Go to a sportsman's dinner at your local football club and the evening often ends with an auction of football memorabilia. Up for auction are usually signed pictures of players and signed shirts. These can attract big bids and are often snapped up by the well-heeled.
However, there is a form of collecting such memorabilia which need not be anywhere near as expensive. It is collecting football programmes. Now usually dubbed the matchday magazine the football programme is bought by many of us who attend games. They can be overpriced glossy efforts in the professional game, to more humble but just as informative publications in the lower reaches of the non-league.
To be a collector you need not only keep all your programmes but ensure they remain in tip-top condition. Many supporters also collect programmes from other clubs, while the real aficionados go for rarer programmes from years past. These can be very valuable.
Collecting Can Become A Lifelong Pursuit
Many of us developed our passion for collecting football programmes during childhood. When we were taken to our first game we were bought the match day programme. And ever since then we have continued the ritual of acquiring a programme every time we go to a game.
What makes us programme collectors different from other football fans is that we treasure our collections. They are stored away and kept in as good a condition as when they were first bought.
What became an interest in match day programmes when we were children continued when we grew up into adulthood. It became a lifelong pursuit. And we developed it further.
Where once upon a time we only bought programmes for our favourite team, both home and away, we began looking for ones from other clubs. Then we looked for programmes from big games and from years past, quite prepared to spend a pretty penny on them if we saw fit.
Collectors and the Big Game
Some football programme collectors prefer to collect programmes from big games. These are often for cup finals for competitions such as the FA Cup, League Cup, the Scottish FA and League Cups and the Champions League.
There is also a market for cup final programmes from competitions which no longer exist. These include the likes of the Watneys Cup, the Anglo-Scottish Cup the UEFA Cup and the European Cup Winners Cup.
The main problem about collecting big game programmes is getting hold of them. If you can get a ticket for a game you can always buy one there. But what about the game you can't attend, or those programmes from competitions which no longer exist?
Then you have to buy them, either on the internet or at programme fairs. But be aware, rare programmes are often expensive. But if you are lucky enough to acquire one it can be quite an investment.
Visit Vintage Football Programmes for a great selection of pre-1970 football programmes and football memorabilia.
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