Youdan Cup

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title: "Youdan Cup" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["sports-competitions-in-sheffield", "defunct-football-cup-competitions-in-england", "1867-establishments-in-england", "defunct-football-competitions-in-south-yorkshire", "1866–67-in-english-football"] topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Youdan_Cup" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox football tournament season"]

Field	Value
title	Youdan Football Cup
image	Youdan Cup.jpg
caption	The Youdan Football Cup trophy
country	England
venue	Sheffield
dates	16 February 1867 – 9 March 1867
num_teams	12
winners	Hallam
second	Norfolk
matches	13
goals	10
::

|title = Youdan Football Cup | year = |image = Youdan Cup.jpg |caption = The Youdan Football Cup trophy | country = England | venue = Sheffield |dates = 16 February 1867 – 9 March 1867 |num_teams = 12 |winners = Hallam |second = Norfolk |matches = 13 |goals = 10

The Youdan Football Cup, also known as the Youdan Cup, was an 1867 Sheffield rules football competition. Preceding the FA Cup by more than four years, it was among the first tournaments in any code of football.{{efn|Though the Youdan Cup was not the first football competition, no older tournament involving three or more independent clubs is known.

• The House Football Cup of Eton College dates from 1860, but it is an intramural competition rather than a tournament between independent clubs (see ).
• The Caledonian Challenge Cup in Australian rules football dates from 1861, but was only ever contested between two clubs at a time.

The Youdan Cup was recognized as the "oldest trophy" in the "soccer" section of Guinness World Records (see ).}}

Background

thumb|[[Thomas Youdan]], seen in 1865

The competition took its name from a local theatre owner, Thomas Youdan, who sponsored the competition and provided the trophy.

Rules

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Youdan_Football_Cup_handbill.jpg" caption="transcription]])"] ::

On 28 January 1867, representatives of thirteen football clubs from the Sheffield area met at the Adelphi Hotel to form the "Youdan Prize Committee". The committee drew up the following regulations to govern the tournament:

• Matches would be played under Sheffield Rules.
• Matches would start at three o'clock, with two umpires and one referee.
• There would be 12 players on each side.
• Games would last ninety minutes. If the scores were tied, up to one hour of extra time would be played, with the first team to score during this period being declared the winner. If scores were still tied after extra time, the match would be replayed.

After the first round, the committee added a new rule that "the referee shall have power to award a Free Kick to the opponents of any Club, which makes more than three fouls or kicks-out, when the ball is being thrown in, if he (the referee) considers those fouls or kicks-out to be intentional".

Participating teams

::data[format=table title="Participating clubsUnless otherwise stated, all details taken from the John Lillywhite annual of 1868"]

Team	Foundation	No. of members	Home ground	Colours
Norton	1861	50	Norton	Green
United Mechanics	1865 (September)	140	Norfolk Park	Blue, white cap
Mackenzie	1862	500	Myrtle Road	Pink shirt, plaid cap
Garrick	1866 (October)	400	East Bank	Red, white, & blue
Hallam	1860	150	Sandygate	Blue & white
Heeley	1862	70	Wellsbrook Park	Grey & white hoops
Norfolk	1861 (December)	240	Norfolk Park	Grey & blue
Fir Vale	1862	136	Pitsmoor	White & red
Broomhall	1863 (October)	150	Ecclesall Road	Black & white
Pitsmoor	1861	264	Pitsmoor	White
Wellington	1866	150	Houndsfields Park	Puce & white
Milton	1862	180+	South Heeley	Black & yellow
::

Format

The competition was organised as a straight knockout tournament, with two exceptions:

• Because twelve teams entered the tournament, there were three teams remaining after two rounds: one team, drawn at random, received a bye to the final, while the other two teams played a semi-final to determine the other finalist.
• After the final had been played, it was decided to hold a second-place playoff between the losing finalist and the losing semi-finalist.

The semi-final, final and second-place playoff were all held at Bramall Lane, which at the time was primarily a cricket ground.

Results

Under the Sheffield Rules of the time, the rouge was used as a tiebreaker if both teams scored an equal number of goals.{{efn|At least two different forms of the rouge are found in the Sheffield Rules:

• According to the 1862 Sheffield FC rules, a rouge was scored when an attempt at goal (using a goal only 4 yards wide) missed, but went between two "rouge flags" 4 yards to the side of each goalpost, and the ball was then touched down by an attacking player. A similar version of the rouge is found in the rules of Sheffield Mechanics Football Club for the 1865–66 season.
• Under the rules issued by the Sheffield Football Association in March 1867 immediately after the tournament, the requirement for a touch down was removed; it was required only that the ball go between the rouge flags and beneath the crossbar.

A contemporary newspaper report of the final indicates that the winning rouge was "touched down by Ash in splendid style", suggesting that the first definition was used in this competition.}}

Of the thirteen matches played in the tournament, seven were goalless, of which six were decided by rouges. Only one goal was scored after the first round.

In the results below, rouges are shown in brackets beneath the main scoreline.

First round

|date= 16 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 2 – 0** (6–0)** |team1= Norton |team2= United Mechanics |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Norton |attendance= |referee= Mr. W. I. Bingham |note=John Hadfield of United Mechanics suffered a dislocated shoulder. |date= 16 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 1 – 0** (1–0)** |team1= Mackenzie |team2= Garrick |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= The Orphanage |attendance= |referee= Mr. J. Frith |note= |date= 16 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 2 – 0** (2–1)** |team1= Hallam |team2= Heeley |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Sandygate Road |attendance= |referee= Mr. R. Dickenson |note= |date= 16 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 2 – 0** (4–0)** |team1= Norfolk |team2= Fir Vale |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Norfolk Park |attendance= |referee= Mr. J. Tomlinson |note= |date= 16 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 0** (2–0)** |team1= Broomhall |team2= Pitsmoor |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Ecclesall Road |attendance= |referee= Mr. J. Pinder |note="Nothing was got by either side until they changed ends at half time, and then the Broomhall, having a slight advantage in both the ground and wind, succeeded in getting a rouge, and soon after got another from a free kick". Broohmall: C. Mills (capt.), F. Hazlewood, John West, James West, J. Broadbent, S. Oeakin, W. Ward, W. Furniss, W. Mills, S. Dungworth, J. White, J. Turton Pitsmoor: G. Fowler (capt.), J. F. Bingham, J. Peck, G. Simpson, S. M. Walker, J. Clarke, G. Bradley, S. Heaton, E. Osborne, H. Peck, H. Fitter, G. Barnes |date= 16 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 2** (0–5)** |team1= Wellington |team2= Milton |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= The Orphanage |attendance= |referee= Mr. J. Crapper |note=

Second round

|date= 23 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 1 – 0** (0–0)** (A.S.D.E.T) |team1= Norfolk |team2= Broomhall |goals1= Unknown (92') |goals2= |stadium= Norfolk Park |attendance= |referee= Mr. R. Dickenson |note= |date= 23 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 0** (0–0)** (A.S.D.E.T) |team1= Norton |team2= Hallam |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Norton |attendance= |referee= Mr. W.J. Bingham |note= |date= 23 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 0** (1–0)** |team1= Mackenzie |team2= Milton |goals1= Unknown (30') |goals2= |stadium= The Orphanage |attendance= |referee= Mr. J. Crapper |note=Green, playing for Mackenzie, broke his collar bone. Replay |date= 25 February 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 0** (1–0)** |team1= Hallam |team2= Norton |goals1= Unknown (60') |goals2= |stadium= |attendance= |referee= |note=

Semi-finals

|date= 2 March 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 0** (4–0)** |team1= Hallam |team2= Mackenzie |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Bramall Lane |attendance= |referee= Mr. J. Tomlinson |date= |time= |score= Bye |team1= Norfolk |team2= |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= |attendance= |referee=

Final

|date = 5 March 1867 |time = 15:00 |score = 0–0** (2–0)** |report = https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Yondam_Football_Club_(Bell%27s_Life_in_London)_1867-03-09.png |team1 = Hallam |team2 = Norfolk |goals1 = Ash (75' or 85'), unknown |goals2 = |stadium = Bramall Lane |attendance = 2000 |referee = Mr. J. Tomlinson tags are a work-around for the list breaking the '' tags from template -- |note = ''Although contemporary reports are not completely consistent, the majority indicate a 2–0 scoreline:

• "Thus Hallam won, scoring two rouges to their opponents' nothing"
• "Up to within a few minutes of the expiration of the time allotted neither club had gained a single point, but within the last five minutes the Hallam Club scored two rouges and won the prize"
• "After a severe struggle Hallam eventually won the cup by two rouges" However, one source indicates a one-rouge margin:
• "Hallam won by one rouge" A BBC article from 2014 reports the score as 2–1 (without specifying rouges or goals).''

Second place play-off

|date= 9 March 1867 |time= 15:00 |score= 0 – 0** (0–1)** |team1= Mackenzie |team2= Norfolk |goals1= |goals2= |stadium= Bramall Lane |attendance= |referee= |note=Although Norfolk won "it was pretty generally admitted that the Mackenzie played the best". Mackenzie: W. Wright, T. Jenkinson, J. Marsh, J. Ellin, J. Broomhead, T. Hodgkinson, M. Hodgkinson, C. Webster, H. Packard, T. Rycroft, E. Birkhead, Bramall Norfolk: J. Roberts (capt.), T. S. Bell, J. Pashley, J. P. Donovan, H. Cauthorne, T. Goodwin, C. Grayson, C. Marshall, J. Wildblood, G. Rodgers, G. Proctor, J. Simmonite.

Trophy

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Guinnessrecord2.jpg" caption="The certificate which stands at [[Sandygate Road]]."] ::

The Youdan Prize Committee invited members of the public to submit their proposed designs for the trophy. The creator of the entry judged the best would be rewarded by Thomas Youdan with a prize of one sovereign.

This prize was initially awarded to a Mr Jarvis, of Roscoe Works. His design was subsequently combined with that of another entrant: Mr. Topham, engraver, who was awarded a further prize of one pound.

Before the semi-final, it was decided that the second-placed club would also be awarded a prize, to be funded by an admission fee of 3d at the semi-final and final. This prize ended up being valued at £2 10s.

The trophies were presented at a dinner held at the Adelphi Hotel on Monday 11 March. Because the winning design required "protracted time [...] in its manufacture", it had not been completed in time for the ceremony. In its place, a "richly-ornamented claret jug", created by Martin, Hall, and Co., was awarded to Hallam. Thomas Youdan was absent through illness, so the trophy was presented by Mr J. Birley to J. C. Shaw, Hallam's captain. The second prize, a "double-handed goblet [...] enriched with athletic figures", was awarded to Norfolk.

The inscription on the cup awarded to Hallam reads:

Shaw presented the trophy to the members of the Hallam Club at a dinner after the final match of their season, played at Sandygate on Saturday 16 March. The first-place trophy was subsequently lost. It did not resurface again until 1997, when a Scottish antiques collector contacted Hallam F.C. to tell them that he was in possession of it – they subsequently bought it back for £1,600. Since then it has been valued to be worth at least £100,000 by silver specialist Alastair Dickenson of the BBC programme Antiques Roadshow, although the owners have insisted it is not for sale.

Legacy

Attendances of up to 3,000 were reported in the press..

The exact match is not identified in the article. Despite its statement that the match took place "five miles from Sheffield", Harvey (2005), p. 104 appears to assume that it is referring to the final. This would not be exceeded by the reported attendance at an FA Cup final until 1878.

Contemporary reports suggest that the 1867 tournament was expected to be repeated in subsequent years, with Youdan awarding a trophy of the original competition-winning design. This did not occur, and in the event the Cromwell Cup was held in 1868, sponsored and named after another Sheffield theatre owner. Youdan nevertheless maintained an interest in football, for example by donating £50 in prize money to the Sheffield Football Association in 1870.

The work of the ad-hoc Youdan Prize Committee in co-ordinating activity between local clubs and framing rules was a precursor to that of the Sheffield Football Association, which had already been formed by the end of January 1867, and issued its own first set of rules on 6 March 1867, the day following the final of the Youdan Cup.

The Youdan Trophy, a Sheffield-based international youth team tournament founded in 2014, takes its name from the Youdan Cup.

Notes

References

Sources

References

1. (2 February 1867). "Sheffield". Sporting Life.
2. (20 February 1867). "Sheffield: Youdan's Football Cup". Sporting Life.
3. Murphy, Brendan. (2007). "From Sheffield with Love". Sports Book Limited.
4. (23 February 1867). "The Youdan Football Cup". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
5. Unless otherwise stated, all details taken from the John Lillywhite annual of 1868
6. Membership and ground taken from the 1869 Charles Alcock annual, foundation date and colour from the 1871 edition
7. 1871 Charles Alcock yearbook
8. Described as "stripes".
9. (16 March 1867). "The Youdan Football Prize". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
10. (16 February 1867). "The Youdan Football Cup". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
11. (23 February 1867). "The Youdan Football Cup: Contests for the Prize". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
12. (23 February 1867). "The Football Contest for a Silver Cup". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
13. (21 February 1867). "Pitsmoor v. Broomhall (Sheffield)". Sportsman.
14. (2 March 1867). "The Youdan Prize for Football". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
15. (2 March 1867). "Sheffield: Youdan's Football Cup". Sporting Life.
16. (6 March 1867). "Sheffield – Youdan's Football Cup". Sporting Life.
17. (9 March 1867). "The Yondam [sic] Football Cup". Bell's Life in London.
18. (6 March 1867). "The Youdan Football Contest". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
19. (6 March 1867). "Sheffield – Youdan's Football Cup }} and {{cite journal". Sporting Life.
20. (9 March 1867). "The Youdan Football Cup". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
21. (13 March 1867). "Sheffield: Youdan's Football Cup". Sporting Life.
22. Corbett, Fred[eric]k. (31 January 1867). "To Artists and Designers". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
23. Corbett, Fred[eric]k. (31 January 1867). "To Artists and Designers". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
24. (16 February 1867). "The Football Competition for Mr. Youdan's Prize". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
25. (19 February 1871). "Design for the Youdan Football Cup". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
26. (12 March 1867). "Football". Sheffield Daily Telegraph.
27. (12 March 1867). "Football". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
28. Harvey (2005), p. 289
29. (16 March 1867). "Football". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
30. (19 March 1867). "Football". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
31. (14 October 2014). "World's oldest football trophy 'not for sale'". BBC.
32. Harvey (2005), p. 172
33. (15 February 2018). "Sheffield Wednesday Celebrate 150th Anniversary Of Cromwell Cup Win".
34. (2 April 1870). "Local Intelligence". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
35. (31 January 1867). "Football in Sheffield". Nottingham and Midland Counties Daily Express.
36. (14 March 1867). "Sheffield Football Association". The Sportsman.
37. (27 July 2017). "Football stars of future from some of world's biggest clubs to play for Youdan Trophy in Sheffield". Ripon Gazette.

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