Being the son of a librarian, my childhood was full of reading – mainly as much sports fiction as possible. That’s how I discovered the book “The Table Football League” a copy of which I still own today. The story centres around young Noel Hooper, who receives a Subbuteo set…
Author: James Gordon
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Six random Subbuteo gifts
The Subbuteo brand and imagery is still iconic – and for that reason, it does appear in various forms in the ever-popular novelty gifts market, particularly in the run-up to Christmas. Coasters Where better to place your brew than on a hard-wearing cork backed coaster adorned with several different Subbuteo…
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The history of Subbuteo Rugby
Subbuteo Rugby first appeared on the market in the mid 1950’s. It was available for about four years when due to very poor sales it was deleted. This first version was far removed from the version that we came to know and love. It was available in two Boxed Sets,…
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The man keeping Subbuteo Rugby alive
Subbuteo goes beyond football, and it was the discovery of the rugby version that rekindled my interest in Subbuteo more than a decade ago. Subbuteo Rugby was a game of complexities and confusion. There was a combined set for league and union, but it was never marketed perhaps as well…
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How close Sky Sports got to showing live Subbuteo action
It arrived in 2016 with an ambitious dream – to get Subbuteo live on Sky Sports. But the Pro Table Soccer Association barely lasted another 18 months, its exciting and professional plans hindered by a lack of support from players and sponsors alike. Former PTSA chairman Daniel Lilley pointed to…
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When Mario Balotelli set up a Subbuteo league at Liverpool
Famed perhaps more for his antics off the pitch than on them, Subbuteo perhaps wouldn’t be an activity you’d associate with former Premier League winner and Italy international Mario Balotelli. But back in 2015, during a time when he was out of favour at Anfield, he got his team-mates together…
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Calls to change how Subbuteo is run in England
The English Subbuteo Association is calling for help to support it organise and run Subbuteo in England. In a passionate plea on the association’s official Facebook page, chairman Dave Pawsey expressed concerns over the ESA and asks for as many clubs as possible to contact him by Friday September 14…
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Has the internet spoiled the beauty of collecting Subbuteo?
The days where you could walk in to a shop and uncover a previously unseen Subbuteo team are long gone. That is of course unless you stumble across a previously loved but discarded lot in a charity shop somewhere. My age means my recollections of seeing Subbuteo on the shelves…
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How has Subbuteo survived the ‘FIFA age’?
That was a question I was asked by a BBC journalist some eight years ago. If anything, Subbuteo presence has improved since then. Back then, we didn’t have any real sets of note on sale – Marks and Spencer had launched a limited edition box set and the great La…
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Frustrations of a modern day Subbuteo collector
For all collectors of Subbuteo, there are pros and cons of the modern age. eBay can be a fantastic outlet to find those old teams, but is also plagued by repainters. Those don’t really impact me, as my focus is collecting modern Subbuteo ranges (Hasbro onwards) – but here are…