Historians cannot agree on when and where football, in its rawest form, was first played. Was it in Ancient Greece, Rome or even China? There is very basic evidence to suggest that each of those eras had its own unique version of the sport. But in terms of organised association football, with rules and regulations that are familiar all over the globe, it was the north of England in which the beautiful game had its true watershed moment.
One of the earliest ‘official’ games of football took place between two teams from Sheffield in 1860. In January 2025, they would meet once more in a local cup competition – with the fixture played at the oldest football ground on the planet.
Phenomenal Interest
Although it’s not a contest up there with the Merseyside Derby or the Old Firm game in terms of prestige, Sheffield FC vs Hallam FC can outstrip any other fixture in world football when it comes to pure age. They have played each other more than 100 times in the 165 years since their first meeting, but haven’t been able to renew hostilities since 2012, when they last met.
However, that will change when Sheffield and Hallam meet in the Sheffield & Hallamshire Senior Cup at Sandygate, Hallam’s home ground that is officially recognised as the oldest football stadium in the world. It was on the Boxing Day of 1860 that Hallam and Stumperlow took on Sheffield FC at Sandygate, although it’s believed that the venue had hosted informal games of football as far back as the start of the nineteenth century.
Back then, the captains of the two teams would meet at the adjoining Plough Inn to thrash out the rules of their games, although sadly there will be no repeat of that in 2025 with the pub demolished two years ago. Such is the interest in football’s long history, fans of the sport from all over the globe sough to secure tickets for the Sheffield showdown in January.
Hallam FC chairman, Richard Pillinger, revealed that ‘phenomenal’ demand for tickets had seen the club receive messages from football lovers worldwide, while the 1,496 capacity Sandygate could have been filled several times over. There was even talk that the game could be switched to one of the city’s larger stadia, such as Bramall Lane, but Pillinger believes that was never a viable option. He said,
We did get the offer to take it to one of the major clubs in the city, but it takes it away from the oldest ground.
A lot of people want to come to the oldest derby at the oldest ground. That’s where it needs to be.
Back in 1860, Sheffield FC – officially the oldest recognised football club on the planet, having been founded in 1857 – ran out 2-0 winners against Hallam.
Football’s Oldest Rivalries
Given that they first met all those years ago, it’s not disingenuous to describe Sheffield FC vs Hallam FC as football’s oldest rivalry. But if you were to consider teams that play at the professional level, one of the oldest rivalries in English football is the Black Country derby between Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion.
They first met in January 1883, with the Baggies winning that Birmingham Cup encounter 4-2. Since then, they’ve locked horns on 163 occasions, with an incredibly close head-to-head record of 65-54 in West Brom’s favour, with 44 draws.
Fierce Rivalry
But the long history, and the proximity of the two teams geographically, has led to some feisty contests over the years, with one tie in 2024 suspended for 38 minutes as fighting broke out into the stands, forcing the players to climb into the crowd to carry their children to safety.
There can’t be many rivalries in which the two teams have played each other more times than Celtic vs Rangers. The Old Firm protagonists first met in 1888, with more than 400 meetings between the sides since – in the Scottish Premiership, they can meet four times per season, while there’s also a strong chance that they’ll meet at the business end of the domestic cups, too.
As far as international football is concerned, the oldest rivalry pairs England Scotland together. They met in what was, officially, the first recognised international game back in November 1872. And the match, almost inevitably, ended 0-0.
The Oldest Grounds in Football

It’s not exactly a household name in world football, but Hallam FC’s Sandygate stadium is, officially, the oldest ground in the game. However, historians and fans of Wrexham AFC will be quick to challenge that assertion. Although Sandygate may have been the first stadium to host a football game, the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham was built as far back as 1807.
That makes it the oldest venue that would go on to become a football stadium, you might say, with the first game taking place there in 1864. And the Racecourse Ground is also the oldest remaining international football stadium still in use to this day, with Wales first playing there back in 1877.
Oldest Ground in the EFL
The oldest ground in the English Football League is Field Mill, the home of Mansfield Town. It was built at some point in the 1850s, before welcoming its first football game in 1861. Intriguingly, Sheffield has another ancient stadium that could be a contender for this crown. Bramall Lane, now the home of Sheffield United, was first opened in 1855, however it exclusively hosted cricket until 1862, at which point the first football games were played there.
First Purposely Designed for Football
The first stadium to be purposely designed and built for football is thought to be Everton’s Goodison Park, which first opened its doors in 1892. But that accolade will soon be lost, with the Toffees moving to their new Bramley Moore Dock home for the start of the 2025/26 season. Goodison Park will likely be demolished and redeveloped as a housing estate.