How West Auckland Football Club Made World Cup History

FIFA 's inaugural men's national association football World Cup Tournament was hosted by Uruguay in 1930, and the hosts became the first club in history to lift the Jules Rimmet Trophy defeating Argentina 4-2 in the final in front of a staggering 93,000 fans. Uruguay was chosen by FIFA because the Uruguay national football team had retained its football title at the 1928 summer Olympics, but the honour of scoring the first ever official world cup goal in history during the event goes to Lucien Laurent of the French national team who scored against Mexico in the 19th minute.

But controversy still stalks the hallowed halls of the sport's history as football purists and historians argue that the first ever World Cup was hosted by Italy in 1909 and was the brainchild of the football mad, philanthropist Sir Thomas Lipton. The tea magnate had been recently awarded the Grand Order of the Crown of Italy and responded by sponsoring and presenting a trophy to the winning team of this world football competition staged in the city of Turin.

He approached the footballing bodies of the major European nations including the English Football Association who unceremoniously refused to accept the invitation for reasons which remain undocumented. The European Nations on the other hand accepted the invitation enthusiastically as did West Auckland Football Club, a small County Durham colliery village team representing England.

Just how this ragtag bunch of miners who filled their Saturday afternoons playing in the English Northern League came to be there in the first place is still open to debate, but a simple mistake tops the current list of possibilities. The tea millionaire wanted Woolwich Arsenal to attend the tournament as the English contingent, and as the story goes he asked his secretary to contact “W.A.” This instruction lead to West Auckland being mistakenly approached.

The team duly arrived in Turin, with many players having to sell off personal possessions to pay for the trip, only to find they had nowhere to stay. The entire team spent their first night in Turin sleeping rough on the steps of the city's cathedral. Amazingly, they knocked out Stuttgarter Sportfreunde 2-0 in the semi final, and lifted the winner's trophy beating the Swiss side FC Winterthur by the same scoreline.

The village welcomed their heroes back with a victory parade around the village green on a horse and cart accompanied by the village brass band. The trophy was not on show during their home-coming as it had been left on the platform at the Gare du Nord train station in Paris after a few too many drinks. A French porter thoughtfully forwarded the cup which arrived safely a few days later.

Astonishingly, the team returned two years later in 1911, and continued with their giant killing quest lifting the trophy for the second time spanking the mighty Juventus 6-1 in the final. As consecutive tournament winners West Auckland FC were allowed to keep the trophy, and the club's name was forever etched in the annals of footballing legends.

The second home coming was marred by the huge debts the club and players had accumulated to go back to Italy which necessitated the pawning of the cup to raise some much needed funds. The situation deteriorated and West Auckland FC went bust in 1912 and sold the cup to the landlady of the nearby Wheatsheaf Hotel for £40.00. In 1960 the villagers decided it was time their prize possession came home so they tracked the ex landlady to Liverpool and paid £100.00 to bring football's First World Cup home where it was proudly displayed on the bar of the village pub, the Eden Arms.

That was until 1994 because the drama continued when the cup was stolen with an uncanny parallel to the theft of the Jules Rimet Trophy in 1966. The Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy as it was now being called was never found despite a £2000 reward being offered for its safe return. The police believed firmly at the time that someone in the village must have known something about the theft, but it never came to light.

An exact replica of the cup can be found on display at the West Auckland Workingmen's Club presumably in a more secure environment. And fittingly in the centenary year of the 1911 thrashing of Juventus by the miners of West Auckland, the club has invited the Turin-based club to a rematch. Dream football indeed if this match ever takes place.