A New School Game

In the Nineteenth Century football began to be played in English public schools. The public schools were very expensive private schools attended by the sons of the rich and powerful.

The headmasters of three schools - Rugby, Eton and Harrow – began to develop new versions of football. The game became less violent, less dangerous and easier to control. It became a game for young gentlemen.

First cup?

Each public school divided its pupils into clubs or ‘houses’. The houses played football matches against each other, with each house wearing a particular colour. The first football clubs were organised in the same way as the house teams. Later the house competitions were used as a model for the FA Cup.

At Eton two different types of football started. One was called the wall game and the other the field game.

In the wall game you played on a narrow pitch alongside a wall - something like playing football in a narrow corridor in a house. In the field game the pitch was outside and there were goal posts.