Sheffield Home of Football is planning a DOUBLE blue plaque unveiling event next Saturday (1st February 2025)

The first plaque unveiling will be at 11:00am outside the Three Arches, Walker Street, next to the Wicker Arches. This plaque remembers the world’s very first away football match, says Steve Wood, historian and trustee from Sheffield Home of Football, the charity behind the football blue plaques.

In 1865 Sheffield FC players returned home victorious to the Wicker having played this match in Nottingham against the club, which later become Notts County FC. After returning from Nottingham, the jubilant Sheffield FC players kicked the match ball all the way from the Wicker and up to Broomhill, which is where we will unveil our second plaque of the day.

A small group will replicate this jubilant ball kicking by leaving the Three Arches in the Wicker at around 12:15pm, heading towards Broomhill. Joining in this fun part of the day is of course optional. The second plaque unveiling will be at 13:30 outside The York, Broomhill, to mark the location where the world’s very first football club from a hotel, York FC was formed in 1861, explains Steve. The club was formed from the York Cricket Club, which was also associated with the York Hotel and the club’s first president was Nathaniel Creswick, who also founded Sheffield FC.

This match is notable for two reasons, says Steve. It was the very first football match in the world to take place between clubs from two different towns or cities. It is also a match which, by being played outside of Sheffield, was reported by one Sheffield based newspaper which noted ‘Sheffield’s impressive passing and formation-based style of the game.’ Some of our earliest reports of passing in football therefore come from this match.

Sheffield won the game 1-0, a goal scored by James Wild. After meal at The George Hotel in Nottingham, the victorious Sheffield players returned to Sheffield. They disembarked their train at The Wicker and celebrated by kicking the match ball all the way through the town and up to Broomhill. John Charles Shaw reportedly ended up with the ball from this historic game. Built in 1830, The York is a landmark building on the junction of Fulwood Rd and Glossop Rd and we were delighted to acquire it late 2009, says Tony Choker from Thornsett Properties Ltd, which own many heritage and listed buildings in conservation areas.

The building had suffered years of neglect, with the upper floors untouched for almost 50 years, says Tony. Until the SHOF charity approached us about this, we were completely unaware of this amazing bit of history about it. I am very pleased to see a blue plaque going on it, because I think it is very important to recognise football firsts and the efforts being undertaken by Sheffield Home of Football should be commended, adds Tony.

I’m also involved with Sheffield Sikh Temple football team, called the ‘Punjab Kings,’ which play in a 5-a-side league at the Goodwin Sports Centre on Thursday, says Tony. It started off with five players and in the space of two years this has grown to 20 and we now have 3 teams of mixed abilities, ethnicities and religions explains Tony. An annual charity cup game is held at Bramall Lane and in May 2024, we raised over £15,000 and aim to help 50 charities with these donations. The Sikh community in Sheffield is a vibrant and integral part of the city’s cultural and social landscape. For decades, we have worked to contribute to Sheffield’s diversity and development, fostering unity and inclusivity through various initiatives.

One such initiative is our commitment to uniting communities through football, a powerful way to bridge cultural, ethnic, and religious differences. Football is a universal sport that transcends barriers of language, culture, and religion. It provides an opportunity for people from diverse backgrounds to connect, share, and collaborate. For the Sikh community, football has become a tool to build friendships across diverse groups; promote physical health and well-being and teach values like teamwork, respect, and perseverance, concludes Tony.