Re: List of FA Cup Final steward & Superintendent Badges

[upthecounty]

Having successfully collected every post war cup final programme, ticket and song sheet I've been debating how to complete this little collection and am seriously considering dipping my toe into the world of FA Cup final Stewards-superintendent badges. My question is this, can anyone suggest a few websites that will provide me with a pictoral of what is out there to collect. From my web trawling I've noticed that there appear to be a few different designs for the same season, does anyone know why this is? in addition, how often do they come up for sale? finally does anyone know when this steward badge tradition started and finished?
Apologies if this subject has been covered elsewhere.
Regards Scott

[upthecounty]

Good afternoon all, does anyone out there know the start and finish dates for these badges?
I tried viewing the bonhams auction were it appears a full set was sold but am unable to determine the start and finish dates.

Any information would be gratefully received - Scott

[manchesterunitedman1]

Hi

I can show you a few from my own collection if it shows when Manchester United went to Wembley in 1948, 1963, 1968, 1976,1977, 1979 not sure after this time if any other finals continued to use them, United went back and i have not seen anything since 1979.
http://flic.kr/p/6j6CfT
http://flic.kr/p/6iW9r7
http://flic.kr/p/6Bn2zL
manchesterunitedman1
www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterunitedman1/sets
shows a wide selction now over 9200 images with over 2.5 million views. Items being uploaded regularly.

[manchesterunitedman1]

interesting odd type item from the 1957 FA Cup Final:

http://flic.kr/p/iM3ZZn

got one from 1968 european cup final will dig it out and upload when i can locate it.

[manchesterunitedman1]

Here it is from the 1968 European Cup Final at Wembley, Benfica v Manchester United.
https://flic.kr/p/myT6sd

[bisphamseasider]

upthecounty wrote:

Good afternoon all, does anyone out there know the start and finish dates for these badges? I tried viewing the bonhams auction were it appears a full set was sold but am unable to determine the start and finish dates. Any information would be gratefully received - Scott

That's quite a collection that were sold at Bonhams.

Not all were Cup Final ones though, there were some internationals in there as well. And some of them appear to be for a season (or part season) rather than a specific match.

And these were only Steward badges. There were the Superintendent ones as well.

Here are 3 from the 1953 final. There is also the shield version of the Superintendent badge.

[upthecounty]

Hi Leslie, thanks for directing me to your collection, that really is a football fans dream collection.
I find it surprising that I don't seem to be able to uncover the actual dates that these badges were given out. It appears that they started at Wembley in 1923 and ended sometime around the mid 1980's. If anyone has more information I would love to hear from them.
Cheers Scott

[bisphamseasider]

As far as I am aware there are no definitive lists for these badges and the collection sold at Bonhams is probably the best guide there is around.

They definitely started with the 1st Wembley final in 1923 and as you have deduced, appear to have finished around 1984 or 1985.

[upthecounty]

bisphamseasider wrote:

As far as I am aware there are no definitive lists for these badges and the collection sold at Bonhams is probably the best guide there is around. They definitely started with the 1st Wembley final in 1923 and as you have deduced, appear to have finished around 1984 or 1985.

Thanks for your pictures, really smart pieces.

[manchesterunitedman1]

Just located this one as well from 1983, but as United went back to Wembley in 1985 and into the 1990's this seems to be the last one that i have come across, also interesting to see it was for "Spring 1983" as against all the others in the past had a year or the season, perhaps this was the beginning of the end and they were just fazed out and given a Hi Viz jacket and told to get on with it as by then bloody health and safety may have been the order of the day!


manchesterunitedman1
www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterunitedman1/sets

[Dorking]

Yep, hi-viz replaced a simple armband and brooch

[seand]

Interesting topic this one.

bisphamseasider, are those FA Cup Final specific, or generic badges for the entire year? I ask because they look non-match-specific in the scans (but obviously still a nice item for collectors of the season's cup finalists)

[upthecounty]

seand wrote:

Interesting topic this one. bisphamseasider, are those FA Cup Final specific, or generic badges for the entire year? I ask because they look non-match-specific in the scans (but obviously still a nice item for collectors of the season's cup finalists)

From my own limited collection, I don't believe that they are match specific and relate purely to the year or in the latter stages the season i.e. spring, autumn etc.

I also find it interesting that as the badges came to the end of there life, so to speak, the design also suffered. Personal opinion of course, but those last Two decades i.e. 70's & 80's weren't the prettiest of badges, whereas the 20's, 30's, 40's and 50's really do have some substance.
I will leave you with that opinion.

[bisphamseasider]

seand wrote:

Interesting topic this one. bisphamseasider, are those FA Cup Final specific, or generic badges for the entire year? I ask because they look non-match-specific in the scans (but obviously still a nice item for collectors of the season's cup finalists)

I was always under the impression that these were specific just to the FA Cup final because I have seen different ones for international matches at Wembley with details of the actual fixture.

Some of the pre war ones actually showed 'Final Tie' and then some of the more recent ones showed a season rather than a year.

But you could be right. I am not an expert on these and I am sure there are others who know more about them than me.

[bisphamseasider]

Just an addition to my post above, the set sold by Bonhams were sold as FA Cup Final steward badges although there was the odd specific international in amongst them.

[manchesterunitedman1]

Stewards badge worn at Manchester United for England v Scotland 1926.

Wonder if the Stewards were brought in or they used the United existing Stewards and gave them one of these magnificent enamelled badges!

https://flic.kr/p/6oLj7W

Leslie Millman is manchesterunitedman1

[sydenham hill]

Interesting topic this, my earliest stewards badge is from the 1903 f a cup final, i also have ones for the 1910 and 1913 finals as well, these all have the words final tie on them, i do have a shield shaped one that could be even earlier, aithough that one just says F A steward, but it did come from the family of a man who was a steward at the Crystal Palace and Stamford Bridge finals, i would love to know when the use of stewards was first introduced and when the badges were first issued

[rsway]

Interesting to see these enamal badges being described as Cup Final badges. When I was 10 or 11 my father knew someone who was a steward/superintendent at Wembley and after an England international he would pass on the programme and every now and then I would get one of these badges and I have a collection of ten or so covering 1961 through to 1966. It would appear that the badge shape remained the same for the year and the badge colour changed, presumably from match to match. For instance I have three from 1964 which are square - one dark blue, one green and one red...the first two being steward badges the last a superintendent. As noted elsewhere they do not appear to be match specific and if auction houses are selling them as 'Cup Final' badges they might be a little wide of the mark.

[Valky]

Quality info rsway. Am quite fascinated about how the system worked. Wonder how many club sides used this system. Would love to have some old Chelsea steward badges! This is the only one I own to date

[Wullie]