The youdan and Cromwell cups: Sheffield football's knockout trophies. (2nd January 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Neill, Kevin
• Is Part Of: Soccer and society. Volume 24:Number 1(2023)
• Page Start: 62
• Page End: 73
• Publication Date: 2023-01-02
• Subjects: Soccer -- Great Britain -- Periodicals; Soccer -- Social aspects -- Great Britain -- Periodicals; 306.483
• DOI: 10.1080/14660970.2022.2113129
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1466-0970

Abstract

ABSTRACT: It is fitting that in the year celebrating 150 years of the Football Association Challenge Cup, a focus is given to Sheffield's own knock-out competition held 4 years before the FA Cup was launched. While it is argued in certain quarters that Charles Alcock based the FA competition on his own experiences of the Cock House tournament during his time at Harrow School – although, interestingly, no cup was awarded for this during that period – it could also be argued that the success of the world's first adult football club knock-out competition, the Youdan Cup, possibly influenced the direction of his thinking. Why the Sheffield tournament was established in the first place and why it was only staged for just 1 year in 1867 are the more obvious questions surrounding its conception which this article aims to address.