Extremely Rare 1873 Eton vs. Yale Football Program - First Transnational "Foot Ball Match"

Sold For:

$3,480

Year:

1873

Auction:

2025 Spring

Lot #:

3070

Category:

Football Cards and Memorabilia

Extremely rare program from the first transnational "Foot Ball Match" between Eton College (Windsor, England) and Yale University on December 6, 1873, at Hamilton Park in New Haven, Connecticut. The only other example of this program that we have seen sold at a public auction in 2016 for £15,000 ($19,418 US dollars). Exceptional research presented by U.K. scholar Adam Burns has noted that "American rugby" emerged in part from this contest and as such, is a "true ancestor of American football." The idea for this match came from an alumni of Eton (alumni are commonly referred to as Old Estonians) who attended a Yale football game earlier that year and suggested a match be played between Old Estonians and members of Yale's football team. In 1873, Yale's football team competed in a sport that at the time was primarily a kicking game and played by twenty-a-side. The two teams ultimately compromised on a set of rules that was a blend between Association football (soccer) and rugby, with the most notable being that the squads agreed to play eleven-a-side (as Eton was accustomed). In what by all accounts was a spirited match, Yale defeated the Old Estonians 2-1. Far more important than the final score, however, was the lasting impression playing eleven-a-side had on Yale. They were so impressed and inspired that this change was for the best, that shortly thereafter Yale successfully lobbied members of associated colleges that playing eleven-a-side was the best way to proceed moving forward, which in essence was the birth of "American rugby." The program (fold-over scorecard), which is unscored, features preprinted lineups of eleven players from each side. Of note, Yale's squad features Eugene Baker, who went on to captain Yale's American rugby team in 1876 and was a teammate of Walter Camp, who today is known as the "Father of Modern Football." The program (7-3/8 x 5 inches) has a clipped corner and a small crease in the lower portion (most noticeable below Yale's lineup). In Good condition overall.