rules | Association football | Sheffield, England | |||
| 1860 | Forest Football Club (later Wanderers F.C.) | unknown | Association football | Leytonstone, London, England | |||
| 1860 | Manchester Football Club (now known as Manchester Rugby Club) | Rugby football | Rugby union | Manchester, England | National Division Two | No connection to Manchester United F.C. or Manchester City F.C.. | |
| 1860* | * | Lausanne Football and Cricket Club | unknown | defunct | Lausanne, Switzerland | defunct | The first club to play first Association football in continental Europe. |
| 1861 | Richmond Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | London, England | In 1863, Richmond was a founding member of the F.A. and one of the first two clubs (with Barnes) to play a game of Association football. | ||
| 1861 | Sale Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | Manchester, England. | |||
| 1861* | Crystal Palace Football Club (1861) | unknown | defunct | London, England. | No connection to the later Crystal Palace F.C. Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1861* | Oneida Football Club | unknown (possibly the Boston Game) | defunct | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | |||
| 1861* | Name unknown, at University College, University of Toronto | unknown | defunct | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | defunct | No connection to the college Canadian football team.[6] | |
| 1862 | Nottingham Football Club (later Notts County F.C.), | own code | Association football | Nottingham, England | [7] | ||
| 1863 | Christchurch Football Club | own code | Rugby union | New Zealand | [8]Oldest club now playing rugby union in NZ. | ||
| 1863 | Sydney University Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby union | Sydney, Australia | New South Wales Rugby Union | Oldest Australian Rugby union club. | |
| 1863 | Royal Engineers Football Club | unknown | Association football | London, England. | |||
| 1863 | Stoke Football Club | unknown | Association football | Stoke-on-Trent, England. | Some accounts say the club was founded in 1868. | ||
| 1863* | Civil Service Football Club | unknown | defunct | London, England. | Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1863* | N.N. Club | unknown | defunct | Kilburn, London, England. | N.N. stood for "No Names". Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1863* | War Office Club | unknown | defunct | London, England. | Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1863* | Crusaders Football Club | unknown | defunct | London, England. | Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1863* | Percival House Football Club | Rugby football | defunct | Blackheath, London, England. | Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1863* | Surbiton Football Club | Rugby football | defunct | London, England. | Foundation member of F.A. | ||
| 1864 | * | Carlton Football Club | Australian rules football | Australian rules | Melbourne, Australia | Australian Football League | [9] |
| 1864 | Huddersfield Athletic Club | various sports | Rugby league | Huddersfield, England | Super League (Europe) | Oldest club now playing rugby league. | |
| 1864* | Name unknown | unknown | defunct | New Town, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. | A shortlived club.[10] | ||
| 1865 | Hull Football Club | Rugby football | Rugby league | Hull, England. | Super League (Europe) | ||
| 1865 | Nottingham Forest Football Club | unknown (possibly bandy) | Association football | Nottingham, England | |||
| 1865* | Sydney Football Club | Rugby football | Sydney, Australia | defunct | No connection to Sydney FC, the Sydney Roosters, or Sydney Swans. | ||
| 1866* | Brisbane Australian Football Club | Australian rules football | defunct | Brisbane, Australia | defunct | No connection to Brisbane Bears or Brisbane Lions[11] | |
| 1867 | Sheffield Wednesday Football Club | Sheffield rules | Association football | Sheffield, England | |||
| 1867 | Chesterfield Football Club | unknown | Association football | Chesterfield, England | |||
| 1867 | Queen's Park Football Club | own code | Association football | Glasgow, Scotland. | |||
| 1868* | Montreal Football Club | Rugby football | defunct | Montreal, Canada | defunct | Rugby Canada states 1868, while Football Canada states 1872 | |
| 1869 | November 3 | Hamilton Foot Ball Club | Rugby football | Canadian football | Hamilton, Canada | Canadian Football League | Sources: [12] [13] [14] [15]. The HFBC were first referred to as the Tigers in 1873 after a game against the recently formed Toronto Argonauts. In 1950, they merged with the Hamilton Flying Wildcats to form the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, who have played in the CFL since its inception in 1958. |
* = disputed, poorly documented or dormant for a period.
[edit] Oldest uniform
The Guinness Book of World Records recognises the Essendon Football Club, which plays Australian rules football in the Australian Football League, as having the oldest uniform of any sporting club in the world. Essendon players have worn a black guernsey with a red diagonal sash in every season since 1873.[16]
