Rome Wasn't Built in a Day, Chapter Four; Great betrayals & teams of all talents

The launch of the Football League in 1888 was an immediate success, but the pressures of a professional sport didn't take long to rear their heads.

4. Great betrayals & teams of all talents

Accrington, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Burnley, Derby County, Everton, Notts County, Preston North End, Stoke, West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

On the 8th September 1888, these twelve clubs took to the pitch for a round of matches that brought in a whole new world for football. William McGregor was right. A crowd of 10,000 had turned out at Anfield to see Everton play Accrington on that opening Saturday, and it was claimed that crowds had trebled on what they’d been the year before. In total, 602,000 people were reported as having attended League matches throughout the inaugural season of the Football League, an average attendance of 4,560 across 132 matches.