Oldest football clubs

Rare card · No. 62375

The oldest football clubs trace their origins to the mid-19th century, a period when football evolved from being a casual pastime to an organised mainstream sport. The identity of the oldest football clubs in the world, or even in a particular country, is often disputed or claimed by several clubs, across several codes of football. The Gymnastic Society in London, founded in the 18th century, is the earliest recorded society dedicated to football. The Foot-Ball Club of Edinburgh is thought to be the earliest recorded club with football in its name in the world, with records going back to 1824. Rugby clubs also referred to themselves, or continue to refer to themselves, as simply a "football club", or as a "rugby football club". "Club" has always meant an independent entity and, during the historical period in question, very few high school or university teams were independent of the educational institutions concerned. Consequently, school and university football teams were seldom referred...

Read on Wikipedia · Image George Rossi Ashton (1857-1942) (signed) [1], Public domain